Beef ragù for all your favorite pasta dishes

Beef ragù for all your favorite pasta dishes. This ragù can be used for many baked dishes like lasagna, baked ziti as well as poured over a pasta.

There are many recipes for ragù, but the proportion of meat to tomato is always similar. One of the most common mistakes people make is to add too much tomato which simply adds too much of an acid flavor.

If you have time, the flavor improves if you make it the day before and leave it in the fridge overnight.

Ingredients for 6 – 8

• 1 kg braising beef, diced
• 3 heaped tablespoons all purpose flour
• 140 grams carrot, finely chopped
• 140 grams onion, finely chopped
• 100 grams celery finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoon tomato puree/paste
• 300 mls red wine
• 600 grams passata or tinned tomatoes pureed and sieved to create a sauce
• 500 mls hot beef stock
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt and 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 160C/325F.
2. Place the braising beef in a bowl and mix with the flour, salt and pepper.
3. Heat up the oil in a large casserole pan and brown the beef (you may need to do this in two or three batches).
4. Add the onion to the beef and cook on a low heat for 3 – 4 minutes until the onion starts to soften.
5. Add in the carrot, celery and garlic and cook for another two minutes.
6. Add in the tomato puree (paste) and stir, then add in the wine, turn up the heat and let it bubble for a couple of minutes. Scrape up any bits that may have stuck to the bottom of the pan.
7. Add in the tomatoes, beef stock. thyme and rosemary. Bring to the boil, stir and place a lid on the pan.
8. Place in the oven for 3 – 4 hours until the beef is very tender. Check every hour or so to ensure the sauce isn’t running dry. Top up with a splash of boiling water if it’s starting to look dry.
9. Once cooked, serve over your favorite pasta. You can also freeze your beef ragu.