Lazy Sunday Ragu
Main Dish, Sauce • Pasta, Sauce
Serving size: 7-8
Cook time: 3 hours 30 mins
Already have Recipe Keeper?
Ingredients
- 2 pounds meat of choice (beef)
- Kosher salt; freshly ground pepper
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 8 garlic cloves
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- ¼ tsp Chili flakes (optional)
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 (28-ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes
- 2 pounds pasta of choice (spaghetti, rigatoni, fettuccine)
Directions
- 1. Cook meat of choice and set aside leaving the remaining oil in the pan.
- 2. Add the garlic and onion to the pot with the drippings; reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring often and scraping up any browned bits, until the onion is translucent, 2 to 3 minutes.
- 3. Add the oregano, chili flakes (if using) and bay leaves and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are golden brown at the edges, about 4 minutes.
- 4. Add the crushed tomatoes to the vegetable mixture. Rinse out each can by filling it halfway with water and swirling it around; add this water to the pot and bring to a simmer. Season with salt and black pepper and cook until the sauce is slightly reduced, 25 to 30 minutes. Return the meat to the pot, along with any accumulated juices. Place a lid slightly ajar on the pot and cook at an low simmer, stirring every half hour, until the meats are soft 2½ to 3 hours.
- 5. Make sure ragù is a gentle simmer. Taste sauce and adjust the seasoning. Remove some sauce for plating and use a slotted spoon or spider to transfer pasta directly into sauce.
- Stir to combine and finish cooking the pasta, adding ladlefuls of pasta cooking liquid as needed to adjust consistency of sauce.
