Clodagh McKenna rustles up an authentic ragu

Italian job: Page 46

IT WAS when I lived in Turin, in northern Italy, that I learned how to make a proper ragu, what we might call bolognese. Before that, I had always made it just with minced beef but, in fact, it should be made with 50pc minced pork and 50pc minced beef. It’s the fat in the pork that makes the ragu taste so delicious. It’s also important to slow-cook it for a couple of hours over a low heat, so the meat goes tender and the flavours have a chance to develop.

I love making this on a Saturday morning and allowing it to cook all day. I double up on the recipe and freeze portions for easy suppers during the week.

I use tinned cherry tomatoes as

I find them a lot sweeter than the chopped kind. I love the flavour of dried oregano in the ragu — again, something that I learned in Italy.

It lends a delicious sweet earthy flavour.

Talking about Italian treats, last weekend I discovered a fantastic wine bar in Notting Hill, London, called Negozio Classica. It’s intimate and authentic, and sells incredible Tuscan Avignonesi wines by the glass and also a thoughtful selection of other

Italian wines.

My idea of heaven, and one of my new favourite spots.