BEEF SHANK AND OXTAIL RAGù

Beef Shank and Oxtail Ragù image

Categories Sauce Beef Winter Simmer Boil

Number Of Ingredients 14

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Ingredients

1 tablespoon light olive oil or duck or goose fat
Salt
About 1 1/2 pounds oxtails
A large beef shank, about 1 1/4 pounds
1 large onion, chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup red wine
Herb packet of a dozen or so parsley stems, 1 garlic clove, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 8 peppercorns
7-8 cups water
Vegetables for the First Time Around
4 small white onions, peeled
3 or 4 young carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 medium white turnip, or 1/4 fairly large celery root, peeled and cut into chunks (optional)
2 or 3 smallish new potatoes, cut in half

Steps:

Heat the oil or fat in a heavy pot. Salt the meats lightly, and brown on all sides. Remove the meat (or push it aside if your pot is big enough), and sauté the onion and carrot for a few minutes. Splash in the red wine and reduce for a minute, then tuck the meat back in among the vegetables, nestling in the herb packet as well. Pour on enough water to cover the meats by 2 inches, and simmer, covered, for 2 1/2hours. Add the additional vegetables, and a little more water if they are not well covered, and simmer until tender-about 20 minutes.
For my ﬁrst meal, I have the shank surrounded by the vegetables with a little of the cooking liquid on top. If I have some on hand, a Winter Green Sauce (page 159) is particularly good with this. I reserve for later any meat I can't ﬁnish.
Second Round: Oxtails with Grits or Polenta
Spoon most of the oxtails into a warm wide, shallow bowl into which you've dished up a generous serving of grits or polenta (see pages 196 and 193). Pour a small ladleful of the ﬂavorful beef broth over, thickened, if you like, with a little cornstarch or instant ﬂour. If you want to jazz up the dish, make a small amount of the gremolata (see page 249) that is used for veal shanks-just a teaspoon sprinkled on top is enough.
Third Round: Penne with a Meaty Sauce
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, and start cooking 2-3 ounces of penne or ziti. Meanwhile, scrape off from the bones whatever meat remains, and chop it up. Strain the rich cooking broth into containers for freezing, reserving the vegetables. Heat a little olive oil in a medium skillet, and lightly sauté a thin-sliced garlic clove for a minute. Add the strained veggies, the chopped-up meat, and about 1/4 cup tomato sauce (or, if you don't have any, use a tablespoon tomato paste and some of the pasta water). Scoop up the pasta when done, and mix it with the sauce in the skillet, adding more pasta water if needed. Turn off the heat, and fold in a small handful of grated Parmesan.