Slosh a good glug of olive oil in a large, heavy-based pot, and heat on medium-high.
Add the lamb and sprinkle generously with salt and 1 x tbsp of the oregano. Brown on all sides, adding extra olive oil if the pot becomes dry. Take your time here, the browned bits are where all the flavour lies. Once nice and golden brown, remove and set aside.
Splash a little more olive oil in the pan and add the onion and celery. Saute over medium heat, stirring to dislodge any brown bits from the pan as you do. Once translucent, add the garlic and stir for another minute, or until fragrant.
Increase the heat to high, return the meat to the pan and stir to combine.
Pour in the tomato passata, add a good sprinkle of salt and the remaining oregano and stir until mixture comes to a boil.
Add the basil leaves, cover with a lid, reduce heat to low and simmer for at least 2 1/2 hours. The longer and slower the sauce cooks, the better it will be. Check every now and then and give it a stir once or twice. You’re looking for the meat to be falling off the bone and the sauce to be rich red in colour, with some oil slicked to the top. Taste and add salt if necessary.
Remove the meat from the pot and increase heat to medium-high and bring back to a slow boil while you shred the meat and any fat from the bones.
Return the shredded meat to the pot and cook for 30 minutes, or until sauce is thickened.
Cook your chosen pasta in boiling salted water. (The sauce will coat a 500gm packet of pasta easily with some reserves depending on how much sauce you like on your pasta. 100g pasta feeds one person, so cook as much as you need and save any extra sauce for another day)
Drain the al dente pasta and return it to the empty pot you cooked it in. Ladle over enough sauce to coat and toss to combine. Serve into individual plates topped with the desired amount of extra sauce, or alternatively, serve in one big bowl topped with a little sauce and a bowlful of extra sauce so everyone can add as much as they need. Offer parmesan cheese and chilli and fresh crusty bread.
Any leftover sauce keeps for five days in the refrigerator or three months in the freezer.
