Cooking made easy
Let our assistant inspire your next meal!
Simply provide a recipe idea or the ingredients you have, and
ScrummyChef will instantly come up with a new recipe just for you.

Chef John's Slow-Cooked Pasta Sauce

4.8
Save
Rate
Tap to rate
PREP TIME
30 min
COOKING TIME
260 min
TOTAL TIME
290 min
SERVINGS
10 servings
Chef John's Slow-Cooked Pasta Sauce
Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 (1 inch thick) slice beef shank
  • 2 pounds pork spareribs
  • 2 bone-in chicken thighs
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • 3 (28 ounce) cans crushed Italian (plum) tomatoes (such as San Marzano)
  • 2 cups water, divided
  • 1/4 cup tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
  • 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf (Italian) parsley
  • 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
1
First, preheat your oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
2
To begin preparing the dish, drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the base of a large roasting pan. Place the beef, pork, and chicken in the pan and ensure they are evenly coated with olive oil.
3
Then, roast the meat in the preheated oven until it is well browned on all sides, taking approximately 20 to 30 minutes.
4
Next, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir the onion, adding just a pinch of salt to bring out its flavor, until it becomes soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
5
Add the garlic to the pot and cook, stirring constantly, until it emits a fragrant aroma, about 1 minute.
6
In a separate container, combine crushed tomatoes, 1 1/2 cups of water, and tomato paste. Add this mixture to the pot with the onion and garlic.
7
Add the roasted beef, pork, and chicken to the tomato sauce mixture, stirring well to combine.
8
Pour the remaining 1/2 cup of water from the roasting pan into the pot, scraping off any browned bits that have accumulated at the bottom with a wooden spoon. Then, pour this mixture into the tomato sauce.
9
Stir in Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, Italian parsley, 2 teaspoons of salt, ground black pepper, and red pepper flakes into the tomato sauce. Bring the mixture to a simmer, reduce the heat to low, and let it gently simmer until the sauce reduces and the meat becomes tender, about 4 hours.
10
Transfer the cooked meat to a serving dish. Adjust the sauce seasonings to your desired level of flavor.