Baked Orecchiette With Pork Sugo

Well I saw that it was national pasta day in one of my daily emailed recipes, so I dug this one out of my to try file. WOW! The cards were so stacked against me liking this dish. I'm not a the biggest fan of pork. I really don't like seeing certain meats raw (pork & chicken). Proportionally, there was too much meat to pasta. Too little sauce and cheese to the too much meat was also making me leery. I picked this recipe out for the carnivorous males in the family. I figured it would be pretty tasty as it was a F & W staff favorite. Well, holy cow! It was freakin' awesome! It was not too labor intensive either. It was a long process, but mostly inactive so not too difficult. I'm thinking that for the days one is short on time, a crock pot might even be an alternative after the reduction of the wine. I halved the recipe and there was still plenty for 8 servings, so despite the fact that the full recipe says for eight, so not true. It is so good, you could eat a quarter of the halved recipe, but you might explode:).

Baked Orecchiette With Pork Sugo
8 servings
3 1/4 lb boneless pork shoulder,cut  into 1-inch pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
3 T  extra-virgin olive oil
4    carrots,cut into 1/4-inch dice
4    celery ribs,cut into 1/4-inch dice
1    large sweet onion,cut into 1/4-inch dice
4    garlic cloves,very finely chopped
1    14-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 c  dry red wine
4    thyme sprigs
5 c  chicken stock or low-sodium
           -broth
      2 T  chopped flat-leaf parsley
      1 T  chopped oregano
    1/2 t  crushed red pepper
  1 1/2 lb orecchiette
      2 c  freshly grated
           -Parmigiano-Reggiano
           -cheese (7 ounces)
[Note: .  A rich, black-fruited Amarone Classico from Italy.  Our
Pairing Suggestion  ]
1. Season the pork with salt and pepper. In a large enameled cast-iron
casserole, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add the pork in a
single layer and cook over moderately high heat until the pieces are
golden brown all over, about 12 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, onion
and garlic and cook until softened and browned in spots, about 8
minutes. Add the tomatoes and their juices and bring to a simmer. Add
the red wine and thyme sprigs and cook over high heat until the wine is
reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the stock and bring to a boil.
Cover and simmer over low heat until the pork is very tender, about 2
hours.
2. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pork and vegetables to a food
processor; discard the thyme sprigs. Pulse just until the pork is
shredded. Scrape the shredded pork and vegetables back into the
casserole. Stir in the chopped parsley, oregano and crushed red pepper
and season with salt and pepper.
3. Preheat the oven to 375. In a large pot of boiling salted water,
cook the orecchiette until it is still firm to the bite, about 5
minutes; drain well. Add the orecchiette to the casserole and toss with
the pork sauce. Scrape the pasta into a very large baking dish and
sprinkle all over with the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Bake the casserole in
the upper third of the oven for about 35 minutes, until golden brown on
top and bubbling. Let the baked pasta stand for 10 minutes before
serving.
Make Ahead The pork sugo can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. Reheat
before tossing with the orecchiette. Serve With Green salad