The exclamation mark is there because ragù is SO good, it deserves an exclamation mark. Bolognese is my favourite meal…next to ice cream. I don’t love cooking with mince though, or at least mince I haven’t minced myself. So, I set about making a slow cooked version using cubes of rump or chuck steak. Lamb can easily be substituted as well. It’s really the same but takes longer than the typical Bolognese. The beauty of this recipe is that I can throw the pot in the oven and forget about it for a couple of hours. The results are…just delicious.

This recipe yields enough for at least 8 hungry dinner guests.

Ingredients

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Cook steak in an ovenproof pot with 2 tbsp of oil until just browned on all sides. Remove from pan and set aside.

In the same pan sauté onion, garlic, carrot, celery & speck until soft, about 10 minutes. Add steak to the pan and add the red wine. Bring to the boil for 5 minutes, or until wine has reduced. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, stock, thyme and bay leaf and bring to the boil.

Cover the pot and place in the oven for about 1.5-2 hours. Check on it after 1 hour for fluid levels. Top up with boiling water if getting dry. Check fluid levels every half hour the initial hour. The ragù is ready when the meat falls apart when poked with a fork.

Remove the pot from the oven and allow the ragù to cool slightly. Once manageable remove the thyme twigs & bay leaf and pull the meat apart with two forks. Season with salt & pepper to taste.

Serve with your choice of pasta. Check out the recipe to make your own awesome fresh pasta.

If you liked this recipe you might also like Heston & Meg’s Mac Cheese or why not try some Massaman shanks.

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