Slow Cooked Brisket Ragu

Ingredients

• 1200 g beef brisket, rolled or flat, in one piece
• 300 ml beef stock
• fresh pasta or pappardelle, to serve
• 2 carrots, roughly chopped
• 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 2 large onions, roughly chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 3 fresh rosemary sprigs
• 4 garlic cloves, extra, thinly sliced for sauce
• 250 ml red wine
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 bay leaves
• parmesan, grated, to serve
• Crusty ciabatta, to serve

Method

1. Heat the oven to 150°C fan. Pat the brisket completely dry and season very generously all over with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof casserole over a high heat and sear the brisket for 4 minutes per side — all sides including the ends — until deeply mahogany brown. Remove and set aside.
2. Add the roughly chopped onions, carrots and celery to the same casserole. Cook over a medium heat for 8 minutes until starting to soften and turn golden at the edges. Add the roughly chopped garlic and cook for 2 minutes more until fragrant.
3. Pour in the red wine and bring to a vigorous boil, scraping up all the browned bits from the base of the pan. Let it reduce by half over 4 minutes.
4. Stir in the chopped tomatoes, red lentils, beef stock, tomato purée and sugar. Add the rosemary sprigs and bay leaves. Season well and bring to a simmer.
5. Return the brisket to the casserole, sitting it on top of the sauce. It will submerge partway. Cover tightly with a lid (or foil) and transfer to the oven. Braise for 3.5–4 hours, turning the brisket halfway through, until it is completely tender and falling apart when prodded with a fork.
6. Lift the brisket out onto a board. Let it rest for 10 minutes, then shred the meat into thick, generous pieces using two forks — it should fall apart effortlessly. Give the sauce a good stir; if it looks thin, simmer it on the hob for 10 minutes to reduce. Remove the rosemary and bay. Add the sliced garlic to the hot sauce and let it soften for 2 minutes.
7. Return the shredded brisket to the sauce and stir through generously. Taste and adjust seasoning — it should be deeply savoury, glossy and rich. Cook the pappardelle in well-salted boiling water until just tender, drain, and toss through enough ragu to coat every strand. The remaining ragu keeps in the fridge for 5 days and freezes beautifully in batches.