Name: Ragu with Beef and Pork
Ingredients: 1/2 pound ground beef; 1/2 pound ground pork; 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (plus more as needed); 1 onion, minced; 2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced; 1 carrot, minced; 1 celery stalk, minced; 2 (28 oz/800g) cans whole peeled tomatoes, pureed; Salt to taste

The story of this preparation

I made this ragu to go with the parmatieddi I made for Palm Sunday. There's something so mouth-watering delicious in the simplicity of a slow-cooked meat sauce.

I made the base without the meat so I could make a meat version and a vegetarian version.

What this moment held

Moment

Holiday or season

Why this version matters

Documenting for later

Recipe snapshot

Servings: 6
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 2 hours

Ingredients

1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (plus more as needed)
1 onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
1 carrot, minced
1 celery stalk, minced
2 (28 oz/800g) cans whole peeled tomatoes, pureed
Salt to taste

Directions

Sauté the vegetables

In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion and garlic, sprinkle with salt, and cook gently until soft and fragrant, about 5–7 minutes, not allowing them to brown. Add the carrot and celery and cook another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the tomatoes

Stir in the pureed tomatoes. Season with salt. Let the sauce simmer uncovered for about an hour, stirring occasionally. Keep the heat low and let it reduce gradually.
Brown the meat

In a separate skillet, sauté the ground beef and pork in a bit of olive oil until browned and fully cooked. Season lightly with salt.
Combine and simmer

Add the cooked meat to the tomato sauce. Stir to combine. Let it simmer together for another hour, uncovered, until the flavors deepen and the sauce thickens.
Serve

Toss with pasta and top with grated Parmesan.

Recipe notes

Simmer the tomato base first. Then add browned ground beef and pork for the second simmer. The base can be used for a vegetarian version, too

Remember next time

Keep the sauce simple and let time do most of the work.