Beef cheek ragu

beefcheeks_parpadelle .jpg

Serves 4

Preparation times: 15 minutes   
Cooking times:
4 hours

Ingredients
1kg beef cheeks, trimmed 
Oil 
150g pancetta lardons 
250g frozen soffritto (2 onions, 2 large carrots, 2 sticks of celery) 
3 cloves of garlic 
250ml red wine 
500ml beef stock 
800g (2 tins) of chopped or crushed tomatoes 
100g tomato puree
2 bay leaves 
1 tbsp sugar  
Parmesan

This can be served with pappardelle, polenta or mash potatoes.

Method
Get your butcher to trim your beef cheeks so make sure when you pre-order them you ask them to trim up for you.  Pat dry with kitchen roll and season with salt and pepper. 

Heat a large, heavy pot over high heat with a tablespoon of oil. Add the beef cheeks one at a time and cook in batches to sear. You want the whole cheek to be on the bottom to sear properly. As they cook, remove from the pan to one side. 

In the same pot, turn down the heat to low/medium, add the Pancetta and cook for 5 minutes, add the soffritto and cook for 10 minutes until soft, ensuring you stir to avoid it catching on the bottom.  Add the garlic and continue to cook gently for 5 more minutes.  Add the tomato purée and cook for a further minute, then turn up the heat and pour in a large splash of the red wine.  Bubble for a few minutes and then add the rest of the wine, the stock, tomatoes and the bay leaves stir to fully combine. Bring to the boil and turn the heat down to low.  Return the beef cheeks to the pot, put on the lid and leave to cook for 3½ hours until the beef cheeks are very soft. 

Remove the beef from the pot and set aside. Turn the heat up until the sauce is bubbling and cook for 15-20 minutes to thicken the sauce. Check for seasoning and sharpness, different brands of tomatoes have different acidity levels so you might need to add some more sugar and salt and pepper. 

Either pull apart your beef cheeks or cut into chunks and return to the sauce. 

Serve a ladle of beef cheek with a grating of Parmesan on top of your chosen side.