Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Grilled Sausage Ragout

No, I don't have a fog machine in my kitchen. That's steeeam, baby.

I brought this to the office yesterday and it was inhaled by my crew of tasters. I think this would be very nice over pasta (rigatoni or shells). At home, we had it with garlic toast.

This recipe uses the grill, both to add flavor and to keep the kitchen neat. You should feel free to saute everything instead if you prefer or if you don't have a grill at hand.

Grilled Sausage Ragout, serves 6
  • 2 medium eggplants
  • olive oil
  • 3 red bell peppers (or 1 cup roasted red peppers from a jar)
  • 8 sausages (italian, garlic and cheese, etc. - no maple or apple)
  • 2 large tomatoes
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1/2 cup basil leaves, chopped or torn coarsely
Heat your gas grill to medium heat. (I am no master of the charcoal grill, but if using charcoal: indirect heat for this step.)

Slice the eggplant (the short way) into thick rounds (about 3/4" thick). Brush with olive oil and put on the grill.

Slice the bell peppers into large pieces (you'll be cutting them smaller later). Brush with oil and put on the grill. Grill the vegetables slowly, until the red peppers' skins are brown and crackly and the eggplant is soft through (15-20 minutes). Set the vegetables aside.

Turn the heat up on the grill and cook the sausages until done. Refrigerate all these items until you are ready make the ragout.

Make the ragout: Cut the roasted eggplant into large chunks. Peel the skins off the peppers and tear the peppers into bite-sized pieces (discard the skins). Cut the sausage into rounds. Cut the tomatoes into large chunks. Put everything into a large saucepan or dutch oven on the stove. Heat everything together, stirring occasionally. The tomatoes and eggplant will break down, making a thick sauce. (This will take about 15 minutes.) Press the garlic through a garlic press and stir in to the ragout.

When the ragout is heated through and the tomatoes have broken down, stir in the basil. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve.

This tastes better the next day.

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