Ragu Mantovano

Famiglia Baldassarre's Ragù Mantovano is a slow-cooked pork meat sauce in the tradition of Mantova — a city in Lombardy with one of Italy's most distinctive and underappreciated culinary identities. Unlike the more familiar Bolognese, the Mantovano is built on pork braised low and slow with whole milk, red wine, butter, and a careful hand with spice. The milk is the key: it tenderises the meat and rounds out the acidity of the tomato into something deeply rich and silky.

Toss it through fresh pasta — their fusilli or gnocchi are natural companions — or spoon it over polenta for a proper northern Italian dinner. It reheats beautifully and improves overnight. Made in Toronto by Famiglia Baldassarre with the same care they bring to everything they make.