Chef Jack Ovens Slow Cooker Beef Ragu

Source video by Chef Jack Ovens on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules.

Chef Jack Ovens braises 1 kg of seasoned chuck steak with onion, garlic, tomato paste, red wine, beef stock and crushed tomatoes for two and a half hours on the hob. Bay leaves, thyme, basil stems, Worcestershire sauce and a beef bouillon cube round out the sauce. The beef is shredded in the pan and tossed with cooked tagliatelle and a splash of pasta water. Portioned across five meal-prep containers and finished with Parmesan and fresh basil. Adapted here for the slow cooker so the braise runs hands-off.

Ingredients

• 1 kgbeef chuck steak
• salt
• 20 crackscracked black pepper

• 2 tbspolive oil
• 1brown or yellow onion, peeled and diced
• 6garlic cloves, crushed and roughly chopped
• 1 tspchilli flakes
• 90 gconcentrated tomato paste
• 125 mlred wine
• 1beef bouillon cube, crushed
• 250 mlbeef stock
• 800 gcrushed tomatoes
• 3dried bay leaves
• 5thyme sprigs
• 3basil stems
• 2 tspWorcestershire sauce

• 500 gpasta (add late)
• Parmesan cheese, freshly grated (add late)
• fresh basil, freshly picked (add late)

Method

1. Peel and dice one onion. Peel, crush and roughly chop six garlic cloves. Season the chuck steak generously with salt and 20 cracks of black pepper, mixing to coat.

   ~10 min

2. Heat a large high-rimmed pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sear the beef in batches for about two minutes each side until golden brown. Remove to a bowl.

   ~10 min

3. Add another 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Add the onions with a little salt and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes until golden and translucent, picking up the fond from the base.

   ~4 min

4. Add the chopped garlic and 1 teaspoon of chilli flakes. Mix and cook for 1 minute, taking care not to burn the garlic.

   ~1 min

5. Add 90 g of tomato paste, mix well and cook for 2 minutes to deepen the flavour.

   ~2 min

6. Pour in half a cup of red wine to deglaze and add a crushed beef bouillon cube. Bring to a boil and cook for about 2 minutes, mixing, until reduced to a paste.

   ~2 min

7. Transfer the contents of the pan to the slow cooker. Add 250 ml of beef stock, the 800 g can of crushed tomatoes, 3 bay leaves, 5 to 6 sprigs of thyme, 3 to 4 sprigs of basil stems, 2 teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce and the seared beef with any resting juices. Stir well and check seasoning.

   ~5 min

8. Cover and cook on Low for 8 hours or High for 4 hours, until the beef is fork-tender.

   ~480 min

9. Roughly 15 to 20 minutes before serving, bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add 500 g of tagliatelle or pappardelle and cook for one minute less than the packet instructions.

   ~20 min

10. Remove the bay leaves, thyme stems and basil stems from the ragu. Shred the beef in the pot using tongs, a fork or a potato masher. Check and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. If too thick, loosen with a little more beef stock.

    ~5 min

11. Transfer the cooked pasta straight into the ragu along with a splash of pasta water. Mix through and cook for 1 to 2 minutes so the sauce coats everything.

    ~2 min

12. Portion across five 750 ml meal-prep containers. Top with freshly grated Parmesan and fresh basil when ready to eat.

    ~5 min

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