A slow cooked ragu is always somewhat beautiful, packed with deep, rich flavours, it has the capabilities to turn a normal evenings dinner into something a bit special, enough to make you want to light a candle. Now add slow cooked duck into that, served with pappardelle, that takes it to the next level; am I wrong in saying theres something quite sexy about it? Well I think so, but I'll let you be the judge.

Serves: 4

Cooking time: 25 mins prep + 6-8 hours slow cook

Ingredients:

• 2 Duck Legs
• 1 Onion
• 1 Carrot
• 2 Celery sticks
• 2 tbsp Flour
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tin Chopped Tomatoes
• 500ml Chicken Stock
• 1/2 Garlic
• Dash of Worcester Sauce
• 1 tsp Marmite
• 1 tsp Brown Sugar
• 100ml Red wine
• 100ml Milk
• Cinnamon stick
• 2 Bay Leaves
• S&P
• Glug of oil
• 1 tbsp Cornflour (opt)
• Fresh Pappardelle to serve
• Parmesan to serve
  
  

1. Start off by putting a pan on a high heat and adding a glug of oil ready to brown the duck legs.
2. Season the duck before adding to the pan, skin side down. Brown these off all over for ~ 10 minutes. Place in the bottom of the slow cooker pot when ready.
3. Meanwhile, turn the oven to 200C and cut the top off the garlic so the bulbs are exposed. Place on some foil, drizzling with oil before wrapping up and roasting in the oven for 30 minutes.
4. Return the pan the duck was browned in to the heat, keeping in the fats but putting on a low heat.
5. Finely dice the onions, adding to the pan to soften before dicing the carrots and celery and throwing in.
6. Sauté these on a low heat for ~ 10 mins, seasoning and adding in the flour and the cinnamon when beginning to go golden. Add to the slow cooker pot when all coated.
7. Add in the tinned tomatoes, chicken stock, Worcester sauce, marmite, sugar, red wine, milk, bay leaves and milk.
8. When the garlic has roasted, remove from the oven and carefully squeeze the garlic out of the bulbs casing and into the slow cooker.
9. Put on the low heat slow cooker setting for 6-12 hours.
10. When getting ready to eat, remove the lid from the bubbling pot and begin pulling the duck apart with two forks. It should just fall apart at this point.
11. Mix in with the sauce until a beautiful pulled duck ragu forms. If the sauce needs thickening, take some of the liquid and mix with 1 tbsp of cornstarch to form a paste, stirring back in and cooking for another 30 minutes.
12. When ready to eat, cook the pasta till al dente. Stir in with the ragu and serve with lashings of parmesan.

Serving note: Best enjoyed sharing a the rest of the bottle of red wine with a candle lit, listening to Noah Kahan.