Slow Cooked Beef and Mushroom Ragu
Beef ragu is such a hearty and warming dish - truly, nothing beats a piping hot bowl of pasta in winter time! This dish makes for fantastic leftovers as well; a great recipe to cook in a big batch and enjoy throughout the week. Some of our favourite uses for our ragu leftovers are as a baked potato filling, in jaffles, in a shepherd's pie, but there are so many more!
Ingredients
- 1kg chuck beef (we recommend casserole cubes for this or you could also use brisket or short ribs)
- 1 ½ cups beef stock
- 1 large carrot, finely diced
- 1 onion 4 cloves of garlic
- 2 tins of tomatoes
- A generous handful of mushrooms, chopped into chunks
- 1 cup red wine
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 sprigs of rosemary
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
Method
- Rub beef all over with salt and pepper then brown well in a hot heavy based pot with a little olive oil. Remove and set aside.
- Finely dice garlic, rosemary and onions, then add to your pan (with more olive oil if needed) and fry until soft. Add back the beef, plus all of the other ingredients, seasoning with salt and pepper as required.
- Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat, pop on a lid and cook for a further 2 hours.
- Once 2 hours have passed, check the texture of the beef - is it tender and pulling apart easily? If it’s not quite there yet, leave it to cook a little longer. It’s also a good idea to keep an eye on the liquid level as you go to make sure it’s not evaporating too fast (add a little water or stock in as needed).
- Once you’re satisfied with the texture of the sauce, boil a pot of your favourite pasta and top with ragu, shaved parmesan and some fresh parsley.
