If you are looking for a warm and hearty cool-weather dinner, then beef ragu is it! This is a rich short rib stew swimming in a tomato sauce fortified with red wine, garlic, prosciutto, and Italian spices. Lip-smacking delicious and perfect on pasta, this ragu is serious food. I promise this is the one dish that you will crave all year long!
Elegant enough for a dinner party, delicious enough for the family. It does take time to make, so plan ahead, but I assure you, it’s worth every luscious bite. Bon Appetit!
Looking for more deliciously authentic Italian pasta and sauces, I hope you’ll check out our Sunday gravy, ragu bolognese that’s low and slow cooked, weeknight bolognese, and spaghetti and meatballs next!
BEEF RAGU INGREDIENTS
- Olive Oil: Extra Virgin Olive Oil lends flavor and is a healthy oil when cooking.
- Bone-In Beef Short Ribs: This cut of meat needs time to break down, and the result is a luscious, beefy meat that falls off the bone. Low and slow is the name of the game.
- Prosciutto: This Italian cured ham has a delicate salty flavor and often serves as a base for sauces. If you cannot find prosciutto, then bacon or pancetta can be substituted.
- Onion, Carrot, Celery: These three vegetables, also known as mirepoix, are the base for many sauces and savory dishes.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic; there’s nothing like it! A must for this dish.
- Allspice: This spice is slightly sweet with a warm aroma.
- Smoked Paprika: This spice is a Spanish smoke-dried chili pepper. It is richer than regular paprika.
- Thyme: Dried thyme has a warm, earthy, slightly woody flavor with a lemony-mint undertone. This is one of my favorite herbs.
- Tomato Paste: Concentrated tomato sauce, this ingredient adds so much flavor to sauces.
- Red wine: Use a nice red wine that you would drink yourself. In fact, after opening the bottle, go ahead and treat yourself to a glass while cooking! The wine will reduce, and the alcohol will dissipate, but the rich flavor will become more concentrated, making a wonderful rich, and flavorful sauce.
- Better Than Bouillon: A secret weapon in my kitchen. Dissolve in warm water first. Once added to your sauce, another layer of beefy flavor will develop.
- San Marzano Tomatoes: The best canned tomatoes around, San Marzano tomatoes are the gold standard.
- Beef Stock: Part of a good sauce, beef stock enhances that beefy flavor created by the short ribs and other ingredients.
- Bay Leaf: This aromatic leaf adds an herbal aroma similar to thyme or oregano. They are not edible and should be removed before serving.
- Pasta: dried pasta cooked al dente. I uses DeCecco pappardelle pasta.
TIPS
- Brown Bits: Take your time browning the prosciutto and short ribs. The brown bits will make your beef ragu sauce deep, rich, and meaty. Don’t rush this process….the brown bits are everything for developing flavor!
- Pasta: This sauce will pair well with any long pasta. Try it with fettuccine, linguine, bucatini. The most important thing about the pasta is selecting a high quality brand. I use either DeCecco or Barilla.
SERVING RECOMMENDATIONS
We serve this with our crusty practically no-knead bread, copycat olive garden breadsticks, or our amazing garlic bread (with fresh herbs!). Our Mediterranean salad, 1905 salad, or just a simple green salad dressed with our super-simple balsamic vinaigrette completes the meal perfectly!
STORING + FREEZING + MAKE-AHEAD
- How Long Can You Keep This in The Fridge? Once made, your short rib beef ragu will last up to four days. In fact, this dish is better the next day, so go ahead and make it ahead.
- Can You Freeze This? This dish can be frozen. Put the cooled meat and sauce in a freezer-safe container, label, and freeze for up to three months. When ready to eat, fully thaw, heat, and enjoy!
- Make-Ahead: This beef short rib ragu can be made several days ahead of time. The flavors will further develop. When ready to eat, heat up on the stove on medium-low heat.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
HOW TO MAKE BEEF RAGU PASTA
- Trim the short ribs of excess fats.
- In a pot, brown the prosciutto.
- Brown the short ribs in batches. Set aside.
- Add the aromatics, veggies, herbs, spices, tomato paste, and anchovy paste.
- Saute.
- Pour the red wine, broth, tomatoes, and bay leaves.
- Return the meat to the pot. Cook until the meat is tender.
- Remove the meat from the bones and disregard the bay leaves. Add the meat to the sauce.
- Add the sauce to the cooked pasta. Serve.
***See the full instructions below.
MORE ITALIAN PASTA RECIPES
- Creamy Tuscan Sausage Pasta
- Baked Ziti With Ricotta
- Chicken Alfredo
- Pasta Alla Norma
- Mediterranean Pasta Salad
- Baked Ziti With Italian Sausage
- Creamy Lemon Chicken Pasta
- Cacio e Pepe
- Italian Spaghetti
- Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meatballs
- Olive Garden Chicken Alfredo
- Rigatoni Bolognese
- Baked Rigatoni
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Beef Ragu
If you are looking for a warm and hearty cool-weather dinner, then beef ragu is it! This has rich short rib stew swimming in tomato sauce.
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil, DIVIDED
- 4 pounds bone-in beef short ribs
- 2 ounces prosciutto, chopped
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 1 large carrot finely chopped
- 2 sticks celery finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon anchovy paste
- 2 cups dry red wine
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 heaping tablespoon beef flavored Better than Bouillon
- 1 (28-ounce) can San Marzano tomatoes
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 4-6 cups low sodium beef stock
- 16 ounces pappardelle, cooked when sauce is done simmering.
Instructions
- Trim the short ribs of excess fat. Pat the meat dry with paper towels to remove excess moisture.
- In a Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add prosciutto (2 ounces), and brown, stirring often, for 2-3 minutes. Remove browned prosciutto to a plate.
- Add more oil, start with 2 tablespoon, to the Dutch oven and brown the short ribs, in batches, on all sides, about 12 minutes per batch. Don't crowd the pan while browning. You should be able to see some of the bottom of the pan and there should be air space between the ribs. Removed browned ribs to a plate. Add more oil, as necessary, between batches.
- If there aren't 2 tablespoons of oil in the Dutch oven, add enough oil to reach that amount. Stir in the onion (1 large), carrot (1 large), celery (2 sticks), garlic (4 cloves), allspice (1/4 teaspoon), smoked paprika (1 teaspoon), dried thyme (1 1/2 teaspoon), tomato paste (2 tablespoons), and anchovy paste (1 tablespoon). Stir often, and adjust the heat so the tomato paste and spices do not burn. Cook until vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes.
- Pour the red wine (2 cups) into the Dutch oven and stir, digging down to the bottom of the pot, and scraping up all the brown bits. Continue to cook until the wine is reduced by half.
- Bring 1/2 cup water to a boil. Pour it into a small bowl and add beef flavored Better than Bouillon (1 heaping tablespoon) and stir with a fork until completely dissolved and there are no lumps.
- Add tomatoes with their liquid (1 can) and crush. Add bay leaves (2).
- Return the short ribs and any juices that have accumulated and prosciutto to the Dutch oven, add 2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper, and stir well. Add just enough beef stock to cover the ribs (we used 4 cups). Bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat and simmer. Cover the pot partially with a lid.
- Stir the mixture occasionally while simmering. Cook until the meat is very tender, about 3 hours.
- Remove the Dutch oven from the heat. Transfer the short ribs to a cutting board. Remove meat from the bones and shred or cut into bite-size-pieces.
- Remove and discard the bay leaf. Return the meat to the pot. If fat has accumulated on top surface, skim it off the top with a large spoon and discard.
- Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning, if needed, with salt and pepper. Add the meat to the sauce in the Dutch oven and rewarm over medium-low heat.
- When the sauce is almost done, cook the pasta (16 ounces) according to package instructions. Drain. Dry out pot pasta was cooked in.
- When pasta is drained return it to the empty pasta pot. Spoon the warm sauce over pasta and toss to coat evenly. Portion into individual pasta bowls, top with parmesan and basil and serve.
Notes
- Brown Bits: Take your time browning the prosciutto and short ribs. The brown bits will make your sauce deep, rich, and meaty. Don’t rush this process….the brown bits are everything for developing flavor!
- Pasta: This sauce will pair well with any long pasta. Try it with fettuccine, linguine, bucatini. The most important thing about the pasta is selecting a high quality brand. I use either DeCecco or Barilla.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 868kcal | Carbohydrates: 72g | Protein: 61g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 202mg | Sodium: 906mg | Potassium: 1823mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 2294IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 129mg | Iron: 9mg
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