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Beef Ragu

Beef Ragu

Published on 28 March 2020 | In | By
    • Prep Time
    • Minutes
    • Cook Time
    • Minutes
    • Yield
    • 4

This is a variation of my Bolognese Sauce recipe.  Basically a ragu is a meat sauce that is made with chopped meat, rather than minced meat…in other words it is more chunky.

I love ragu with with pasta, specifically with something like penne, that is a more robust pasta.

The recipe follows along the same lines as the Bolognese Sauce recipe, however, you do need to cook it for a little longer because the meat is much more chunky.

RECIPE TIP 1: For the meat, I use either shoulder or sirloin.  You need a really sharp knife to chop the meat.  I chop it into 5mm cubes.

RECIPE TIP 2: I used tinned tomatoes and puree in this recipe, but make sure you do not use the cheap kind.  I usually buy the best quality Italian tomatoes I can find.

RECIPE TIP 3: Follow the steps exactly as put in this recipe for the best results – making Bolognese is serious business!!!

RECIPE TIP 4: This recipe works well for baked dishes like lasagna.

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Ingredients

  • 500g Beef chopped into 5mm cubes(I usually use shoulder)
  • 1 Tbsp rice oil (I do not use olive oil when I cook as it leaves a distinct taste)
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 medium carrot, peeled and grated
  • 1 Celery stick (same length as carrot) finely chopped
  • 4 cloves of Garlic finely chopped
  • 1 cup Beef stock (see recipe here)
  • 410g (1 tin) chopped Italian Tomatoes
  • 410g (1 tin) Italian tomato pasata (puree)
  • 1/2 tsp Oregano
  • 1/4 tsp dried Thyme

Instructions

  1. Add the oil to a pan (large enough to hold all the ingredients comfortably) and place on a medium heat on the stove top.
  2. When the oil is hot (about 2 or 3 minutes on the stove) add the onions, carrots and celery and stir continuously to ensure that it does not stick. If it cooks too quickly turn the heat down a little.
  3. When the onions are translucent add 1/2 the garlic and stir for 30 seconds, making sure the garlic does not burn (burnt garlic will make the dish bitter).
  4. Now add all the beef stock, and let it simmer for about 5 minutes, letting the stock reduce by at least half to intensify the beef notes.
  5. When the stock has reduced by half add the chopped tomatoes and puree and stir in until everything is well mixed. Let this simmer for a further 5 minutes stirring occasionally to ensure it does not stick.
  6. Now you add all the meat. Quickly break the meat up with a fork in the sauce so that it does not "clump" together.
  7. Add the herbs and the rest of the garlic and let it simmer until the meat is cooked through. I usually cook it for about 50 minutes. The sauce should still be "loose" and if you feel that it is drying up you can add a little more beef stock and close the pan with its lid.
  8. When it is ready you can serve it immediately, or let it cool if you are going to use it for something like lasagna.

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