- Whole fennel and black peppercorns – These are toasted then ground, for maximum flavour impact. I would not ask you to make the effort to toast and grind if I really didn’t believe it was worth it. It is! However, I have substitutions in the recipe notes for ground fennel and pepper, if that’s all you have.
- More spices – Nutmeg, paprika, chilli flakes (red pepper flakes). Feel free to dial back the chilli if you’re concerned about spicineess.
2. IN THE PASTA AND THE SAUCE
- Pasta – Any long strand thinnish pasta is ideal here. I use fettuccine.
- Tomato passata – This is pureed, strained pure tomatoes, sometimes labelled “tomato puree” in the US (here’s a photo of Mutti tomato passata sold at Walmart). It’s readily available in Australian supermarkets nowadays, alongside pasta sauces. It costs around the same as canned tomato.
Passata is excellent for making thick, smooth sauces and soups without a long simmer time like required to break down crushed tomato. A regular in my recipes! More on tomato passata here.
- Tomato paste – A boost of tomatoey flavour and to help thicken the sauce.
- Garlic – Because, garlic. Rarely do savoury recipes happen around here without garlic!
- Parsley and parmesan – garnishes. I know parmesan isn’t strictly traditional in Italian fish and seafood pastas. But, it works. We’re not after loads of parmesan cheesiness. It just adds saltiness.
3. PANGRATTATO
Pangrattato is an Italian chunky breadcrumb topping that adds an addictive crunch and flavor to pasta dishes and salads. I particularly like it with this fish ragu as it adds great texture and is a terrific contrast to the soft fish.
- Bread – Use a denser bread like sourdough, ciabatta etc which have structure and go really crunchy when toasted. Lightweight sandwich bread is a little too delicate and kind of just dissolves into powder, bypassing the crunch completely. 🙂 BUT – if sandwich bread is all you have, I’d still go ahead! Or, substitute with panko breadcrumbs.
- Oil and salt – To make it crunchy and salty.
How to make fish ragu
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