Description
A rich, slow‑braised Italian‑style ragu made with fall‑apart short ribs in a red wine and tomato sauce, perfect over pasta, polenta or gnocchi.
Ingredients
- 1.4 kg (about 3 lb) bone‑in beef short ribs, trimmed
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
- 2 celery stalks, finely diced
- 5–6 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 500 ml dry red wine
- 2×400 g cans crushed or whole tomatoes
- 250–500 ml beef stock or broth
- 2 sprigs rosemary
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Optional: sugar or lemon zest to brighten
- Fresh parsley and grated Parmesan for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 160 °C (320 °F).
- Season short ribs with salt and pepper, pat dry.
- Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium‑high heat; sear ribs on all sides until deeply browned. Remove and set aside.
- Add onion, carrot and celery to pot; sauté until softened (6–10 min). Add garlic and cook 1 min more.
- Stir in tomato paste (plus crushed red pepper if using) and cook 2–3 minutes.
- Pour in red wine, scrape up browned bits, simmer a few minutes to reduce slightly.
- Add tomatoes, broth, herbs, bay leaves (and optional sugar); nestle ribs into sauce. Bring to gentle simmer.
- Cover pot and transfer to oven; braise 3 to 3½ hours until meat is fall‑apart tender.
- Remove ribs, shred meat and discard bones and excess fat; return shredded meat to sauce and stir to combine.
- Serve over pasta (e.g. pappardelle), polenta or gnocchi; garnish with parsley and grated Parmesan.
Notes
- The flavors deepen if made a day ahead; skim fat before reheating.
- Slow‑cooker or Instant Pot adaptations are possible: sear ribs first, then braise on LOW 8 hours (slow‑cooker) or pressure‑cook 45–60 min (Instant Pot).
- You can substitute bone‑in ribs with boneless short ribs or chuck roast.
- Adjust thickness by adding pasta water when tossing with pasta.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: approx. 1½ cup ragu + pasta
- Calories: ~674 kcal
- Sugar: ≈15 g
- Sodium: depends on added salt, estimate moderate
- Fat: ~20 g
- Saturated Fat: ~8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: ~12 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: ~60 g
- Fiber: ≈5 g
- Protein: ~30 g
- Cholesterol: ~90 mg
