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    Home » Cuisine » Italian

    Kabocha Squash Gnocchi with Meat Ragu

    Published: Feb 21, 2010 · Modified: Oct 24, 2014 by Jennifer Che

    _1020068-1
    You'd be surprise how satisfying a simple meat sauce poured over handmade gnocchi can be.  This meat sauce is nothing close to complicated.  Throw together ground beef, onions, and canned tomatoes, and you got yourself a pretty tasty sauce.

    I think the key in this case are time and quality of ingredients.  I used more expensive San Marzano tomatoes (I bought mine at Whole Foods), which I'm sure made a difference in the flavor of the final sauce.  You also caramelize the onions for about 20 minutes, which really gives them a beautiful sweet flavor.

    Though the meat sauce is relatively easy, the entire recipe is rather involved, as it also includes handmade kabocha squash gnocchi (tutorial here).  Of course, you can always take a shortcut by buying the gnocchi if you are short on time.  Definitely add a drizzle of white truffle oil and a dash of sea salt to make this dish outstanding.
    Inspired by Saveur

    Ingredients
    1 lb. ground meat (e.g. beef, or mixture of beef and pork)
    2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
    Salt and freshly ground black pepper
    1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
    1 28-oz. can peeled whole plum tomatoes, chopped (preferably, San Marzano tomatoes)
    Kabocha Squash Gnocchi

    BeefRagu-1
    Meat Sauce
    Brown meat in 1 tbsp. of the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat, using the back of a wooden spoon to break meat up. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Meanwhile, cook onions in remaining 1 tbsp. oil in another medium skillet over medium heat until soft and golden, about 20 minutes.  Stir in tomatoes and their juices. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens. Add the ground meat to the tomato sauce.
    handmade gnocchi
    Cook the gnocchi (either boiling it for a few minutes until they rise or pan-frying it in a skillet).  Combine, and serve!

    Enjoy!
    beef ragu gnocchi

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    Jennifer Che Tiny Urban Kitchen

    Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am an expat who moved from Boston to Hong Kong 5 years ago. Born and raised in Ohio to Taiwanese immigrant parents, I am a chemistry nerd, patent attorney by day, blogger by night, church musician on weekends, and food enthusiast always. Feel free to explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!

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