Description
A deeply comforting Italian pasta dish featuring tender beef slowly braised with an abundance of onions until they melt into a rich, silky ragu that clings beautifully to pasta.
Ingredients
4 oz finely diced beef fat or extra beef trimmings
2½ lbs beef chuck roast, cut into 3-inch pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 celery rib, finely diced
1 medium carrot, finely diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup beef broth, divided
10 oz cherry tomatoes, divided
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
1 lb ziti pasta
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup reserved pasta water
¼ cup torn fresh basil leaves
Freshly grated parmesan cheese, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Thinly slice onions and set aside.
- Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-low heat and render diced beef fat until golden. Remove crisp bits and reserve.
- Increase heat to medium. Season beef with salt and pepper and sear for 3–4 minutes per side until deeply browned. Remove beef and set aside.
- Add olive oil to the pot, then add half of the onions, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cook for 6–8 minutes until softened.
- Stir in tomato paste and cook for 2–3 minutes until darkened.
- Return beef and rendered fat to the pot. Add half the beef broth, scraping up browned bits.
- Top with remaining onions, half of the cherry tomatoes, bay leaf, and a light seasoning of salt and pepper.
- Cover with lid slightly ajar and braise in the oven for about 2½ hours, checking occasionally and adding liquid if needed.
- Remove from oven and rest 10 minutes. Place back on stovetop, stir in remaining tomatoes and beef broth, and simmer 15 minutes until beef shreds easily.
- Cook ziti in salted water until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water and drain.
- Stir butter and basil into the ragu. Add pasta and about ⅔ cup pasta water and simmer 3–4 minutes until sauce coats pasta.
- Adjust seasoning and consistency, serve hot with freshly grated parmesan.
Notes
Onions should be sliced very thin so they melt into the sauce.
Ragu tastes even better the next day.
Rigatoni or paccheri can be used instead of ziti.
Freeze ragu without pasta for best results.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 hours
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Braising
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 720
- Sugar: 9g
- Sodium: 780mg
- Fat: 32g
- Saturated Fat: 14g
- Unsaturated Fat: 16g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 62g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 42g
- Cholesterol: 135mg
