Italian creamy beef ragu recipe

5 from 45 votes

Italian creamy beef ragu recipe

Known as pasta alla Montecarlo here in Italy, this creamy Italian beef ragu recipe is made by combining an easy ground beef ragu with fresh cream and basil pesto. The result is an incredibly rich and flavourful sauce that you can serve with your favourite pasta. Perfect for using up leftover Bolognese too!

Prep Time15

Cook Time45

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian, Mediterranean, Northern Italy

Keyword: authentic Italian pasta recipe, beef ragu, ground beef recipe, penne pasta

Servings:

Calories: 644kcal

Author: Jacqui

Equipment

1 deep skillet or frying pan
1 large pot to cook pasta in.
1 food processor optional.

Ingredients

14 oz penne pasta or pasta of your choice including gluten free.
1 lb ground beef or beef and pork mix
1 onion peeled and finely chopped
2 carrots washed and finely chopped
2 stalks celery washed and finely chopped
2.5 cups tomato passata or canned peeled tomatoes
3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil.
fresh basil leaves
salt for pasta and to taste
freshly ground black pepper. to taste
3 tablespoon basil pesto
1 cup fresh cream (250ml)
2.5 floz white wine
Parmigiano Reggiano or grana grated (optional)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Peel the onion and chop it finely. Then wash and chop the celery and carrots and chop them too. Wash the fresh basil and pat dry.
Sauté the vegetables in olive oil over a medium heat until they start to soften and then add the ground beef and brown it. Break the beef up as it browns, so that you don’t have large clumps in the sauce. Once the beef has browned add the wine.
Let the alcohol evaporate and then add the tomato passata (purée). Mix everything together and season with salt and pepper and let the ragu simmer on a low heat for about 30-40 minutes. Once the ragu is ready stir in the cream and let the ragu rest while you cook the pasta.
Put a pot of water on to boil for the pasta. Add salt once it starts to boil and bring to the boil again. Cook the pasta al dente according to the instructions on the packet. Once the pasta is ready, drain it and add it to the creamy beef ragu.
Mix everything together well over a medium heat for 1 minute. This will help infuse the pasta with the flavours from the sauce. Finally, add the pesto and mix again. Serve immediately with some fresh basil and grated Parmigiano if required.

Notes

You can serve this creamy beef ragu with any type of pasta, even gluten free. There's no gluten in any of the other ingredients. Store bought pesto should be gluten free but check the label.

You can also serve this dish without pesto if you prefer.

For info about leftovers see text above.

This recipe is a great way to use up leftover Bolognese.

If you use leftover ragu and ready made pesto this recipe can be made in the time it takes to boil the water and cook the pasta.

Nutrition