Beef Ragu With Warm Spices Food

ITALIAN BEEF RAGU

Steps:

• Finely chop the carrot, onion and celery and sweat the vegetables gently in a large frying pan with the olive oil. Once the vegetables are soft add the ground beef and pork and cook until browned.
• If there is a lot of excess fat in the pan, drain some out. Add the red wine and reduce by half. Once the wine has reduced by half add the passata and half of the beef stock and a pinch of salt and pepper.
• Stir the sauce and let it simmer on a low heat for 2 and a half hours topping up the rest of the stock as it reduces.
• Tip: Remeber to check on the ragu every now and then to stir it and add extra stock or water if needed.
• To serve with pasta add cooked pasta into the ragu and toss or use as desired.

CLASSIC BEEF RAGU SAUCE

Steps:

• In a large, heavy bottomed pot (such as a Dutch oven), heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Pat the beef cubes dry and season with some salt and freshly ground pepper. Add the meat to the hot pan in small batches. **You don want to crowd the pan, to avoid too much liquid in the pan, which will prevent the beef from browning. And browning = flavour. So do the beef in about 1/2 lb. batches (so 2 batches for the 1X recipe). Once beef is nicely browned, remove to a plate and set aside. Repeat until all the beef is browned.
• In the same pot, adding a bit more oil, if necessary, cook the onion and carrots, stirring, until softened, about 3-4 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and garlic and cook for about a minute more. Add tomato paste and stir in, cooking for about 30 seconds. Add the wine and stirring, cook until the wine has reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes with juices (breaking up the whole tomatoes a bit with a spoon or your hands), beef broth, butter, herbs and salt. Stir until the butter is melted, then add the bay leaf. Return the reserved meat and any juices to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 2 1/2 hours, stirring a couple of times during cooking.
• **At this point, you can transfer the mixture to a slow cooker, to cook (covered), for 3 1/2 - 4 hours on high or 7-8 hours on low, followed by 30 minutes uncovered to thicken. You could also pop the Dutch oven into at 325F oven for about the same time as simmering on the stove-top, so about 2 1/2 hours, stirring a couple of times during cooking, then simmer on the stove-top over medium-low heat uncovered at the end, to thicken.
• When beef is fork-tender, remove and discard the bay leaf. Using a potato masher, mash the ragu to break up the beef into shreds. Add the vinegar and increase the heat to medium-low. Simmer the sauce, uncovered, for an additional 30 minutes, or until thickened to your liking.
• Taste the ragu and adjust seasoning to your taste, adding salt especially, as needed. The sauce should be smooth and flavourful. If it tastes flat and acidic, it needs salt. Add a bit at a time and stir in, taste and repeat as needed.
• Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of salted water until al dente. Drain and place pasta into a large bowl. Spoon ragu over pasta, as needed, tossing well to coat the pasta. Allow the pasta to stand several minutes undisturbed in the bowl, to allow the sauce and pasta to "meld together", before serving with Parmesan and some torn basil leaves.

ULTIMATE BEEF RAGU

Steps:

• Heat a heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high and fry the bacon until done.Add the butter and olive oil. Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrot and cook until tender but not browned, about 10 minutes. Add the ground beef and sausage and cook, breaking up the lumps, until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. (If you like you can drain some of the grease.)Add the wine, bring to a boil, and simmer for 2 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, heavy cream and remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and cook uncovered for 45-60 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add salt and pepper to taste.Serve with hot al dente pasta of your choice along with a sprinkle with Parmesan-Reggiano cheese.Note: This sauce is even better the next day after the flavors have had more time to meld!

BEEF RAGU WITH WARM SPICES

Steps:

• Pat ribs dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over med-high heat until just smoking.
• Brown ribs well on all sides, 8-10 minutes; transfer to plate.
• Pour off all but 1 teaspoon fat left in skillet; add onion and cook over medium heat until softened, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in parsley, cinnamon, and cloves and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• Stir in wine, scraping up any browned bits, and simmer until nearly evaporated, about 2 minutes.
• Stir in chopped tomatoes and reserved tomato juice.
• Nestle browned ribs into sauce, along with any accumulated juice, and bring to gentle simmer.
• Decrease heat to low, cover, and simmer gently, turning ribs occasionally, until meat is very tender and falling off bones, about 2 hours.
• Transfer ribs to plate, let cool slightly, then shred meat into bite-size pieces, discarding fat and bones. Return shredded meat to sauce, bring to simmer, and cook until heated through and thickened slightly, about 5 minutes.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot.
• Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook, stirring often, until al dente.
• Reserve ½ cup cooking water, then drain pasta and return it to pot.
• Add sauce and toss to combine.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste and add reserved cooking water as needed to adjust consistently.
• Serve with Parmesan.

CHICKPEA PASTA WITH MOROCCAN BEEF RAGU

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook as the label directs for al dente. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef, garlic, onion and bell pepper and cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until the meat is no longer pink and the vegetables begin to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the raisins, tomato paste, ras el hanout, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper; cook until the oil turns red, about 1 minute.
• Add the pasta to the skillet, reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring, until coated, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking water; add more cooking water as needed to loosen. Season with salt and pepper and stir in the cilantro and mint. Divide the pasta among bowls.

SLOW-COOKER BEEF RAGU

Steps:

• In a 5-to-6-quart slow cooker, combine onion, garlic, tomato paste, and oregano. Season roast with salt and pepper and place on top of onion mixture.
• Add 2 cups water, cover, and cook on high until meat is tender and can easily be pulled apart with a fork, 4 1/2 hours (or 9 hours on low). Let cool 10 minutes, then shred meat in slow cooker with 2 forks and stir in vinegar to taste.

BEEF RAGU

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Put the mince in a shallow roasting tin, break it up and put in the oven for 5 mins. Remove the mince and give it a stir, then nestle in the star anise and cloves (tie them up in a piece of muslin cloth first, if you prefer) and roast for another 10 mins. Give it another stir, then roast for another 30-40 mins until deep brown and crispy, stirring and scraping it off the bottom of the pan a few times if needed. Set aside.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat and cook the pancetta for 8-10 mins until crispy and browned on all sides. Stir in the onions, carrots, celery and garlic, and cook for 8-10 mins until the veg has softened. Stir through the mushrooms, oregano and bay leaves, then scatter over the sugar and squeeze in the tomato purée. Stir well, then pour in the wine and vinegar and bring to the boil. Simmer for a few minutes until reduced by about a third.
• Tip in the tomatoes, then a can of water. Add the stock pot or cube, give everything another good stir and bring to a simmer again. Scrape in the roasted mince and spice bag, season, then turn the heat down to low and simmer gently for about 1 hr 30 mins until thick and glossy. Taste for seasoning. The sauce will taste even better if left to cool completely and chilled for a day or two before reheating. Serve with pasta and grated parmesan, if you like. Can be chilled for up to three days or frozen for three months - defrost fully before reheating over low to medium heat until piping hot.

BEEF RAGOUT

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3 and season the beef all over. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a flameproof casserole over a medium-high heat and brown the beef until dark, about 15 mins, in batches if you need to, using 1 tbsp oil for each batch. Drain the beef in a colander to remove the fat while you cook the rest.
• Wipe out the pan with kitchen paper, then add about 2 tbsp oil, the onions, carrots, celery and garlic with a pinch of salt and cook for 8-10 mins over a low-medium heat. Stir in the tomato purée and cook for a further 3 mins. Add the wine, herbs, tomatoes and stock, season and bring to the boil, stir the beef back into the sauce and reduce to a simmer. Cover and put in the oven for 2 hrs 30 mins, then remove the lid, stir and put back in the oven, uncovered, for 30 mins. Stir or use a fork to roughly shred the beef, and season. Serve now, or chill until serving - it tastes better if made a day ahead.
• When ready to serve, gently reheat the ragout over a medium heat. Cook the pasta in a large pan of salted water for 3 mins, drain then tip into the ragout, toss together with some of the parmesan and leave for 1 min. Ladle the pasta into bowls, scatter over the remaining parmesan and serve.