Our Short Rib Ragu recipe features fall-off-the-bone braised beef simmered in a rich tomato and red wine sauce, enveloped in pasta. It's a restaurant-quality homemade ragu that’s easy to make and packed with flavor.
Short Rib Ragu is on my husband's “Mount Rushmore”
Short Rib Ragu is on my husband's “Mount Rushmore”Jeff has chosen four favorite meals from my website to be on his “Mount Rushmore” and Short Rib Ragu is the first on his list! It's pure comfort Italian food. The homemade broth gives the meat such deep flavor, and the short ribs are fall-apart tender after simmering. It's a pasta dish that feels fancy but is easy, and you can even toss it in the slow cooker or Instant Pot when you’re short on time.
And if you want to know Jeff's other “Mount Rushmore” favorites, they are Chile Colorado, Thai Basil Beef, Chicken and Dumpling Soup.
Try my other beef recipes, like Homemade Chili, Mongolian Noodles, Lomo Saltado, Steak Kabobs, and Korean Beef Tacos!
How to make Short Rib Ragu:
Sear Beef: Season short ribs with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and sear ribs on all sides until browned. Remove and set aside.
Build the Sauce: Reduce heat to medium and sauté onion, carrots, celery, and garlic for 3–5 minutes. Add red wine to deglaze the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes, scraping up browned bits. Stir in beef broth, bouillon, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, cheese rind, herbs, and spices. Nestle short ribs into the sauce and top with thyme. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 2 hours.
Shred and Simmer: Remove bay leaves, thyme, and cheese rind. Take the short ribs out and shred the meat off the bones and return meat to the pot. Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes to reduce. (Optional: thicken with a cornstarch slurry by mixing ½ teaspoon cornstarch with some sauce then pouring back in pot, if desired.)
Cook Pasta and Serve: Boil pasta in salted water until just shy of al dente. Add directly to the ragu and cook for 5 more minutes. Serve short rib pappardelle in shallow bowls topped with parmesan or finish with burrata, flake sea salt, and fresh basil for an elevated touch.
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Recipe
Short Rib Ragu
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2.5 lbs bone-in beef short ribs*
- salt and pepper
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion , finely diced
- 1 large carrots , finely diced
- 1 celery rib , finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic , minced
- 1/2 cup dry red wine (chianti, cabernet sauvignon, merlot)
- 1 3/4 cups low-sodium beef broth
- 2 teaspoons beef bouillon paste
- 28 oz can peeled whole tomatoes , (San Marzano recommended)
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 parmesan cheese rind , (optional)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt , or more, to taste
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon Dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves
- 2 bay leaves
- Pinch crushed red pepper flakes , optional
- 1 lb pappardelle or tagliatelle pasta*
Instructions
- Sear Beef: Season short ribs all over with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat. Sear the short ribs, rotating every minute or so, until browned and seared on all sides. Remove from pot and set aside.2.5 lbs bone-in beef short ribs*, salt and pepper, 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- Sauté Soffrito: Reduce heat to medium. Add onion, carrots, celery and garlic and sauté for 3-5 minutes. Add red wine to deglaze the pan and cook for 3 minutes, scraping up browned bits from the bottom of the pan.1 small onion, 1 large carrots, 1 celery rib, 4 cloves garlic, ½ cup dry red wine
- Add beef broth, boullion, tomatoes (crush them with your hands or a potato masher), tomato paste, cheese rind, salt, pepper, oregano, basil, bay leaves and crushed red pepper. Nestle short ribs on top and top with fresh thyme sprigs.1 ¾ cups low-sodium beef broth, 2 teaspoons beef bouillon paste, 28 oz can peeled whole tomatoes, 2 Tablespoons tomato paste, 1 parmesan cheese rind, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, ½ teaspoon Dried oregano, ½ teaspoon dried basil leaves, 2 bay leaves, Pinch crushed red pepper flakes, 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- Simmer: Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover pot and simmer for 2 hours.
- Shred Meat: Remove bay leaves, thyme sticks and cheese rind. Remove short ribs and shred meat (discard bones).
- Simmer Again: Return meat to the pot and continue to simmer for 30 minutes, to reduce some of the sauce. (If you like the sauce to be a thicker gravy consistency, scoop some into a cup and mix with ½ teaspoon cornstarch, then return to pot).
- Cook pasta according to package instructions in salted water. Once pasta is almost al dente, use tongs to remove it from the hot pasta water and add it to the ragu sauce. Toss to combine and cook for 5 more minutes.1 lb pappardelle or tagliatelle pasta*
- Serve: Spoon ragu and noodles into shallow bowls and garnish with fresh shredded parmesan cheese, for serving. (Or, if you’re feeling fancy top each bowl with a pinch of fresh burrata, sprinkle of flake sea salt and fresh chopped basil.)
Notes
Nutrition
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I originally shared this recipe February 2023. Updated September 2025.
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This was unreal! Seared the meat and threw everything in crock pot low for 6-7 hours, then last hour and a bit lid off on high to thicken it. We also added diced mushrooms. We used a moose roast that I harvested. So good, the kids devoured it and my husband had 3 helpings. We loved it – gourmet restaurant quality dish! So good thank you.
We Loved this recipe! I mostly followed it as written. I browned everything in a big pan, made the sauce, then finished in the Instant Pot. I’d recommend cooking for about 45–50 minutes with a natural release for the best results. Definitely trim the fat off the ribs ahead of time, it was a bit of a chore removing it after cooking, plus skimming it from the sauce. The flavor was fantastic and the process overall was pretty easy. I only had regular egg noodles on hand, but I can imagine it would be even better with a higher quality pasta. I’ll definitely be making this again!
I made this because of its great reviews. But also because everything in the recipe just sounded amazing. I don’t know what it was but it turned out to just be okay. Not bad but not amazing.
Absolutely incredible. I added a couple dashes of balsamic vinegar and more red chili flakes. Couldn’t be happier if I wanted to be. Paired it with a great red to cut the richness.
I made this last night and it was very flavorful. I was afraid the meat would be tough but it fell off the bone.
Great taste and recipe over all.
I did the Instapot version so I know I cant be too picky but I wish the directions were a little more clear for that. It doesn’t say anything about doing the veggies or the bouillon for instantpot. And mine was super liquidy so I had to dump it in a sauce pan to evaporate some of the liquid. next time ill do less liquid than the recipe. But the taste was great and meat was tender.
Love this smell and flavor of this! Only question/critique I have is somehow my short ribs were way over done after about 1:50 simmering.
I used a Dutch oven and followed the instructions with 2.2 LBs of bone-in short ribs.
Not sure where this went wrong, still turned out okay but really had to work to shred the meat. Will definitely try again because the smell and flavors were so good.
I’m not the person who wrote this recipe, but if you found it difficult to shred, then you most likely need to cook it longer! 💜
I second this!! You need to cook it longer most likely for the meat to tenderize and break down/soften.
Same here! Meat was VERY tuff. It can of the bones, but I could hardly shred beef! The broth was good, but I won’t make it again, unless I use different beef.
L
If I don’t have a dutch oven what else do you suggest?
Thanks
Any large pot with a heavy bottom.