Ultimate Beef Ragu
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Nothing speaks comfort like a plate of hot pasta topped with this robust and flavorful beef ragu! This beef ragu recipe is one of my all-time favorite pasta sauces and is a regular in our home. Rich and hearty and positively PACKED with flavor, we’re confident you’re going to love it too!
My Favorite Beef Ragu
This is one of my all-time favorite pasta sauces and it’s one that my kids and husband regularly request. There’s never a drop left on their plates and they usually reach for seconds. Besides being absolutely delicious, another reason I love this dish is that the sauce can be made well in advance, the flavor only improves with time, and I can double or even triple the recipe so I have leftovers on hand during a busy week. It’s also a great potluck dish to feed a crowd.
Also known as Ragu di Carne, this traditional Italian meat sauce is a wonderful stick-to-your-ribs eating experience. I make mine with ground beef, sausage, and bacon for a flavor-packed sauce. I also include onions, garlic, carrots, celery, Roma tomatoes, tomato sauce, red wine, heavy cream, and Italian herbs. And for an additional punch of umami you can include some dried ground porcini mushrooms. The vegetables are caramelized in butter and olive oil and the ragu is cooked on low for an hour. The end result will wow your taste buds!
Ragu vs Bolognese
Ragu and bolognese are both Italian meat sauces and are quite similar, but one of the main differences between the two is that ragu is often heavier on the tomatoes than bolognese. Ragu is also usually a bit chunkier and thicker while bolognese is a little “saucier” (though by American spaghetti sauce standards bolognese is quite thick as well). These differences can be very subtle though and vary from one family recipe to another.
Ragu also differs from Italian-American spaghetti sauce in that it is generally thicker and is made with a larger variety of ingredients, including more vegetables.
What is the Best Pasta to Use?
This ragu sauce pairs well with any kind of pasta, be it spaghetti, fettuccine, rotini, rigatoni, penne, macaroni, etc, or to make a fabulous lasagna. But wide pasta is particularly great for thick sauces like ragu because the large surface area enables the chunky sauce to click to it. So when given the choice I recommend pappardelle.
Beef Ragu Recipe
Let’s get started!
Heat a heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high and fry the bacon until done.
Add the butter and olive oil. Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrot and cook until tender but not browned, about 10 minutes.
Add the ground beef and sausage and cook, breaking up the lumps, until no longer pink, about 10 minutes.
Add the wine, bring to a boil, and simmer for 2 minutes.
Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, heavy cream and remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 60-90 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the lid and cook for an additional 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with hot al dente pasta of your choice along with a sprinkle with Parmesan-Reggiano cheese.
Note: This sauce is even better the next day after the flavors have had more time to meld!
Serving Recommendations
Serve the ragu sauce over pasta (fresh pasta is always best), with some freshly grated aged Italian cheese.
Serve it with some garlic bread, good crusty bread or olive rosemary focaccia, and a leafy green salad, Caesar salad or Caprese salad. You can also pair it with your choice of roasted or steamed vegetables. An antipasto platter also makes a great addition, features things like marinated olives, giardiniera, pickled asparagus, and pickled pepperoncini peppers.
Advance Preparation and Freezing
This beef ragu sauce can be made in advance; in fact the flavor only gets better, so I recommend making it a day or two in advance. It also freezes well. This is one of those sauces I always like to have on hand in my freezer for a quick and ready meal. You can freeze it for up to 4 months and reheat it in the microwave or on the stovetop. Stir it into hot pasta and your meal is ready to go!
Enjoy!
For more delicious meat sauces be sure to try my:
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Ultimate Beef Ragu
Ingredients
- 5 slices thick cut bacon , diced (vegetarian: use Morningstar Veggie Bacon Strips or similar plus 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika)
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (vegan: use vegetable spread, such as Earth Balance)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion , very finely chopped
- 2 celery ribs , very finely chopped
- 2 carrots , very finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 pound ground beef (vegetarians: about 1 cup dried TVP)
- 1 pound ground Italian sausage (vegetarians: Morningstar Italian Sausage crumbles or similar)
- 1/2 cup dry red wine
- 28 ounces canned petite diced tomatoes
- 28 ounces plain tomato sauce/puree
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1/2 cup heavy cream (vegan: vegan whipping cream substitute)
- 3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried ground sage
- 1/2 teaspoon ground fennel seed (I blitz it in a spice/coffee grinder)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon dried ground porcini mushrooms (optional for a fabulous dose of umami; highly recommended)
- hot pasta cooked al dente (GF: use gluten free)
Instructions
- Heat a heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high and fry the bacon until done.Add the butter and olive oil. Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrot and cook until tender but not browned, about 10 minutes. Add the ground beef and sausage and cook, breaking up the lumps, until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. (If you like you can drain some of the grease.)Add the wine, bring to a boil, and simmer for 2 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, heavy cream and remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 60-90 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the lid and let simmer for an additional 30 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Discard bay leaf.Serve with hot al dente pasta of your choice along with a sprinkle of Parmesan-Reggiano cheese.Note: This sauce is even better the next day after the flavors have had more time to meld! It also freezes well.
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet March 2, 2021
Hi, I’m Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!
This turned out great! My husband, a lover of pasta recipes, said this was his very favorite! Thanks for the recipe.
Wonderful! I’m so happy it was a hit, thank you Molly! <3
Hi Kimberly, fabulous recipe. Have you ever tried ground Morels instead of the Porcinis?
Is cost the issue or would they ruin the dish?
Thank You
Thank you so much, Fred, I’m happy you enjoyed it! I haven’t tried morels specifically but any dried ground mushroom will add a nice dose of umami. Porcinis are just particularly potent which I love.
This beef ragu has become a favorite in our home. It’s something I can make for dinner that I know everyone, youngest to oldest, will eat without complaint, lol. I’ve made it at least a dozen times over the past few months, we all love it! Just wanted to say “thank you”!
Oh I’m so happy to hear that, Clarissa, thank you very much! <3