Our Simple Homemade Beef Ragù Recipe is Pure Weeknight Comfort
When does a pound and a half of ground meat become a transcendent meal? When it’s cooked with herbs and plenty of garlic, then given a glorious umami boost from canned tomatoes and simmered until it’s positively dripping with flavor. Spoon that glorious mixture over your favorite pasta and you’ve got a dinner that’s both simple and simply the best. Working with just pantry and freezer staples, we created an easy ragù recipe that’ll rescue dreary weeknights and hurried dinner times—it’s so good, it basically forces you to stop and take notice! So, on a day that really needs dinner time—whether it feels like there’s time or not—whip up this quick ragù recipe and gather the crew. This recipe is an invitation to sit down and chat and eat and enjoy together, even for just a few minutes.
What Is Ragù?
No, we’re not talking about that jarred stuff—though there’s nothing wrong with that Ragù brand of pasta sauce. When we say ragù we mean it in the Italian sense of the word! In Italian cuisine, the word “ragù” refers to a whole category of meat sauces which, yes, includes but is not limited to ragù bolognese (and even Hamburger Helper!). We have a recipe for an easy bolognese, but this ragù is even simpler than that with even fewer ingredients. Bolognese usually has dairy in it—milk or cream or both—and this simple ragù recipe is dairy-free. It’s all about that lovely combination of ground meat and tomatoes—simple and perfect.
Everything You’ll Need To Make This Easy Ragù Pasta Sauce
So, no dairy. But what is in our easy ragù recipe? Well, we’ve tried to make a ragù recipe that’s ultra flexible so that you might not even need to make a grocery run and so that you can easily adapt it to suit your preferences or dietary needs. If you’re worried about saturated fats, use a lean ground meat and swap olive oil for butter. If you’re wanting something more robust, use butter and a richer ground meat. You can use chicken stock or beef stock and you’ll get a slightly different result depending on which you choose. Here’s everything you’ll need to make this ragu recipe:
Olive oil or butter
Vegetables: carrots, celery, onion
Fresh garlic
Ground meat of your choice! Use what you’ve got—beef, pork, veal or lamb.
Canned, crushed tomatoes
Herbs!: Again, dealer’s choice—use basil, oregano, thyme or just take the shortcut and use Italian seasoning.
Nutmeg
Sugar
Stock
Parmesan
How To Make Our Simple Ground Beef Ragù Recipe
This ragù sauce will become one of those things you can do without looking at a recipe. You’ll be able to grab the ingredients you need without thinking about it, and you’ll be able to throw it together at a moment's notice. If you have kids that are old enough to be curious about cooking, this is a great one to teach them—it’s easy and nearly foolproof in a way that’s perfect for building confidence in the kitchen! Here’s the TLDR of how to make this super easy ragù recipe:
Sauté carrots, celery and onions.
A few minutes later, add the garlic.
A minute later, add the ground meat. Sauté.
Six minutes later, stir in the tomatoes, spices and stock.
Simmer for 30 minutes.
EAT! Over your favorite pasta, ideally.
Tools You’ll Need:
More Weeknight-Ready Pasta Sauce Recipes
We Hope You Adore this Ragù Recipe
If you make it, let us know how you like it! Share a photo and tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper so that we can see your stuff! Happy eating!
