One of my favourite meals (stemming from childhood) has to be a good Spag Bol/Ragu. I do tend to follow recipes tweaking them to taste, and yes I still, although rarely, cheat and get a jar sauce. But there’s no better feeling than chucking a Ragu together taking inspiration from all of those and just using what you have in your fridge/cupboards and it coming out delicious! So here’s my homemade Ragu that I created recently.

Ingredients (Serves 4 or 2 and the rest is suitable to freeze!):

• 500g beef mince
• 1 large red onion, chopped finely
• 2 x celery sticks, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves grated/ 1 heaped tsp of Easy Garlic
• 2 tbsp of caramelised onion chutney/4 tbsp balsamic vinegar (Optional but this really does add to the taste)
• 800g chopped tomatoes
• 200ml beef stock
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh basil and a few leaves to serve.

Method:

1. Fry the onion and celery for approx. 5 minutes in oil over a medium heat until softened. Then add the garlic and fry for another minute.
2. Add the mince to the pan, breaking up with a wooden spoon and cook until browned, adding the oregano whilst doing so.
3. When the mince is browned, add to the pan the tomatoes, beef stock and caramelised onion chutney or balsamic vinegar and simmer for 30 minutes, covered. Keep stirring and add seasoning to taste.
4. Once the ragu has reduced, add the chopped basil and simmer without a lid for another 10 minutes. At this time add your pasta/spaghetti to boil if that’s what you are serving the ragu with.
5. Once your pasta/spaghetti is cooked, drain and serve topped with the ragu, some fresh basil, and I also grated some cheddar cheese on top 🙂
6. Enjoy!

A simple but really lush dish that does take a bit of cooking time but is worth the wait! I do hope that you will try my recipe and let me know what you think.

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