Un-Wine'd host Tassie Pippert shows viewers how to prepare a delicious ragout pasta dish - Beef Ragout with Pappardelle. (Serves 4)

Ragout is a slow-cooked French-style stew that can be made with meat or fish and vegetables—or even just vegetables. You can eat it on its own, or combined with polenta, couscous or pasta.

Ingredients

3 short ribs of beef
¾ t salt
½ t pepper
½ t garlic powder
½ t onion powder
¼  t. cayenne
2 T. oil
6 cloves garlic, whole
1 small onion, quartered
1 large shallot, quartered
2 c. dry red wine
1 quart strong beef stock
½ lb carrots
1 t. dry parsley
1 c. frozen peas
8 ounces pappardelle
1 T. corn starch mixed in 2 T. water

Preparation

Heat the oven to 325. Pat the ribs dry with paper towels. In a small container, mix together the salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and cayenne. Sprinkle on all sides of the ribs using all the seasoning mixture. Select a 4 quart pan that can be used on the cook-top and in the oven, and heat the oil until a drop of water sprinkled in sizzles. Place the ribs in the pan then add the garlic cloves, onion and shallots. Brown the meat on all sides. Add the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan to bring the fond* into the sauce. Add the stock and bring to a simmer. Cover the pan and place in the oven to bake for 3 hours. Remove the lid and add the carrots. If the meat is beginning to dry, add ½ c water. Bake 1 additional hour.

Cook the pappardelle in salted water according to package directions until al dente. Place the peas in the colander and drain the pappardelle over the peas. The water from the pappardelle cooks the peas through enough before being added to the finished dish. Fold pasta and peas warm.

Remove the meat and carrots from the pan and drain the chunks of garlic and other particles from the liquid. At this point, I usually put my liquid into a gravy separator to remove the excess oils. This prevents the sauce from feeling overly fatty. Pour the liquid back in to the pan and heat over medium until simmering. Add the corn starch and water mixture and whisk until the sauce is slightly thickened.

Shred the beef using two forks. Remove the larger fatty tissue then mix the meat back into the sauce. Add in the pasta, peas, and carrots. Toss gently and serve.

The fond is the browning bits in the pan that are a residual of searing the meats. They contain a lot of flavor from the meat juices and the seasoning on the meats. By adding wine and scraping the pan well, all the flavors will be incorporated back into the finished sauce and the pan is much more easily cleaned.