Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
4-5 lb. oxtail pieces
Flour (for dredging)
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper
¼ cup olive oil
1 medium yellow onion
2 large carrots
3 celery ribs
2 tbsp concentrated tomato paste
3 cups dry red wine
28oz can San Marzano tomatoes
2 rosemary sprigs
2 thyme sprigs
2 bay leaves
4 cloves to 1 head garlic, depending on preference
¼ tsp nutmeg
Cooking Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 300°F
2. Sear Oxtail
• Dry and dust oxtail pieces with flour, tapping off excess.
• Season with salt and pepper on all sides.
• Heat a dutch oven, or other heavy bottomed oven safe pot with lid, over medium-high heat.
• Add oil and heat until glistening.
• Working in batches to avoid overcrowding, sear oxtail util browned on all sides.
• Set meat aside.
3. Sweat Aromatics
• Finely chop onion, carrot, and celery. Mince garlic.
• Add mirepoix (onion, celery, and carrot) to the dutch oven and cook, stirring frequently while
scraping fond from bottom of pan, until browned, 5-7 minutes.
• Make a window in the mirepoix, and add tomato paste to the space. Stir paste constantly for 2-3
minutes, until color deepens, and aroma intensifies. Then mix in, stirring for another minute.
• Add San Marzano tomatoes (with juice), wine, rosemary, thyme, bay leaves, garlic, and nutmeg.
• Bring mixture to a boil and let cook for 5 minutes.
4. Braise the Oxtail
• Add oxtail back to the pot. If liquid does not cover the meat, add water until it just barely does.
• Return to a boil, then cover the pot and transfer to the oven.
• Cook for 3-4 hours, until the meat is falling off the bones and is fork tender.
5. Finish the Sauce
• Remove pot from the oven and transfer meat to a plate. Remove meat and fat from bones.
• Skim and discard any visible fat from the surface of the sauce.
• Remove herbs from sauce and discard.
• Crush any remaining large pieces of tomato with a spoon.
• Return just the meat (discarding fat and bones) to the pot and season the sauce with salt and
pepper to taste.
6. Serve over your favorite pasta (pappardelle, rigatoni, and gnocchi work beautifully) with a drizzle of olive oil
and freshly grated parmesan.
* This Oxtail Ragu can be made a day ahead, stored covered and refrigerated, and reheated over medium-low
heat after skimming any fat off the surface.