Hearty Braised Beef Ragu with Pasta

Summary
Prep time	45 min
Cook time	~4 hours
Source	Lilikoi Joy blog
Yield / serves	6-8+
Rating	Excellent

Ingredients

• 3 T olive oil
• 4 slices of bacon, chopped
• 3 lb boneless chuck roast, cut into 3" cubes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 c flour
• 1 medium onion, coarsely chunked
• 1 carrot, coarsely chunked
• 1/2 c fresh Italian parsley leaves
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1 (14-oz) can tomatoes (whole or diced)
• 1 T tomato paste
• 1 t dried rosemary
• 1 t dried thyme
• 1/2 t dried oregano
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 T cocoa powder
• 1 T brown sugar (or regular sugar if you don’t have brown)
• 2 1/2 cups beef broth
• 3/4 c red wine
• 1 lb egg noodles or fettuccine (or tagliatelle if you can find it)
• Grated parmesan, chopped parsley, and/or dark chocolate shavings for garnish (optional)

Preparation

In a large heavy pot over medium heat, heat olive oil. Cook bacon until golden and crisp, about 5 minutes. Season the chuck roast with salt and pepper, just enough to have an even sprinkle, and dredge in the flour. Remove the bacon from the pan with a slotted spoon and let drain on paper towel. Add the chuck roast to the pan and brown on all sides, 2 minutes on each side or just until brown.

I use a food processor for this next step, but you can also hand chop the following ingredients into a fine mince: Onion, carrot, parsley, and garlic. If using a food processor, add tomatoes and tomato paste now and pulse. If not, just add them later (and I would used crushed tomatoes instead of whole or diced if you aren't using a food processor).

Once the beef is browned, add the vegetable mixture to the pot. Return the bacon to the pot and add the rosemary, thyme, oregano, bay leaf, cocoa powder, brown sugar, beef broth, and wine (and the tomato paste and tomatoes if you didn’t use a food processor earlier). Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the lid and simmer for another 2 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Remove the meat, shred, and return it to the pot. Season with salt and pepper to taste if needed. You can cook this all ahead of time and heat up for the next day if desired, then add to pasta when ready to serve, as follows:

Cook pasta in salted water per package directions to al-dente. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Drain pasta, add to the ragu pot and stir to combine. If it is too thick, add reserved pasta liquid 1/4 cup at a time to moisten and loosen it up. Serve with grated parmesan and chopped parsley if desired.