Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
- 2 ½ lbs. beef chuck roast, trimmed of fat and cut into 5-6 pieces
- Fine salt and black pepper
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced (1 ½ cups)
- 3 large carrots, peeled and finely diced (1 ½ cups)
- 3 celery stalks/ribs, finely diced (¾ cup)
- 6 garlic cloves, peeled and minced (3 tablespoons)
- 1 (6-ounce can) tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning
- 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 3 cups beef broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- Optional for serving: Hot cooked pappardelle pasta, fettuccine or other pasta shape of choice or serve over cooked polenta. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300℉.
- Place a 5-quart (or larger) Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid over medium high heat.
- When the pot is very hot, generously mist the bottom with cooking spray then add ½ tablespoon of olive oil to the pot, swirling the pan to coat the bottom. The oil will smoke a little, that’s okay.
- Pat the beef chunks dry with a paper towel and sprinkle both sides with fine salt and black pepper.
- Place the beef chunks in the pot and cook for 7 minutes without moving them. Once browned, flip them over and cook for an additional 8 minutes to brown the other side. Remove to a plate.
- Add the remaining ½ tablespoon olive oil to the same pot and reduce the heat to medium.
- Add the onion, carrots, and celery; stir to combine. Cook until the onions start to soften, 7 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the garlic, stir and cook for 1 minute or until fragrant.
- Next, add the tomato paste and Italian seasoning. Stir to coat the vegetables and cook for another 1 minute.
- Add the crushed tomatoes and beef broth. Increase the heat and bring almost to a boil.
- Once the tomato mixture is almost boiling, remove from the heat and return the browned beef pieces back to the pot.
- Tuck the bay leaves into the liquid.
- Cover the pot with a lid and transfer to the preheated oven.
- Cook until the beef is very tender, about 4 hours. If the ragu is steaming off a lot of the liquid during cooking, add an additional ¼ – ⅓ cup beef broth.
- When the beef is fall-apart tender, remove the pot from the oven. Using tongs, remove the beef to a cutting board and shred the meat with 2 forks to desired size.
- Remove the bay leaves from the sauce before returning the shredded beef to the sauce in the pot.
- Add the red wine vinegar and stir well to combine.
- Serve over hot cooked pappardelle pasta (or pasta of choice) and garnish with grated Parmesan cheese.
Notes
Pappardelle pasta is the traditional choice for pairing with beef ragu. I suggest serving each portion over about 1 cup of cooked pasta. It’s also delicious over cooked polenta.
For gluten free, omit the pasta or use a gluten-free pasta instead, or serve the ragu over polenta instead.
Slow Cooker Version
1. Without preheating the oven, follow steps 2 through 8 above. Then transfer the sautéed vegetables and garlic to a 6-quart or larger slow cooker.
2. Add the tomato paste, Italian seasoning, crushed tomatoes and beef broth. Stir well to combine. Then add the beef chunks to the slow cooker, pressing them under the liquid if possible. Add the bay leaves to the slow cooker.
3. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or until the beef is very tender.
4. When the beef is fall-apart tender, remove and discard the bay leaves. Then remove the beef to a cutting board and shred the meat with 2 forks to desired size.
5. Then return the shredded beef to the slow cooker. Add the red wine vinegar and stir well.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size: ⅙ of the ragu without pasta
- Calories: 391
- Fat: 13 g
- (Sat Fat: 5 g)
- Sodium: 800 mg
- Carbohydrate: 24 g
- (Fiber: 7 g
- Sugar: 11 g)
- Protein: 45 g
- Cholesterol: 125 mg