Spaghetti a la Chief

The Chief was a terrific cook, his specialty being spaghetti with meat sauce. (A lot of pasta went into building that physique.) This dish took all day to prepare and required a few bottles of red wine to keep the chef hydrated. The secret to this sauce is chopping all the ingredients to the same size. So, grab a bottle of Chianti and get cooking.

Ingredients

Meatballs

2 slices of white bread

4 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese

½ cup of milk

2 tablespoons of chopped garlic

2 pounds (approx. 1kg.) of ground beef

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup of finely chopped onions

Water

3 tablespoons of chopped fresh parsley

3 tablespoons of olive oil

2 eggs

Directions

In a bowl, soak the bread in the milk. In a medium bowl, mix the ground beef, bread, milk, onions, parsley, eggs, cheese, and garlic. Add salt and pepper. If the mixture is dry, add up to a ½ cup of cold water and mix well. Form the mixture into two meatballs.

Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan over medium to high heat. Brown the meatballs for 10-15 minutes, turning regularly. Dry the meatballs on paper towels.

Sauce

½ cup of olive oil

1 lb (appx 500g) mild sausage

1 lb (500g) sliced skinless chicken thighs

½ lb (200g) of hot Italian sausage

1 cup of diced pancetta

6 thinly sliced pork chops

1 tablespoon crushed red pepper

2 cups of dry red wine, (plus some more for the cook)

2 cans Italian plum tomatoes

2 tablespoons chopped garlic

2 cups of fresh basil

2 onions, chopped

2 lbs (1kg) uncooked spaghetti

Directions

In a large pot over medium heat, warm the oil, and sauté the sausages, chicken thighs and pork chops until brown about 10 minutes. Don't worry if the meat is not cooked through, it will finish in the sauce.

Remove the meat from the pan and set aside. Keep the pan over medium heat. Deglaze the pan by adding a cup of the wine and scraping up the bits.

In the same pot add the garlic, onions, pancetta, and crusted pepper and cook until the onions and garlic are lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add the remaining cup of red wine and cook until the mixture is reduced by half. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 1 hour over low heat.

Add the basil, sausage, pork chops, and the meatballs to the tomato sauce and simmer for one more hour over low heat.

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta for 10-12 minutes or until al dente.

Drain the pasta and toss it with the sauce.Serve immediately.