Chuck Tortellini in Charred Squash & Miso Broth
Red-wine braised chuck tortellini in a thin, clear roasted-squash and kombu broth, finished with brown butter, crispy shallots and toasted squash seeds.
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Ingredients
22Method
13Sear the chuck
Salt 1½ lb beef chuck roast, cut into 2-inch chunks with 1½ tsp kosher salt, for the beef. Heat 2 tbsp of the 1½ cups neutral oil (searing + frying) in a Dutch oven over medium-high. Sear in batches without crowding, 3–4 min per side, until deeply browned. Remove to a plate.
Build and start the braise
Heat oven to 425°F for the squash. The oven is taken, so the braise runs on the stovetop. Lower the heat to medium and sweat 2 shallots, sliced (braise), ½ small carrot, diced and 2 celery ribs, diced in the beef fat for 5 min. Add 1 cup dry red wine and reduce by half, scraping up the fond. Return the beef, add 1½ cups water (braise) and 5 thyme sprigs (meat should be about 2/3 submerged), and bring to a bare simmer. Cover and hold at the lowest bubble for about 2.5 hr, turning the meat once or twice. It's done when a fork twists through with no resistance. A hard boil makes it stringy and dry.
Char the squash trim
While the braise starts: peel 1 large butternut squash (~3 lb) thickly. Scoop out the seeds and set them aside. Spread the peels, stringy guts and about a quarter of the flesh in chunks on a sheet with a little oil. Roast at 425°F for 45–60 min until dark and charred at the edges. Golden isn't enough. Save the remaining flesh for another use.
Make and rest the dough
Mound 300 g flour (00 or all-purpose), add 3 large eggs, and mix, then knead 8–10 min until smooth, firm and not tacky. Add water only a teaspoon at a time if it won't come together. Wrap and rest at least 30 min.
Toast the seeds
Rinse the squash seeds free of pulp and pat them very dry. Toast in a dry skillet over medium-low with a pinch of salt, stirring, until golden and popping, 6–8 min.
Steep the broth
Put the charred squash, 20 g kombu and 8 cups water (broth) in a pot. Heat to about 175°F (steaming, not bubbling). Pull the kombu before the pot ever boils. Hold below a simmer for 45 min, then strain through a fine sieve. Boiling clouds the broth.
Fry the shallots
While the broth steeps: put 3 shallots, sliced paper-thin (frying) in a small pot and cover with the remaining 1½ cups neutral oil (searing + frying), starting from cold oil. Heat over medium and stir often, 10–15 min, until light golden. Drain onto paper towels and salt them. They keep darkening off the heat, so pull them early. Save the oil.
Make the filling
Remove the beef. Strain and defat the braising liquid, then reduce it to about 1/2 cup. Shred the beef and chop it fine. Mix about 1 lb of meat with 1/4 cup of the reduced liquid, 55 g Parmigiano, finely grated and 2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped (filling). A squeezed handful should hold and feel moist, not wet. Adjust the salt. Chill at least 15 min. Keep the red wine liquid out of the broth.
Shape the tortellini
Roll the dough to the second-thinnest setting, thin enough to see your hand through it. Cut 2.5–3 inch squares and add a scant teaspoon of filling to each. Fold into a triangle, pressing out all the air, then wrap the corners around your finger and pinch. Rest them on ½ cup semolina, for dusting, uncovered and not touching. Work in batches and keep the rest of the dough covered.
Season the broth
Rewarm the broth below a simmer and salt it. Off the heat, whisk 2 tbsp white miso, to taste into a ladle of broth and push it through a sieve into the pot. Taste, then add 2 tsp unseasoned rice vinegar, to taste. The vinegar makes it read saltier, so add it last. Don't boil it after the miso goes in.
Brown the butter
Melt 4 tbsp unsalted butter (brown butter) in a small pan over medium, swirling. When the foam subsides and the solids turn hazelnut brown, 4–6 min, pour it into a bowl right away to stop the cooking.
Cook and serve
Boil the tortellini in a separate pot of well-salted water, never in the broth, 3–4 min until they float plus 30 seconds. Put them in warm bowls and pour in the hot broth. Spoon brown butter over, then add squash seeds, 1 tbsp parsley, finely chopped (garnish), and crispy shallots last at the table.
Freeze the second dinner
Freeze half the raw tortellini on a semolina-dusted sheet until hard, about 1 hr, then bag them. Cook from frozen, adding 1–2 min. Don't thaw. Freeze the broth separately; add the miso and vinegar fresh when reheating.
Notes
One change from the earlier plan: the braise runs on the stovetop, because a single oven can't hold 300°F and 425°F at the same time. If you have two ovens, braise at 300°F instead. Save the shallot frying oil for another dish.