Slow-cooked Beef Shin Ragu

You guys know how much I love pasta, right? Well, this ‘Slow-cooked’ Beef Shin Ragu has to be one of my favourite pasta sauces EVER! If you’ve been to Padella or Trullo in London, then you know what I’m talking about. Made with a cheap cut of beef, a cut that’s often left over to something that is just pure gold. I think this is definitely one of Tim Siadatan’s most famous dishes and I really wanted to recreate it in my own kitchen. This was my second try and first time cooking it in a pressure cooker. After I went through so many different beef ragu recipes this is my final recipe that I’m super proud of and so happy to share it with all of you lovely people :) Hope you’ll like it! xx

Ingredients (enough to feed 8-10 people)

1,3-1,5 kg beef shin, off the bone
olive oil
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 big onion
3 cloves of garlic
2 sticks of celery or a  smaller piece of celery root
2 carrots
150 ml red wine
1 x 400 g tin of chopped tomatoes
Beef stock or beef stock cube

Method

(for cooking in a pressure cooker, if you don’t have one go and buy it…NOW :D Trust me, it saves so much time in the kitchen that I honestly regret not buying it sooner! It’s also great for batch cooking where you will save both time and money cooking for your family) – If you decide to give this recipe a go but without cooking it in a pressure cooker, just follow the recipe but cook this sauce until the meat gets super tender, approx 3-4h on a low heat.

Let’s start! Cut the beef into smaller pieces, 4-5cm big.
Place your pressure cooker over a medium-high heat and add a good drizzle of olive oil.
Throw in the beef and season well with black pepper, turning regularly cook the beef until is browned on both sides. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Peel the onion, carrots and garlic, trim the celery and chop everything finely in a food processor. Add to the pan with more olive oil if needed, reduce the heat and soften for 5 minutes.
Pour in the wine, bring to the boil and cook for 2-3min. Add the tinned tomatoes and stock, then return the beef to the pan with rosemary, bay leaves and a teaspoon of white vinegar. Season with more salt and pepper. Make sure the liquid covers the beef and then secure the lid, bring the cooker to high pressure, then reduce the heat to low–medium and leave to cook for 30-35 minutes.
When the time is up on the pressure cooker, carefully release the steam and remove the beef with a slotted spoon. Take out rosemary sprigs and bay leaves too.
Increase the heat to high and start reducing the sauce before mixing the beef back into the sauce, breaking up the chunks, pulling the beef using two forks. Season with more salt and pepper if needed and continue reducing the sauce on a medium heat for additional 20min. Stir occasionally so the meat doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.

You can serve the sauce immediately with the side of your choice, or leave it overnight, it’s even better the day after when the flavours intensify. This sauce can feed 8-10 people easily so feel free to freeze part of it for rainy days this winter.

Spoon the polenta or pasta into bowls (wide pappardelle are my favourite!) and serve topped with the stew and freshly grated parmesan! Enjoy :)