Braised Pork All’Arrabbiata Recipe (2024)

By Ali Slagle

Braised Pork All’Arrabbiata Recipe (1)

Total Time
3½ hours
Rating
4(2,856)
Notes
Read community notes

This spicy pork shoulder’s long-simmered flavor is one you’ll crave all season long. The browned pork shoulder braises with fire-roasted tomatoes, red wine and basil in the oven until it becomes fork-tender and breaks down into a rich ragù. The red-pepper flakes create a gentle heat, while basil adds sweetness. Serve over polenta or toss with tubed pasta, like penne or rigatoni. If serving with pasta, loosen the sauce with a little pasta cooking water to help the sauce coat the pasta.

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings (about 7 cups)

  • 2 to 2½pounds boneless pork shoulder, trimmed of more than ¼-inch fat
  • Kosher salt and black pepper
  • 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 10garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
  • teaspoons red-pepper flakes
  • 3(14-ounce) cans fire-roasted crushed or diced tomatoes
  • 1cup red wine
  • 5basil sprigs

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

388 calories; 27 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 13 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 8 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 24 grams protein; 733 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Braised Pork All’Arrabbiata Recipe (2)

Preparation

  1. Step

    1

    Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Season the pork all over with 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper.

  2. Step

    2

    In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high. Add the pork shoulder and sear until browned on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes.

  3. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the garlic and red-pepper flakes to the oil and stir to combine. Add the tomatoes, red wine and basil. Stir to combine, season with salt and lots of black pepper, then bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

  4. Step

    4

    Cover, then transfer to the oven and cook until the pork falls apart when prodded with a fork, 2½ to 3 hours.

  5. Step

    5

    Working directly in the pot, use two forks to shred the meat into long bite-size pieces. Stir the pork into the tomato sauce until it’s evenly distributed. Ragù will keep refrigerated for 3 days or frozen up to 3 months.

Ratings

4

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2,856

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Sadie Sugars

could i do this in a slow cooker?

Paulo

For an English cook - does the “fire roast” thing make any difference over plain old tinned tomatoes? Not a term I’ve come across here and not a product available on Amazon UK

sscharf

How about suggestions for how to do this in an insta-pot?

Megan

Do you take the pork out of the pan after browning, and then add the other ingredients together and boil? Once that is done, do you then add the pork roast back into the mix and cook in the oven as directed, then shred? That seems like how it should be, though the directions aren't clear about this...

JYL

For slow cookers, just sear the meat in a skillet. Put meat in the slow cooker. Add all ingredients mentioned in Step 3. Turn on the slow cooker. Leave slow cooker alone. Go do something. Turned slow cooker on low? Come back after a bunch of hours. Turned slow cooker on high? Check on it in less hours.

NorCalGoyo

Had this tonight. The chef who prepared it added tomato paste and Mashed anchovies at step no. 3, which turned out to be a delicious enhancement.

Lilysdad

Arrabbiata traditionally includes capers in the recipe. Adding three tablespoons to this lovely recipe would give it the proper savory touch.

Krysten Chambrot, Senior Staff Editor, NYT Cooking

This recipe is so easy and a total hit! It’s perfect for a chilly day, or for when you want to impress your guests without a ton of heavy lifting.

Mari

Here's an easy way to fire-roast tomatoes; I use Roma:Set broiler to HIGH.For small tomatoes, leave whole and place them bottom side up on a sheet pan. Brush tomatoes with olive oil.Broil on HIGH for 10 minutes, then broil on LOW for another 5 minutes. You want/should to see some charred skin.Remove from oven and transfer tomatoes to a bowl or plate. Cover with plastic wrap and let cool for about 10 minutes.Remove plastic wrap and carefully pull off the skins with a pair of tongs.

Mari

I make pork carnitas with the same cut and size of meat. I cut the pork into two pieces, sautés in insta pot, add everything to insta pot and cook for 35 minutes with 10-minute natural release, then quick release.

Alexandra

While I do have an Instant Pot, this seemed like a recipe that deserved an oven braise, and I am so pleased with the results. This recipe is so easy to prepare. I used bone-in pork shoulder because I wanted the bone for stock and found that it still cooked evenly, according to the directions. The sauce is to die for - it is so good and savory. I served with creamy polenta and shiitake mushrooms. This will certainly be added to my cold weather meal rotation.

anne chaney

Absolutely. I do it all the time. It is less greasy if you make it overnight. Chill it in the a.m. and skim off the solidified fat before you heat it for dinner.

Jennifer

Paulo, fire roasted canned tomatoes have a little char on them and it imparts a slightly smoky/deeper flavor. I like them but you can replace with regular canned if you cannot find them.

stephanie

this was "pick the bowl up to eat it" good. i served over polenta, but next time would want a bit more pork, or leave as-is & serve over pasta. sauteed a thinly sliced vidalia onion along w the garlic and added some oregano. subbed 1/2 stock & 1/2 red wine vinegar for wine. braised at 300, still done in 3hrs. i let it rest in the sauce for 1hr & shredded on a board to remove the fat. immersion blender'd the sauce before adding the pork back in.pic on IG: https://www.instagram.com/p/B9xD7SLJZgA/

Adam

I’ve made this a few times, but most recently did not have fire-roasted tomatoes, but after reading several comments here, I’m very satisfied with the results: used 1/2 tsp smoked black pepper plus 1/2 tsp regular black pepper, where pepper is called for. Added 2 anchovy filets in at the same time as garlic cloves to introduce more umami, and once regular diced tomatoes were in, added about 1 tsp of smoked paprika. Cooked on 325 for 2.5 hours and came out the best yet.

MS

Delicious. Followed the recipe the first time, and made some modifications based on comments the second time: 1) Threw in halved shallots, capers, and tomato paste along with the garlic. 2) Took finished meat out of the pot to shred / remove fat, immersion blended the sauce, and returned meat to the pot. A few other notes: wanted leftovers so used a 4.5 lb, bone-in shoulder (also, a lot of wine). Trimmed fat and cooked at 325 for 4.5 hrs. Removed bone while shredding. Best braise I’ve ever made!

Ann B

I didn’t have fire roasted tomatoes, but I had some passata in the pantry, and that worked just fine. Super delicious!

mikeO

This was a really great dish with wide pasta. We added tomato paste and anchovies as per another person’s note which was a great addition. If you’re familiar with braising and the steps involved, the directions make sense. But if you’re not, removing the meat after searing makes the following step much easier. Also reducing the wine before adding the tomatoes should cook away the alcohol more than trying to reduce it all together. Finally a few glugs of balsamic make a nice finish at the end.

Oregonian

This recipe is to die for- easy and delicious. I did not use fire- roasted but plain diced and interpreted sprigs of basil to mean everything on one stem on one of the packages you get at the grocery store. I could die happy!

Mike

I cut my pork into 3 pieces and was able to remove a considerable amount of extra fat before browning. Today there’s little grease on the refrigerated product.

JT

Using fermented Calabrian peppers instead of the flakes adds a very nice touch to this recipe!

Wilbur

a great dish - made this tonight with polentaso austere but perfect

stacysom

I make this regularly once the weather turns cooler. Only change to recipe is I include onion slices with the garlic and sometimes use dried basil when I don’t have fresh. Served over penne, and I blanch some fresh spinach leaves at the end of the boil. Dollop with a few spoonfuls of ricotta that has a good bit of pecorino grated in and some lemon zest. Working from home, leftovers are used for quick Italian pulled pork sandwiches or pizza. So yum!

K

I've made this twice. I liked it, but I think the fire-roasting takes away from the taste of the tomatoes. I think it might be better with regular canned tomatoes, or maybe 1 can fire-roasted to 2 cans regular?

Victoria Abel

Excellent and EASY!! The only process I changed was at the end. I removed the pork to a large bowl, shredded it there and removed the fat. While the pork was out of the sauce, I used an immersion blender on the sauce to munch up the basil, garlic and tomatoes. Not pureed, just blended for a minute or two. Then I put the pork back in to the sauce.

braised pork arrabiata adjustments

Blend sauce before braising

Edith

Not great, but I had to make some subs, which may be some of the reasons. I used a 1.5lb pork loin, and cooked in the instant pot. After 30 minutes was tough as an old boot, so i gave it another 30. It shredded fine then, but the sauce was very bland. I zested in about 1/2 an orange and that really helped. I used capers and smoked paprika as recommended by others.

MS

Added capers and an onion. Delicious.

Julie PV

Add fennel seed

David

I've made this as written, with a chuck roast, and with a lamb shoulder. Good every time.

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Braised Pork All’Arrabbiata Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What to serve with pork all arrabbiata? ›

Serve over polenta or toss with tubed pasta, like penne or rigatoni. If serving with pasta, loosen the sauce with a little pasta cooking water to help the sauce coat the pasta.

How do you tenderize braised pork? ›

You sear the meat on all sides, reduce the heat, add some liquid, and simmer for several hours until it's fall-off-the-bone tender. Enter the milk, along with white wine. The milk proteins help to tenderize the pork, which results in a tender piece of meat.

How does braised pork taste? ›

Pork belly chunks are braised with soy sauce, rice wine, sugar and spices to create a complex taste: salty, sweet, aromatic and umami. The skin and fat become gelatinous, not greasy and melt easily in your mouth.

What cuts of pork can be braised? ›

Two of the most popular pieces of pork to braise come from the foreleg: the upper Boston butt and the lower pork shoulder — adjacent, but confusingly named cuts, admits Cook's Illustrated.

What does Arrabbiata mean? ›

Arrabbiata means "angry" when translated. The reason it earned this name is that the word arrabbiato often referred to a cook who used oil, garlic, and red chili flakes to excess in Rome. In this case, the word refers to the spicy character of the sauce.

Why is it called arrabbiata? ›

Origin of the name

Arrabbiata literally means "angry" in Italian; in Romanesco dialect the adjective arabbiato denotes a characteristic (in this case spiciness) pushed to excess.

Can you braise pork too long? ›

You're looking for the meat to be thoroughly fork-tender. To ensure your braise doesn't dry out, make sure you check it throughout its cooking time. After the meat has cooked for 90 minutes, start checking it every 20-30 minutes or so. This is a good way to keep it from overcooking and becoming dry or tough.

Why is my braised pork dry? ›

Believe it or not, you can end up with dry meat when you're braising if you don't cook it for long enough. While the collagen is breaking down into gelatin, the muscle fibers of the meat contract and squeeze out moisture. This flavors the sauce, but it dries out the meat.

How long is too long to braise? ›

The liquid level needs to remain the same, so add more if necessary. It will take about 1 1/2 to 3 hours to become fork-tender. As soon as it's fork-tender, it's done. Cooking any longer will dry out the meat.

Should you sear pork before braising? ›

It's always best to brown the meat before braising as this makes the meat look more attractive and adds extra flavor, although some say that the meat tastes sweeter not being browned.

Do you braise pork with lid on or off? ›

Keep the lid on when braising meat, as it needs moist heat over a long period of time to break down the collagen and connective tissues for fork-tender results. "Pot covered, the ingredient you are braising gets continuously bathed in these steaming and simmering liquids, which the item flavors in turn," says Welsh.

Why is my braised pork belly tough? ›

If your pork belly is tough after braising, it meant that either the pork belly needs to be braised longer or it was cooked at too high heat. Try to braise the pork belly at a medium simmer. Also, you can try braising the pork belly in beer. It'll tenderize the pork belly and also get rid of porky flavor.

What is the name of braised pork? ›

Red-braised pork may be one of the most common of all Chinese dishes, but it is also one of the most glorious, a slow stew of belly pork with seasonings that may include sugar, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine and spices.

What sauces go well with pork? ›

Top sauces for pork
  • Make the pork. First things first, you're going to need a succulent pork recipe. ...
  • Apple sauce. ...
  • Make apple sauce. ...
  • Salsa verde. ...
  • Make salsa verde. ...
  • Apple cider and mustard sauce. ...
  • Make apple cider and mustard sauce. ...
  • Piquillo pepper salsa.

How long does it take to braise meat? ›

Step 3: Braise Meat Until Tender

Cover the pan and cook over low heat on the stove or in the oven for approximately 1 to 3 hours, depending on the cut you're using. Braising meat at a low and slow time makes it super tender. Check the amount of liquid and add more to the pan if necessary so the meat doesn't dry out.

What kind of pasta goes with arrabiata sauce? ›

Penne is a great shape for medium to heavy sauces such as amatriciana (tomato, bacon and chilli), pasta bake, arrabbiata (tomato, chilli and basil), sausage and cream, and beef ragu.

What's the difference between arrabiata and marinara sauce? ›

If you can make marinara, you can make arrabbiata

Per The Guardian, this "angry" sauce hails from Italy's capital of Rome, and is essentially a humble marinara with the important addition of spicy chilis, making this similar looking variation pack a serious punch.

What is the difference between all amatriciana and all arrabbiata? ›

The main difference between Amatriciana and Arrabiata sauces is the inclusion of cured pork. Amatriciana sauce is made with guanciale, a type of cured pork cheek, while Arrabiata sauce does not contain any meat. Instead, Arrabiata sauce is made with garlic, red chili peppers, and tomatoes.

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