Ragu Sauce

• total time: 31 minutes

Ingredients

1 kg beef mince (50% shin, 50% chuck) — 2.2 lb

400 g pork belly, diced — 14 oz

100 g pancetta, diced — 3.5 oz

200 g onion, finely diced — 1 ½ cups

150 g carrots, finely diced — 1 cup

150 g celery, finely diced — 1 cup

1–2 garlic cloves, finely grated

2–3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1–2 tbsp neutral oil

80 g tomato purée — ⅓ cup

400 g passata — 1 ⅔ cups

200 ml red wine — ¾ cup + 1 tbsp

Whole milk (added in two stages) — about 1 cup total

500 ml chicken or beef stock — 2 cups

1 Parmesan rind

2 bay leaves

Pinch of nutmeg

Salt, to taste

To finish

2–3 tbsp cold butter

Extra milk, as needed

Gastrique

100 g balsamic vinegar — ⅓ cup

50 g sugar — ¼ cup

Directions

Render pancetta slowly in olive oil.

Sweat onion, carrot and celery gently until pale and sweet with no color. Add garlic in the final 1–2 minutes and remove soffrito.

Cook beef mince on high heat to drive off moisture. Once dry, caramelize deeply, scraping the fond.

Add pork belly gently. Stir in tomato purée and cook until dark red-brown.

Add first portion of milk and let it fully absorb. Deglaze with red wine and reduce by 50%.

Return soffrito. Add passata, stock, Parmesan rind, bay leaves and nutmeg.

Cover and cook at 120°C / 250°F for 4½ hours.

Remove rind and bay leaves. Finish with milk, cold butter and gastrique to balance acidity. Season to taste.

Practical takeaway

Pale soffrito. Deeply browned meat. Proper reduction. Control your color and your ragu will taste structured, not heavy.

Save this for your next pasta service.

original by @fallowchefs, shared via @theculinaryrepost