This is one of the simplest ragus you can make. Instead of the long cooking time needed for bigger cuts of meat, this recipe uses spicy Italian sausage to provide depth. It's perfect for weeknights or also a favourite at a long lunch.
Inspired by the traditional dish from Sardinia, instead of using onion this recipe uses fresh fennel: stems and bulb.

500 g italian pork sausages, about 5 sausages
1 bulb fennel, small, with fronds
1⁄2 onion
3 cloves garlic
2 tins whole, peeled tomatoes
4 tbsp olive oil
1⁄2 cup white wine
1⁄2 tsp salt
2 tsp chilli, flakes
350 g gnochetti
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Remove the sausages from their casing by squeezing out small pieces into a medium bowl and set aside.
Pick a handful of the fronds from the stalks and set aside, then finely dice the white part of the bulb. Dice the . Finely slice the . Tip the tins of whole into a medium bowl and crush with a potato masher or your hands, remove any tough bits as you go.
In a medium sized frypan over medium-high heat, add 2 tbsp of the and the . Break up the sausage pieces with the back of a wooden spoon, you want the texture to be like a rough mince. Cook for about 5 minutes, until well browned and any juices have evaporated.
Remove meat from the pan, tip out any excess oil, then add the and deglaze the pan, scraping off any browned bits from the bottom. Tip the deglazing liquid into a small bowl and set aside.
Put the frypan back on medium heat, add remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil, then saute the for 5 minutes until soft, then add the , diced fennel and and cook for 5 minutes, until the fennel softens and smells sweet.
Add the fried back to the pan along with the deglazing juices, give it a good stir and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the , and , if using, then fill one of the tomato tins with water and add to the pan. Reduce heat to medium low, cover with a lid and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens and comes together.
Taste and add more or if needed, then turn off the heat.
Serve with or any short shaped pasta.
If the sausage you use is a true "Italian sausage" it will include lots of spice and fennel seeds. If this is the case, you might not need to add as much chilli and fennel as recommended above. If you can only get your hands on a plain pork sausage – that's totally fine – just jazz it up with fennel seedy and chilli as you cook. Taste as you go and you can't go wrong.




