Braised Beef Ragu
Braised Beef Ragu: rich beef dish is slow cooked in the oven until fork tender. Serve with pasta or mashed potatoes, perfect comfort food.
I’ve been making this braised beef ragu for over a year now, and I’ve been meaning to share the recipe. I made it again for our Beauty and the Beast themed dinner and movie night the other day -check out all the details of the Beauty and the Beast party here.. We were inspired by the “Be Our Guest” song in the film to create a menu that featured beef ragu, since they mention it, and this recipe was perfect! It’s rich and flavourful and the perfect comfort food, especially for cooler weather as we head into fall and winter. You’ll definitely want to pin this recipe!
Braised Beef
Braised beef is any beef slowly cooked at a low temperature. It’s generally seared at a high temperature in a hot pan first, and then slowly cooked in a braising liquid. The braising liquid is usually broth, and/or wine. The beef is generally cooked until it’s falling apart and is fork tender. There’s also often some sautéed vegetables included, most commonly onion, garlic, celery, and carrots.
Beef Ragu
Beef ragu is an Italian meat sauce dish served with pasta. It’s usually tomato based, and sometimes includes vegetables.
Braised Beef Ragu
Our braised beef ragu combines the best of both of these dishes, using a beef roast that is slow cooked until it’s tender, along with the traditional onion, garlic, celery, and carrots, there are also mushrooms included in our dish. The braising liquid is beef stock and red wine, but there is also some tomato paste included to add the tomato flavour.
Our braised beef ragu is delicious served with a wide pasta. It’s also great over mashed potatoes.
Braised Beef Ragu
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 lbs of beef roast, cut into 3 -4 inch pieces
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
- 3 stalks celery, sliced
- 8 oz mushrooms, quartered
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/8 tsp red chilli pepper flakes
- 3 cups beef broth
- 2 cups red wine
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Heat oil in a dutch oven, and brown the beef pieces on all sides over high heat. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- In the same pot saute the onions, celery, carrots, and mushrooms until softened, about 8 min. over medium heat.
- Add the minced garlic, and red chili flakes and cook 1 min. longer.
- Add the broth, wine, tomato paste, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper. Use a wooden spoon to scrape any brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the beef back to the pan, and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Add a lid to the dutch oven, and cook in a 350 degree oven for 2-2 1/2 hours, until the beef is fall apart tender. Use two forks to shred the cooked beef. Serve over pasta, or mashed potatoes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 619Total Fat: 34gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 18gCholesterol: 181mgSodium: 976mgCarbohydrates: 12gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 49g
Tip: because we braised our beef ragu in the oven, some of the cooking liquids evaporated. If you want more sauce with your finished dish, feel free to add a little hot water to the dish.
With braised beef ragu, life really is a party!
This recipe was part of our Beauty and the Beast themed Disney Princess Dinner and Movie Night -check out all the details about the whole party here.
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