Brasato Al Barolo Ragu Sauce

Photo: Jennifer, A Touch of Garlic

Ingredients

For the sauce:

Extra virgin olive oil

4 cloves minced garlic

1 large onion, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

28 ounces can crushed tomatoes

12 cans oz. cans tomato paste+ 2 water per can of paste

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon sugar

Chopped basil

For the Brasato al Barolo:

2 1/2 pounds boneless eye-of-round beef roast or other lean cut

2 cups Barolo wine

1/2 onion, thinly sliced

2 carrots, sliced

1 celery stalk, chopped

3 garlic cloves

1 small fresh rosemary sprig

1 bay leaf

10 black peppercorns

of salt

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 slices prosciutto, chopped

3 plum tomatoes, chopped with their juices

Preparation

In a large pot, coat the entire bottom with EVOO. Add the minced garlic, sliced onion and crushed red pepper. Cook on medium heat for approximately 10-15 minutes until onions are completely softened.

Next, add the can of crushed tomatoes, stirring frequently scraping the bottom of the pot to keep the tomatoes from sticking. Cook for approximately 15 minutes until flavors can combine.

Add tomato paste and two cans of water per can of tomato paste to the tomato base. Add salt, pepper, sugar and basil. Stir and cook until contents reach a near boil. Lower temperature to low heat and cover with a tilted lid, allowing steam to escape. This will help thicken the sauce. Simmer stirring frequently to keep from burning for 90 minutes. Cool completely and refrigerate.

Place the beef roast in a large glass bowl. Add wine, onions, carrots, celery, garlic, rosemary, bay leaf, peppercorns and salt. Cover and refrigerate allowing to marinate for a minimum of 6-7 hours.

Remove beef roast from marinade and dry completely, reserving marinade. Heat EVOO and butter in a large skillet on medium heat and add prosciutto. Once prosciutto has started to sizzle, place the beef roast in the pan. Brown and sear on each side for approximately 3 minutes.

Remove beef roast from the pan and place in a crockpot or slow cooker. Pour reserved marinade into the slow cooker, plus chopped plum tomatoes and their juices, and cook for several hours until beef begins to "pull away." Note: This took approximately 5-6 hours in my slow cooker.

Begin to reheat the tomato sauce on medium heat. Once beef roast is cooked, slice and pull away the roast into shreds. Add the beef roast, carrots and celery to the tomato sauce. Simmer on medium-low heat for 1-1 1/2 hours. The meat will become more tender and fall apart in the sauce.

Best served over gnocchi with fresh basil and grated Parmesan cheese.

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About

The tomato sauce for this recipe comes from my Big Nona's (great-grandmother's) kitchen. My mom would say it tastes best if you prepare the tomato sauce at least one day in advance, cool completely and refrigerate before serving.