Italian Pot Roast Ragù

Directions

Instant Pot Version

1Press Sauté, set time for 20 minutes. 


2Warm the oil in the cooker for a minute or two. Add the beef in two batches and brown, turning a couple of times. Make sure the first piece is well browned before transferring it to a bowl and adding the second one. At the end, both pieces of beef should be in the bowl. 


3Wash and dry your hands. One by one, squeeze the whole tomatoes over the pot, then add any remaining juice from the can. Add the pearl onions and stir well to scrape up all the browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring often, just until the onions begin to brown lightly. Turn off the SAUTE function. 


4Stir in the wine, capers, garlic, rosemary, oregano, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Return the beef pieces and any juice in the bowl to the cooker. Lock the lid onto the pot. 


5Optional 1 Max Pressure Cooker

6Press Pressure cook on Max pressure for 44 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off. 


7Optional 2 All Pressure Cookers

8Press Pressure cook (Manual) on High pressure for 55 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off. 


9Option 3 Slow Cook

10Press Slow Cook option on High for 5 hours with Keep Warm setting off (or on for no more than 2 hours) 


11If you’ve used a pressure setting, when the machine has finished cooking, turn it off and let its pressure return to normal naturally, about 30 minutes. 


12Unlatch the lid and open the cooker. Use a flatware tablespoon to skim off any excess surface fat. Find and discard the bay leaf, then use two forks to shred the meat. 


13Press Saute, set time for 10 minutes. 


14Bring the sauce to a full simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until reduced to a fairly wet ragu, about 5 minutes. Turn off the SAUTE function and set the lid askew over the pot for 5 minutes to blend the flavors. 


Recipe Notes

1• You must halve the recipe for a 3-quart cooker.

2• This ragu takes well to pasta shapes like rigatoni or fusilli. Or serve it as a stew over mashed potatoes.

Stovetop / Oven Version

1Preheat the oven to 350° F.

2Pat beef dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

3Heat the olive oil over high heat in a Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid. Add beef and sear each piece on all sides until browned; about 3 minutes total. If browning in batches, remove each batch to a plate and set aside.

4Wash and dry your hands. One by one, squeeze the whole tomatoes over the pot, then add any remaining juice from the can. Add the pearl onions and stir well to scrape up all the browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring often, just until the onions begin to brown lightly.

5Stir in the wine, capers, garlic, rosemary, oregano, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Return the beef pieces and any juice.

6Turn the heat up to high and bring to a boil, then cover with a tight fitting lid (or aluminum foil) and place in the hot oven for around 3 hours, or until the meat becomes very tender. Stir occasionally.

7Use a flatware tablespoon to skim off any excess surface fat. Find and discard the bay leaf, then use two forks to shred the meat.