Rigatoni with Beef and Onion Ragu
Ingredients
- 1 to 1 1/4- lb boneless beef chuck eye roast
- 2 oz pancetta cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 oz salami cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 small carrot peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 small celery rib cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 ½ lb onions halved and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 2 tbsp minced fresh marjoram
- 1 lb rigatoni
- 1 oz Pecorino Romano cheese grated (1/2 cup), plus extra for serving
Instructions
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Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees
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Cut beef into 4 pieces and trim large pieces of fat
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Sprinkle beef with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and set aside
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Process pancetta and salami in food processor until ground to paste, about 30 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as needed
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Add carrot and celery and process 30 seconds longer, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.
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Transfer paste to Dutch oven and set aside; do not clean out processor bowl.
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Now pulse onions in processor in 2 batches, until 1/8- to 1/4-inch pieces form, 8 to 10 pulses per batch.
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Cook pancetta mixture over medium heat, stirring frequently, until fat is rendered and fond begins to form on bottom of pot, about 5 minutes.
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Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until browned, about 90 seconds.
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Stir in 2 cups water, scraping up any browned bits.
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Stir in onions and bring to boil.
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Stir in 1/2 cup wine and 1 tablespoon marjoram.
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Add beef and push into onions to ensure that it is submerged.
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Transfer to oven and cook, uncovered, until beef is fully tender, about 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
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Remove from the oven and transfer beef to carving board.
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Place pot over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, until mixture is almost completely dry.
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Stir in remaining 1/2 cup wine and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
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Using 2 forks, shred beef into bite-size pieces.
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Return the beef to the pan
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Add remaining 1 tablespoon marjoram into sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste.
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Remove from heat, cover, and keep warm.
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Cook your pasta to al dente according to package directions
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Drain rigatoni and add to warm sauce.
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Add Pecorino and stir vigorously over low heat until sauce is slightly thickened and rigatoni is fully tender, 1 to 2 minutes.
Recipe Notes
Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen
