Crock Pot beef ragu starts with roast beef, tomato puree, wine, and an assortment of seasonings. This slow cooked beef ragu creates tender meat that is perfect over noodles, as a gourmet pizza sauce, or on its own with a side of crusty bread.
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A lot of Crock Pot beef ragu sauces use ground beef.
Our Crock Pot beef ragu uses roast beef as the base.
Roast beef cooked in tomato puree and wine creates a tender, fall-apart meat that mixes perfectly into the slow cooked sauce.
You can set this Crock Pot beef ragu up in the morning and have a delicious dinner ready by the time you come home from work.
And since it yeilds a lot, you will have plenty for lunches or another dinner.
Ingredients and Kitchen Gadgets
To make this Crock Pot beef ragu recipe, you will need:
- Beef roast – We use about a 8 to 10 pound roast for this that you can get from a butcher or meat section of the grocery store.
- Tomato puree – Sure, you could dice up roma or plum tomatoes, but a tomato puree really cuts out the extra work.
- Red wine – The wine helps to add richness and break down the beef. You could also use Sherry if you like, which adds a nice distinct flavor.
- Seasonings – To add flavor to the ragu, we use bay leaves, garlic cloves, salt, pepper, garlic powder, dried basil, red pepper, and fresh rosemary.
- Bell peppers – You can use your prefered color. Green, yellow, or red all work just fine.
- Onions – We use either white or yellow onions, though you could use what you have on hand if you want.
- Olive oil – Olive oil helps to keep the roast or veggies from sticking to the bottom of the slow cooker.
Though you can slow cook ragu on the stove top, it is a lot easier to use a Crock Pot or other type of slow cooker.
Some people may also prefer to use their Instant Pot as a slow cooker.
How to make Crock Pot beef ragu
Here’s how to make Crock Pot beef ragu:
1. Prepare the veggies and roast
Rough cut the peppers and onions.
Place peppers, onions, garlic cloves, and rosemary in blender with the wine and blend until smooth.
If you prefer a chunky sauce, you can skip blending it altogether. You will need to dice or crush the garlic before moving on.
Remove the beef from its package and trim any excess fat.
2. Set up the Crock Pot and cook
Pour olive oil into the bottom of the slow cooker and rotate to spread it around.
Place the beef into the pan.
Pour the wine slurry, tomato puree, and spices over top of the beef.
Cover with the lid and set to low.
Slow cook the ragu for about 6 to 8 hours.
3. Prepare noodles and serve
After about 6 hours, use a fork to pull the beef apart.
If it does not easily pull apart, it may need a bit more time cooking.
Once you pull the beef completely apart, use a spoon to mix the beef into the sauce.
Cook your preferred noodles according to the box directions.
Serve the ragu over noodles and with a side of bread.
Storing
Ragu rests very, very well.
In fact, in the first version of this recipe, we left the Italian meat sauce on warm for about 24 hours to really slow cook the beef.
To store, you can either place the lining of the Crock Pot in the fridge with the lid on or scoop into air tight containers.
You can also freeze the beef ragu in an air tight container for up to 6 months. Before reheating, allow it thaw in the fridge over-night.
To reheat, you can place the lining back into the Crock Pot and set to high, cooking until it heats through. Just make sure to stir as it heats.
If you remove it from the Crock Pot, you can reheat the ragu in a microwave safe bowl for a few seconds or scoop into a pot on the stove and heat up on medium-low heat.
Tips and tricks for the best beef ragu
- The longer it cooks, the more tender and “fall apart” the beef becomes. If you have the time and patience, we highly recommend slow cooking bolognese sauce for at least 8 hours.
- For a chunkier sauce, rough chop the onions and peppers. You can also use roma or plum tomatoes and dice them yourself. We use a food processor to create a bit of a smoother sauce.
- You can add additional Italian seasonings or use an Italian blend for a bit of added flavor. You can also use fresh thyme and oregano for added flavor.
- You can make slow cooked beef ragu on the stove top as well with a large enough pot. Just set the burner to low. Also, due to varying heat levels, you may need to check on and stir the sauce a bit as it cooks on the stove top.
FAQs
What is the difference bolognese and ragù?
Ragu means “meat sauce” in Italian. It is sort of a general term used to describe a tomato-based sauce with a meat, such as beef or veal.
Bolognese also uses meats, such as beef, and includes a hint of tomato. But bolognese is a milk-based sauce, creating a creamy sauce.
Both are amazing sauces using simple ingredients for full flavor.
What is the best cut of meat for ragu?
Because it cooks for so long, you can use just about any cut of beef you prefer for ragu. Leaner cuts tend to be tougher but will still fall apart as it cooks in tomato sauce and wine. Fattier cuts are naturally more tender but will release extra fat into the sauce as it cooks.
What pasta is best for ragù?
We suggest using a wider noodle or one with folds. Both can hold up well to a thicker, heavier sauce. That said, you can serve it with just about any noodle you have on hand – just expect less of it to stick to a thin noodle, like spaghetti.
What is beef ragu made of?
There are many, many variations of beef ragu. Most every version starts with tomatoes, beef, and fresh herbs. From there, variations can include wine, dried herbs and spices, different cuts of beef, and cook time. You also may find some that use rough chopped tomatoes and others that use puree, like our beef ragu.
Other sauce recipes to try
Other Italian inspired recipes
- Easy Pesto Caprese Salad
- Pesto Chicken Burgers
- Pasta with White Beans
- Quick Lemon Pesto Chicken and Orzo Skillet
- Easy Baguette Caprese Sandwich with Pesto
- Easy Caprese Panini Sandwich with Pesto
- Caprese Tortellini Pasta Salad with Pesto
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Ingredients
- 8-10 pound roast
- 7 cups of tomato puree
- 3.5 cups of red wine or sherry
- 4-6 bay leaves
- 6 cloves of garlic
- 2 bell peppers
- 2 white onions
- 1 teaspoon salt and pepper (to taste)
- 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary or about 2 tablespoons
- 2 tablespoons garlic powder
- 4 tablespoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon red pepper
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Rough cut the peppers and onions.
- Place peppers, onions, garlic, and rosemary in blender with most/all the wine and blend until smooth (this is optional, for a thicker sauce, you can leave these rough or fine chopped)
- Clean off excess fat from beef if any.
- Pour olive oil into bottom of the slow cooker.
- Place beef in olive oil.
- Add all the remaining ingredients to the pot and stir just to combine.
- Set the slow cooker on low and cook for about 6 to 8 hours. When the beef starts to pull apart turn the slow cooker down to warm and prepare the pasta according to the package instructions.
- When the pasta is ready, fully pull the beef apart and mix until well combined.
- Serve the beef ragu over pasta and with a side of bread.
Notes
2) Beef is done when you don’t need a knife to pull it apart.
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This looks like exactly what I want right now (er…I mean tomorrow!)
What do you mean though by 8-9 pounds roast? The only thing I can find at the grocery store that says “roast” is “beef boneless chuck roast” for $10/lb or “beef tenderloin roast” for $14/lb…both of which sounds crazy for a slow cooker recipe!
Hi Hana, great question. In slow cooker recipes, I cheat and use chuck roast or sirloin roast but only when they are on sale. When I bought the roast for this, I used chuck roast and it was going for 2.99/pound- however you can use whatever is cheapest. Cooking it for so long will make it fall apart tender. I’m ok with the expense because this recipe makes enough for freezer leftovers and two-three meals during the week so really, you end up with a week of spaghetti sauce with one night of cooking 🙂
Am I reading the timing on this wrong or is this a multi-day sauce? Cook on low 6 hours, followed by cooking on warm for 12-15 hours, and then back to low for 1-2 hours prior to serving??
Yep. You could just could on low until the meat is done, but we wanted to mimic the slow cooked flavor of my grandmother’s all day Sunday sauce, which she would start on a Saturday night. Cooking it extra long really makes the meat tender and infuses the whole sauce with such a depth of flavor.
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I need to make this this week!! Crockpots are the best
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this looks SO good. My kind of weeknight meal!!
Thanks Madeline!
I love anything in a crockpot. It’s so easy and the flavors are better. I can’t wait to try this!
Definitely agree on the flavors being better! The slow cooking aspect really lets them come together and develop more.
This looks so good, and what an easy recipe! Yum!
Thanks Leah.
This looks delicious and filling! I love bolognese sauce, and if it can be made in the crockpot with ease, then it is definitely worth trying!
For sure! Thanks for stopping by!
1) This makes me SOOO hungry.
2) I love love love the photos – really great way of showing your dish!
3) Mind sharing and sending me some?! haha
Aw thank you so much Vincent! Haha sure. This recipe makes a whole bunch of sauce and there’s half of the batch sitting in my freezer right now.
Such a hearty Sunday dinner. This is one the family will love…and love smelling it cook all day! thanks for sharing!
Yes, would be perfect for a Sunday dinner. Growing up we did the whole Italian Sunday dinner thing fairly often, and would go to my grandmother’s house where she would have a pot of homemade sauce simmering on the stove. This brings back that.
Oh this looks like a dream dinner of mine! How divine.
Thank you!