Our Beef Shin Ragù takes pride of place almost every week on our ever-changing menu. And there's good reason for it. As one of our customers' favourite dishes, our chefs slowly – carefully – brown pieces of beef shin until they take on a deep, burnished hue. Red wine and aromatics are then added, as well as tomatoes, in which the beef shin slowly, gently simmers for hours and hours until reaching a consistency so silky, so gelatinous, that it ceases to cling to the bone and yields to become the glorious focal point of this rich, intensely meaty ragù. The robust flavours of the ragù mean that it needs to be matched with a pasta of equal stature; the thick, flat ribbons of pappardelle provide just that, soaking up every last morsel of the rich ragù.
Try our beef shin ragù using the link below, or read on to find out how to make our recipe yourself at home.
After much pleading from fans and customers alike we’ve finally decided to share our signature Italian beef ragù recipe, so you can try making it at home yourself.
How to Make Our Signature Beef Shin Ragù
Serves 4
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 3 hours
Calories per serving: 636 kcal
Ingredients
- 600g Fresh Pappardelle (for ingredients, see this simple recipe)
- 300g Beef shin
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 2 carrots, finely chopped
- 2 large celery sticks, finely chopped
- 500ml passata
- 1tbsp tomato puree
- 1 bay leaf
- 500ml beef stock
- 100ml red Barolo wine
- Olive Oil
- Sea salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Method
- Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Brown the meat on all sides, about 5 minutes, working in batches if necessary. Once browned, set the beef aside.
- Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion and garlic to the same pot and sauté until fragrant and beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the carrot and celery and sauté until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Deglaze with red wine and simmer until reduced by half, about 5 more minutes. Add the tomato puree along with the passata and cook for another few minutes.
- Add back the browned beef, along with beef stock and bay leaf. Bring the liquid to a simmer over medium-low heat. Cover and continue to simmer for 3 hours minimum, or until the beef is very tender.
- If the sauce is too liquidy at the end of the 3 hour cooking period, remove the beef and reduce the liquid over medium heat, until thickened.
- Pull the meat into chunks and stir through the sauce. Taste for seasoning and adjust salt and pepper if necessary.
- While your ragu is reducing, prepare your fresh pappardelle, following our easy fresh pappardelle tutorial:
- Cook the pappardelle in salted boiling water for around 3-4 minutes or until al dente (test a strand before removing from the water).
- To serve, add the sauce to the pasta and roughly combine, then finish with freshly with grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Which Pasta Pairs Perfectly with Beef Shin Ragù?
There are plenty of fantastic options when it comes to pairing an Italian beef ragù with pasta. Pappardelle, tagliatelle and fettuccine are all great options as these long and wide strips are perfect for catching tender chunks of meat.
Pasta tubes such as penne and paccheri also pair well as the holes in these fresh tubes capture the sauces perfectly, with zero risk of dryness or bland flavours.
We even recommend pairing our beef shin ragù with gnocchi as we do with our Gnocchi Dumplings with Beef & Barolo Wine Ragù and Parmigiano Reggiano, as the richness of the gnocchi stands up to the strong flavours of the Italian ragù.
Tried this recipe for yourself? We'd love to hear your thoughts - let us know by leaving a comment below.
At Pasta Evangelists, we bring a taste of Italy to your kitchen. Prepared using the freshest ingredients, our gourmet pasta dishes are perfect for those looking to enjoy restaurant-quality meals, delivered to your door, and ready in under five minutes. Order from our weekly menu today, and we’ll offer you 25% off your first delivery - simply enter the code BLOG25 at checkout.