Tuscan Wild Boar Ragu with Pappardelle Pasta Ribbons
This rich and hearty wild boar ragu recipe comes from Tuscany. However, wild boar ragu with pasta is popular in a number of other Italian regions too, including where I live in Veneto. In fact, we often see wild boar near our house! But, of course, we don’t hunt them!
Pappardelle con ragu di cinghiale alla toscana.
To many people, wild boar ragu sounds rather exotic and luxurious! But, actually, wild boar has been hunted and eaten by humans for thousands of years. In fact, it is used in traditional recipes in many parts of the world.
Here in Italy, wild boar are hunted and farmed throughout the country. The meat is used to make salami and sausages and cooked in various ways, although mostly braised or stewed. One of the most well-known wild boar dishes is this pappardelle with wild boar ragu, which comes from Tuscany There, it is often thought of as ‘the’ regional dish!
Wild boar in Tuscany.
Wild boar are widespread in Tuscany. I have read that there are around 150,000 wild boar in the region. Many of these animals can be found in the Maremma area, a beautiful unspoiled part of Southern Tuscany, which is home to a large national park of the same name.
Hunting wild boar is a tradition and a passion in Tuscany and there are many Tuscan specialities made with wild boar. The region hosts about 10 annual wild boar festivals in different towns and villages, where visitors can taste some of these foods.
Wild boar is a very healthy meat!
Whether farmed or hunted, wild boar is a very healthy meat. It is lower in calories, fat, saturated fat and cholesterol than normal pork. It’s also higher in protein than pork, beef, lamb and chicken. When farmed, the animals are kept in a free-range environment and aren’t given any antibiotics or growth hormones. This is true not only in Italy, but also the US.
Apart from being a healthier meat option, wild boar is also very tasty. It falls somewhere between pork and venison. Although, the older the animal, the stronger the flavour. Older animals also have tougher meat. Here in Italy, the meat for wild boar ragu is traditionally marinated in red wine to not only tenderize it, but also to add flavour! This is what I did for this Tuscan wild boar ragu recipe and the meat was melt in your mouth soft!
Marinating the wild boar meat makes it tender.
As I mentioned above, wild boar meat has to be marinated in red wine with herbs and vegetables for 12 hours before cooking. I used a Chianti, of course! Some people leave it for 24 hours! So, you will need to take that into account when planning to prepare this dish. However, apart from the marinating and cooking time, Tuscan wild boar ragu is pretty easy to make. Cooking times can vary depending on the meat.
I found recipes with widely different recommended cooking times (from one hour to 4 hours!). So, I suggest it’s best to be prepared to cook as long as necessary for the meat to be tender rather than just to follow the stated cooking times. As I said before, the older the animal the tougher the meat. So, meat from a young animal will require less cooking time than that of an older boar. Mine took about 2 hours.
Other ingredients for your wild boar ragu.
The other ingredients are similar to those in other ragu recipes; onion, carrot, celery, peeled tomatoes and herbs such as rosemary and bay leaves, as well as juniper berries. Some recipes call for sage instead of rosemary, or both. I didn’t use sage. Some recipes suggest using the marinating veggies in the sauce. But, I peeled and chopped fresh ones as I didn’t like the idea of using the wine soaked ones.
Wow your guests with wild boar ragu!
Nowadays wild boar meat is quite widely available and can even be bought online. Here, I can buy it frozen all year round already cut into chunks. Needless to say, wild boar is more expensive than pork. But, now and again, I think it’s great to try new foods and this is very much a special occasion dish, even in Italy. It’s sure to give your meal a wow factor and impress your guests. It would be perfect for a holiday meal at Christmas or New Year.
The pasta.
Wild boar ragu is nearly always served with pappardelle, or sometimes tagliatelle. I used dried pappardelle that I got earlier this year on a visit to Campofilone in Le Marche region. Campofilone is famous for its fine egg pasta called maccheroncini di Campofilone. However, many of the pasta makers there also make other types of egg pasta. This pappardelle came from a company called Pasta Marilungo.
If you don’t have pappardelle or tagliatelle, you can use different pasta! You can also serve this Tuscan wild boar ragu with polenta or mashed potatoes. Both are yummy, although I prefer with pasta, of course!
If you do try this Tuscan wild boar ragu recipe, I’d love to hear what you think. Please, write a comment here on the blog or post a comment on the Pasta Project Facebook page.
Your feedback means a lot to me!
Buon Appetito!
Other recipes from Tuscany on The Pasta Project.
Tuscan wild boar ragu with pappardelle pasta
Ingredients
- 500 g wild boar (1.1lbs) you can also use pork
- 400 g pappardelle pasta (14oz)
for Marinade
- 1 onion peeled and halved
- 1 carrot washed and cut into large pieces
- 1 celery stalk washed and cut into large pieces
- 2-3 bay leaves
- 2 tsp juniper berries
- 2 cloves of garlic peeled
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 1 lt red wine (4-5 cups)
- ground black pepper
For the sauce
- 500 g tomato passata or peeled tomatoes (1.1lbs)
- 1 onion peeled and finely chopped
- 1 carrot washed and finely chopped
- 1 celery stalk washed and finely chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 garlic cloves peeled
- 3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 glass red wine
- salt for pasta and to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Wash the wild boar meat, cut it into chunks and put it in a large bowl.
- Add the onion (peeled and cut in half) and the carrot and the celery in large pieces, the 2 peeled cloves of garlic, the bay leaves, the juniper berries, the rosemary and some black pepper.
- Cover with red wine and mix.
- Cover the container with plastic wrap or a lid and allow to stand in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours.
- Once the necessary time has passed, drain the meat and eliminate the vegetables and herbs. You can cut the meat into smaller pieces if preferred.
Make the ragu
- Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large frying pan or skillet and fry the garlic, carrot, celery and onion slightly Add the bay leaves
- Add the wild boar meat and brown it on all sides.
- Add the red wine and let the alcohol evaporate.
- Lower the flame and cook for about 10 minutes.
- Add the tomato pulp/ peeled tomatoes and a pinch of salt and pepper and cook with the flame reduced to a minimum for about 1.5-2 hours (depending on the size of the pieces of wild boar and how old it is). Stir occasionally and add some beef stock or water if the sauce seems dry.
- While the ragu is cooking put a pot of water onto boil for the pasta. Add salt once it starts to boil and bring to the boil again. When you are ready to serve your wild boar ragu, cook the pasta al dente according to the instructions on the packet. Once ready, save a cup of the cooking water and drain the pasta.
- If you are reheating the ragu and it seems dry add some of the pasta cooking water. Remove the bay leaves and garlic cloves and add the pasta to the ragu and mix together carefully. You don’t want to break the pasta ribbons.
- Serve immediately. (Italians don't normally add grated cheese to this dish or chopped parsley)
Notes
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This recipe was originally published in 2018. It has been updated with new photos and text.
Can I use a boneless chop of boar instead of stew? will it be fatty enough to hold up to the slow cook you think?
Hi, Alanna thanks for your comment. To be honest I’m not sure if boneless chop works in this recipe as wild boar chops don’t usually require slow cooking. I have never tried boar chops for ragu. The meat for that is usually leg or shoulder. However, I have seen many recipes for braised pork chops that require about an hour of cooking so it’s possible the boar chop can be braised. If you use it, don’t cut the meat too small and check it after 45 minutes to an hour max.
Great recipe Jacqui!
We own a farmhouse in Tuscany and always get our favourite Wild Boar Ragu when we visit from the UK!
This recipe is best we have found, we have a local farm shop that sells 500gm packs of wild boar so we can now recreate this wonderful dish! Bella Grazie!!
Thanks for your comment Dave. I’m happy to hear you like this wild boar ragu recipe! I’ve also had it in Tuscany! So very good!
I am only able to get ground wild boar. I would like to sear it first, but I have a couple of questions. One,since it is already ground, does it still need to be tenderized? Two, I know you used Chianti in your recipe, but will any wine work? The reason I ask is because I have some bottles of sweet sherry lying around and some Malbec as well and I was thinking of using those unless it would ruin the dish. Thank you in advance.
Hi Jeremy, thanks for your comment. If you’re using ground boar meat I don’t think you need to tenderize it. Just sear/brown it first as you intend. Re the wine I wouldn’t use sweet sherry but Malbec is fine. I have never made wild boar ragu with ground wild boar, so I’d love to know how it turns out. I hope you will tell me!
I would suggest searing the boar before, removing it , then add the vegetables so you can get a good color on the meat and leave something in the pan to deglaze with the wine.
Hey Jaqui I’ve got a story for you and you’ll see why I appreciate you putting the time into your posting of the info and recipe.
When my wife and I got married we planned a small dinner for our immediate family at a local Italian restaurant. The one dish I insisted on serving was pappardelle with a wild boar ragu. For weeks leading up to the dinner I asked the owner if he needed help sourcing the boar. He insisted that everything was fine and we’re good to go. When we showed up and sat everyone down he told me that he couldn’t get the boar! I was beyond disappointed.
Fast Forward 6 years to today. 1 week ago I went hunting and got my first wild board. I brought back over 40lbs of meat. The first thing my wife and I agreed on was to make the dream dish we missed out on 6 years ago. We make our own pasta and now have our own 100% natural wild boar. We also have veggies from our garden to use in the dish. Thank you for posting this recipe and the story/history. This will be something very special for us.
Since we have so much boar to choose from what cut of meat is best for this?
Thanks!
Hi Billy thanks for your message and story! What a pity that you didn’t get to have wild boar ragu for your wedding dinner! But, how amazing that you have a whole boar. So many things you can do with that! I wish I could come for dinner, homemade pasta and homegrown veggies, yum! Re meat for the ragu, it’s interesting that most recipes call for wild boar pieces, meat or chunks without stating which cut! I confess I buy mine in ready to use chunks. Not sure what cut they are. But in your position I would go for the leg meat. My hubby says the ‘coscia’, which is basically the thigh! You might also think about making wild boar sausages and some ground meat. Lots of Italians make the ragu with ground boar meat instead of chunks! Do let me know how it turns out!
Can I stretch my wild boar a bit by adding thick sliced portobello mushrooms? I would like to make it for 8 people adding it its a bit expensive. We have its at a meat store not far from me in Massachusetts. ..Yay! I’ve read mushrooms take on the flavor of what you cook them with and I love their earthy flavor. Would it hurt the recipe? Shopping tomorrow!
Sorry, meant ‘and it is a bit expensive’. Would the mushrooms help me get away with a pound +. If I could swing the price of 2 pounds.
Hi Kim, I think adding portobello mushrooms would work well to help stretch the recipe out for 8 people. However, don’t marinate them with the wild boar. Mushrooms absorb liquid easily and they’ll get mushy. Better if they are still ‘meaty’! Do let me know how it turns out!
This is one if my very favourite Tuscan dishes! One question though – are you suggesting marinating veggies and boar together, then separating the veggies and boar for the sautéing?
Hi M, this is one of my favourite Tuscan dishes too!! Yes, marinate meat and veggies together but then, as I said in the post, I prefer to discard the veggies in the marinade and cook the meat sauce with fresh veggies. However, in some Italian recipes, they cook the sauce with the marinated veggies.
I’ve never tried Wild Boar, but it looks like such a flavorful meat to add to pasta! This looks so good!
Thank you, Shanika. If you like pork and venison, you will like wild boar!
That truly looks sensational. The flavors are so simple and delicious! The tips on cooking meat is so useful. I’m sure this would be one delicious dinner
Thank you, Jo. I am glad you find the tips useful!
What a truly unique and creative recipe! Marrying into an Italian family, this is something I know they’d love! I need to look and see if I can find this locally as this looks scrumptions!
Thank you, Lori. I bet this would be a hit!
This pasta dish looks so delicious and hearty! Pappardelle is one of my favorite pastas and I crave it all the time. I’ll be making this for dinner this week!
Mine too Jamie! I hope you try it and love it!
The word “Tuscan” in the name makes me feel nostalgic for some reason. I’ve GOT to try this dish right where it originated – that would be amazing. Great tip on the meat cooking time.
I hope you do Danielle, that would be a perfect trip!
How creative is this. I have nver tried it this way before. Looks amazingly delicious.
Thank you, Kushigalu.
What a delicious looking dish so full of flavor! I’ve had wild boar, but never like this before! Will have to put an order in with my butcher, thanks for sharing this!
Thank you, Carrie! I hope you can get it from the butcher to try this recipe!
I only run across wild game meat at the farmer’s market, so will have to wait until it resumes next Spring, but I love this wonderful recipe idea.
I love that you can get it from the farmer’s market Beth!
Like many others, we too enjoyed this dish while in Tuscany earlier this year. I can’t get wild boar here in North Queensland, Australia but I like this technique of marinating the meat. It’s something I’d like to do with pork or beef.
That’s a good idea Marcellina. Wild boar can be tricky to get hold of.
I’ve never tried wild boar. I’m going to have to see if I can find it & try this scrumptious looking recipe!
If you like venison you will like wild boar!
You are right, a lot of people think of boar as exotic. I have tried it and its great but it is a little on the expensive side here in America.
Good for a special occasion Aimee!
Looks delicious! Wild boar’s delicious, but I’ve never had it with pasta, only in shabu shabu!
Thank you, Al! I hope you get to try it.
What a special dish to make for friends and family. This Tuscan wild boar ragu is sure to impress any guest.
Thank you, Kelly!
It surely looks great one to try….never had boar but this looks truly great.
Thank you, Gari. I hope you try it and love it!
Delightful pasta recipe 🙂
Thank you, Lisa!
I love pasta and this recipe looks amazing! It’s hard to find authentic pasta like that here in the states. Talk about a classic Italian dish!
That’s a shame Genevieve. You could probably source the pasta at a local Italian deli.
This looks lovely and I may need to try to find wild boar here in the states and if not try pork.
Pork would be a lovely substitute Angela.
I have never tried wild boar before, but I am intrigued. Your recipe looks mouth watering!
Thank you, Denise. You should give wild boar a try if you get the chance!
I’ve never tried wild boar before, but this dish looks so good. I’m not sure if I can find it locally, but I’ll try. 🙂
I love how you so often use meat that I’d never even imagined trying before! It broadens my horizon (:
Thank you, Raquel! I hope you get to try wild boar!
Mmmmmm, I love ragu! This recipe with marinated wild boar and veggies sounds pretty hearty – a great winter meal!
Thank you, Christy. This ragu is really wonderful!
What a fantastic recipe, I have never had wild boar and not sure where in the UK we would get it from?? Will have to look into it…… Until then, I will give it a go with pork. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, Kay. You should be able to find it online or at a specialist butcher!
I can’t wait to try this- what do you think about substituting ground pork or beef for the wild boar? It may not be as simple to find here in Florida! Pappardelle pasta is some of my fave, so this is an amazing recipe.
I’ve never tried this before. Your Tuscan Wild Boar Ragu with Pappardelle Pasta Ribbons recipe looks really delicious and this would be really good for our next family meal.
Thank you, I hope everyone loves it!
What an interesting dish. I would never think of using wild boar in a pasta dish but this recipe was fantastic!
Thank you, Alisa!
This ragu sounds so rich and satisfying. I’ve never cooked with wild boar before, but I did have it while on vacation in Martinique of all places. I’m going to have to source some to make this beautiful dish.
Thank you, Lisa. I hope you source some to try it.
I absolutely love wild boar, and this pasta looks amazing! I can’t wait to make it for dinner tonight!
Fabulous Jessica, let me know how it turns out!
Pappardelle is perfect for a ragu sauce! I can’t wait to find wild boar meat and give this a try!
It is Suzy! Pappardelle is wonderful!
We found some wild boar online and this recipe is amazing! So rich and comforting! It’s so worth finding some wild boar!
I am so glad you were able to source some wild boar online.
Hi,
We’ve recently been to Tuscany and loved this dish!
I was wondering, with your recipe, is it 1 liter of wine for the marinade? And is this wine then used in the cooking of the dish, or does this get emptied out and just one cup of wine is used for cooking?
Thanks!
Hi Jesse, thanks for your comment. Re the wine. Yes the lt of red wine is for the marinade. The marinade isn’t used in the cooking. So just discard it. Maybe I should make that clearer in the recipe instructions. For the sauce, there are different versions here in Italy. Some people add some more red wine to the sauce, some use white and some don’t add any more wine at all. They say the meat already has enough wine in it and this will be released into the sauce as the wild boar cooks. I added more red wine to the sauce and loved the result! I hope this helps. Please reach out if you have any other questions! All the best from Verona!
Very glad to find your recipe. My wife and I just returned from honeymoon in Tuscany and loved this dish. Our grocery store ordered wild boar for me but it’s almost double (900g) your recipe. Aside from just using half our boar, would you suggest just doubling the whole recipe? May be a silly question but I didn’t know if doubling the marinade would have an exponential effect. Thanks!
Hi Andrew thank you for your comment. Please excuse the delay in replying but I was in London for a funeral and unable to check my site comments. I think you could double the ingredients and make double the quantity of ragu and then freeze what you don’t use. I would do the same if I was serving a larger number of people. Do let me know how your wild boar ragu turns out. All the best from Verona!
Very interesting to see recipes using other types of meat than beef and pork etc. This looks SO good, can’t wait to try it!
Thank you! Yes, it makes a nice change!
i am just a huge sucker for a good ragu. and i love that you used wild boar – such a flavorful meat! This is like ultimate comfort food!
Thanks so much Danielle! I love the flavour of wild boar and it makes a fabulous ragu!
Beautiful. And what memories. My husband and I made a point of having and enjoying wild boar rage when we traveled through Tuscany.
Thank you so much Mimi! Yes wild boar ragu is such a Tuscan classic. I like it a lot, it’s tasty and healthy! We even have wild boar where we live in Veneto. I see them near our house quite often!
Beautiful. This post brings back memories of enjoying wild boar ragu in Tuscany years ago. Love your recipe.
I used to eat a lot of wild boar as a kid but I haven’t had it in years. You really make me want it now with this divinely looking recipe.
I do agree with the Italians not adding any chopped herbs it’d ruin its beautiful and unique flavours. I need to look for some wild boar as this recipe will not get out of my head. Absolutely delish and inspirational. Thank you so much for sharing
Thanks so much dearest Ramona! Glad this recipe has inspired you to try wild boar ragu. I’m sure you’ll love it! Hugs from Verona!
Wild boar is more common to me than beef, the joys of living in eastern Europe 😉 I love the stuff I know this will be superb, can’t wait to make it!
Thanks Brian, I do hope you give this ragu a try. If you love wild boar, you’ll def love this! Buon appetito! Jacqui
I cook with a lot of venison, we love it. I have never tried wild boar though! I am jealous! I would love to try it in this delightful pasta recipe! i must see if I can find some in the states! Thanks for the inspiration!
You can find wild boar at some butchers in the US, or order it online 🙂