Braised Beef Shin Ragu & Pappardelle

Braised Beef Shin Ragu & Pappardelle

I cooked this for last nights dinner and although there is a bit of preparation and the cooking time is 2 hours, it is perfect for a lazy Sunday night dinner. It tastes absolutely delicious, the meat is so tender and just falls apart as you fork it. It makes for a great and different variation on a spag bol! What's even better is that we still have leftovers of the meat for either a sandwich lunch today or for an easy dinner over idaho potatoes tonight! Try it - you won't be disappointed :)

PS. I used Pappardelle, but any pasta to your liking can be used!

Ingredients

1 kilogram beef shin, off the bone, in large pieces

Flour (seasoned with Salt and pepper)

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 red onions, sliced (may seem like a lot but these reduce & disintegrate into the sauce)

100 grams bacon, chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon rosemary, finely chopped

4 anchovies, chopped (optional but you can’t taste them in the end)

½ cup balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 cups beef stock
250 grams dried pappardelle pasta

Parmesan to serve

Preheat the oven to 160˚C

Dust the beef with the seasoned flour, shaking off the excess.

Using a large non-stick fry pan, heat the oil and brown the flour-coated meat on all sides. (You may have to do this in batches).

Transfer to a plate until next needed.

To the fry pan, add the onions, bacon, garlic, rosemary and anchovies and cook until the onions are soft.

Add the balsamic vinegar and allow it to reduce. It may bubble up, and if this happens then scrape the base of the pan to release any sticky bits.

Stir in the tomato paste and beef stock.

Transfer the beef into a large oven-proof casserole dish that has been pre-sprayed with cooking oil. Add any juices from the plate too.

Pour the ingredients in the fry pan over the beef and season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper.

Cover with a piece of baking paper, then a tight fitting lid. Cook for 2 hours or until the meat is tender and falls apart when prodded with a fork.

Take out the chunks of meat and pull apart with a fork so you are left with shredded bits of meat. Stir back into the sauce. Cover with Lid to keep warm whilst you cook your pasta.

Cook your pasta in salted water and drain well.

Divide the pasta between warm serving dishes and top with the ragu. Sprinkle with grated parmesan to serve.