Lightly coat the bottom of a Dutch oven, or thick-bottomed pot, in olive oil and heat on medium-high. Break the ground beef into large chunks and transfer to the hot oil. Season generously with 2 tsp salt and sear until golden brown on 1 side, then break the meat up into smaller pieces and continue cooking until 2/3 of the meat is deeply golden grown, about 10 minutes. Remove and set aside.
Dice 1 yellow onion and 4 garlic cloves. Turn the heat to medium, add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 1 tbsp Calabrian peppers and 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, and let cook until jammy, scraping the fond at the bottom of the pan as you go, about 2 minutes. Add beef back in and stir to evenly incorporate.
Add 3 cups passata, followed by 6 cups water, 40g cured pork, 1 parmesan rind, a generous pinch of salt and lots of cracked black pepper. Bring to a rapid simmer, add 250g pasta and cook until al dente, about 12-15 minutes. It will take a little longer than the package instructions, but taste as you cook to avoid over cooking.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl mix 1 cup ricotta, 1/2 cup parmesan, 1/6 tsp nutmeg, a pinch of salt and lots of cracked black pepper until well-incorporated. Taste and adjust seasoning.
When the pasta is cooked, turn off the heat and stir in 1/4 cup whipping cream and 1/2 cup grated parmesan. Taste and adjust seasoning until it's tasting so delicious you could scream! Serve hot with the ricotta-parmesan mixture and fresh basil leaves.
