Photo by Michael Piazza / Styled by Catrine Kelty

Here is a festive dish you can prepare for a dinner party and then freeze the leftovers; pack in serving-size containers to enjoy over pasta (or another starch) all winter long. Since local lamb can be on the expensive side, I like to use the cheapest cuts in this sauce (like thin shoulder chops or neck) along with a lot of vegetables, stretching a smaller amount of meat to feed more people, but if you love (pricier) lamb shanks, they’re delicious in this preparation, too—especially served whole over a bowl of buttered couscous or cooked chickpeas. Full of warming spices and sweetness from dates and orange, this sunny ragù is especially nice when garnished with this salty, roasted pistachio gremolata, but almonds make a wonderful substitute.

Serves 6–8 as a pasta sauce, with leftovers

Braise:
3–3½ pounds lamb with bones, like shoulder chops or neck or a combination of both
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium onions, finely diced (about 3 cups)
3 ribs celery, finely diced
2 carrots, finely diced
2 pounds honeynut or butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into ½-inch cubes
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 Medjool dates, each cut lengthwise into 8 slivers
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon red chili flakes
1 small cinnamon stick
½ teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon whole coriander seeds
3 (2-inch) strips orange zest (use a vegetable peeler)
1 cup white wine (Picpoul de Pinet, Albariño or Grüner Veltliner are good choices)
1 cup chicken stock or water
½ cup tomato purée or 2 tablespoons tomato paste loosened with ¼ cup water
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or balsamic vinegar

Gremolata:
1 cup minced flat-leaf Italian parsley
½ cup roasted salted pistachios or almonds, finely chopped
½ teaspoon orange zest
1 clove garlic, minced

To serve:
16 ounces dried egg pappardelle
grated Pecorino Romano, optional

Season the lamb liberally with salt and pepper. In a high-sided Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and brown the lamb on all sides, working in batches if necessary. Remove lamb to a sheet tray as it’s browned to collect any juices.

Using a pot holder and a long handled spoon, tilt the pot and spoon out almost all of the fat, leaving about 1 tablespoon behind. Add the onions, celery and carrots, season with salt and pepper and sauté until the vegetables begin to soften and release their liquid, then add the squash, garlic, dates, spices and orange zest. Stir and cook until fragrant. Pour in the wine and stir; simmer until liquid is reduced by half, then add the broth and tomato paste or purée. Stir to combine. Return the browned lamb pieces and any accumulated juices to the braising liquid. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer, about 90 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425°F.

After 1½ hours on the stovetop, stir in 2 tablespoons sherry or balsamic vinegar to the braising liquid, taste and season with more salt to balance the sweetness of the dates. Remove the cinnamon stick. Place the lamb in the oven and roast, uncovered, an additional 45 minutes or until the squash and lamb are tender and caramelized. Remove lamb pieces from the Dutch oven and set aside to cool slightly.

Once cool enough to handle, use your hands to remove the meat from the bones and shred into bite-sized pieces with two forks. Discard the bones and return meat to the sauce; taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

To serve, stir together the parsley, nuts, garlic and orange zest for the gremolata. Cook the pasta according to the package instructions and toss with a few spoonfuls of ragú and some pasta cooking water to loosen; serve with more ragú on top of each serving, sprinkled with gremolata and some pecorino, if using.

Freeze remaining lamb sauce to serve reheated with chickpeas or couscous or more pasta.

This recipe appeared in the Winter 2022 issue as part of a larger story, In Praise of the Braise.