I often file away stand-out issues of food magazines and then refer back to memorable recipes time and time again. Among my collection are issues from 20 years ago that I still use today. One of my favourite more recent editions is the Australian Gourmet Traveller April 2012, The Italian Issue. This weighty magazine was packed with “page lickable” pictures of delectable dishes that had me marking them with a notable number of post it notes. Not being Italian, I especially appreciated the well written articles designed to improve the reader’s knowledge about how the regional differences are reflected in the country’s cuisine. I also found the tips on how to finesse common Italian dishes useful, as a way to further improve my home cooking repertoire. 

One such article came to mind this morning before the school run, when my mother and I briefly discussed dinner and the suggestion of a ragu popped up. Brigitte Hafner wrote a detailed, mouth-watering article in the above mentioned issue called Ravenous for Ragu. This flavoursome and textured sauce which is usually made with beef, veal or pork always has a base of superbly simmered soffritto consisting of carrots, celery, onions, garlic and herbs in butter and olive oil. It enhances the richness and sweetness of the entire dish and makes a perfect partner to pasta including silky potato gnocchi which is what our ragu was served over this evening. 

I find that preparing food with someone you  love and whose cooking you admire, in this case my mother’s, is a chance to combine the best of each person’s home cooking skills – often with laughter and a decent dose of animated discussion – into a sensational meal for everyone to enjoy.   

Home Cooked Beautiful Beef Ragu with Gnocchi to serve 10 people

If cooking for a smaller number of people halve all of the ingredients or make up this larger batch and freeze any ragu that is left over. 

 2 kg good quality beef suitable for slow cooking such as chuck steak, diced into 2 cm pieces – ask your butcher to do this for you to save time. 
1 heaped tablespoon plain flour
salt and pepper to taste
3 sweet medium carrots
2 long sticks of celery
1 large onion
6 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon dried mixed Italian herbs (oregano, basil, parley, thyme, rosemary)
50 grams unsalted butter
extra virgin olive oil
250 mls red wine
1 x 400 gram tin crushed or diced tomatoes
1 heaped tablespoon tomato paste
500 mls chicken stock

Toss the beef in a bowl with the flour, salt and pepper. 

Meanwhile heat the butter and about 1 tablespoon of olive oil over a low heat as preparation for your soffritto. Add the garlic, onions, carrots and celery which have been finely diced. Simmer them with the herbs until they start to deepen in colour and become glossy (about 15 minutes). Watch your heat. If the soffritto burns, your ragu will have a nasty bitter taste instead of a sought after sweet flavour. 

When ready, remove to a clean bowl or plate and add a little more olive oil. Increase the heat to medium-high and brown off the meat in batches, so that it develops a golden brown colour. 

Add back all the browned off meat, the soffritto and also the red wine. Cook this off for 1 minute then add the tomatoes, tomato paste and chicken stock. Stir to combine and taste, adjusting the seasoning if required. 

Bring to the boil, then place in a preheated fan forced oven at 150 degrees for 2 hours. 

Serve spooned over platters of potato gnocchi, or a wider ribbon pasta such as pappardelle or fettuccine with shavings of parmesan. I cooked up 1.5  kg of gnocchi but you can reduce this if cooking for fewer people. My family also ate as a side dish, steamed dark green broccolini with a dab of butter and lemon for added vitamins  A and C, iron, calcium and potassium.