Herder Sauce

Shepherd's Sauce from Eggerhof South Tyrol with Mushrooms and Cream

The Shepherd's Sauce from Eggerhof South Tyrol is a sugo alla pastore made from tomato purée, mushrooms, and three types of meat, thickened with cream to create a light, creamy sauce. With peas and boiled ham, it takes on the character of a kitchen that uses whatever the pantry has to offer.

The Shepherd's Sauce is a pre-cooked sugo from Eggerhof South Tyrol that comes in a 210-gram jar from the alpine kitchen. In addition to beef and pork, it contains boiled ham from the leg, plus mushrooms, peas, onions, and carrots, as well as a splash of cream and wine.

Creamy sugo with mushrooms, peas, and boiled ham

When heated, a balanced aroma of tomato, mushrooms, and herbs rises, with the cream adding a milky undertone.

On the tongue, you first taste the tomato, bright and acidic, then the cream, which takes the edge off. This is followed by pieces of meat, with the salty note of the boiled ham and the peas, which give the soft composition a fresh bite.

The mushroom brings little aroma of its own and instead absorbs the seasoning of the sauce, which is why it fits better here than a robust forest mushroom. The mushroom pieces remain recognizable and provide additional texture alongside the ham and peas.

The mushrooms contribute their earthy tone, and the wine rounds it off without standing out itself. Creamy but never heavy, the sauce coats short pasta and fills every tube to the center.

With maccheroni, penne, and dumplings

Short tubes catch the pieces and mushrooms, which is why maccheroni and penne are the obvious partners at the lunch table. Rigatoni and fusilli also hold onto enough of it to make every forkful substantial.

Served with a bread dumpling, it becomes a South Tyrolean-style main course, and it works just as well over rice. If you are looking for a spicier version with Italian sausage, opt for the Salsiccia Sauce.

The hearty Schüttelbrot noodles from Eggerhof provide a rustic counterpart to the creamy sauce because their bread aroma complements the creaminess. You can find what else comes from this kitchen into the jar under Sugo and Pasta Sauces from Eggerhof South Tyrol.

Boiled ham, peas, and whatever the pantry provides

Alla pastore means "in the shepherd's style." It refers to a way of cooking that combines whatever the pantry and garden have to offer on the alpine pasture, turning a little meat into a filling dish.

The boiled ham comes from the leg; it is cured and cooked before being diced and added to the sauce, where it releases its salt. Together with beef and pork, there are three types of meat in one sauce, making it unusually rich.

The peas are the point where this sugo alla pastore diverges from a pure ragù. Their sweetness settles beneath the salt of the ham, and their green color stands out against the red of the tomato.

At Eggerhof, the sauce is cooked until the onion has dissolved and the carrot has been absorbed into the tomato. The cream is added late so that it binds and retains its fresh tone.

A shaving of mountain cheese rounds off the alpine note

While the pasta is cooking, heat the sauce in a pot and fold it into the drained pasta at the end. A shaving of South Tyrolean mountain cheese over the hot plate picks up the alpine note, and coarsely ground pepper adds a final accent. An opened jar belongs in the refrigerator and should be consumed within a few days.