The secret to spectacular Lamb Ragu is time. Stir a short list of ingredients together and let them bubble away until the individual flavors meld and blossom into something greater. It was my Italian friend Giovanna who taught me this. We took a cooking class from her when we visited Tuscany where she taught us to make authentic Italian ragu sauce and stressed, in her words, "remember you have to follow slowly all the steps, never be in a hurry…"
If you've been following my blog for a while, you know that I'm not much for recipes that require a lot of tedious preparation. This lamb ragu is no exception. It does take about an hour to cook, but it's weeknight easy - almost all of the time is hands-off. Cut up a few ingredients, get the ragu going, and pour yourself a glass of wine. Then check back once in a while to give the sauce a stir. That's my kind of fussy.
Recipe Options
You can serve this delicious lamb ragu with any kind of pasta you like (just as you would Lamb Meatballs).
I’m partial to pappardelle or tagliatelle, but short pasta like rigatoni would also be delicious. (I love to make my own with this quick and easy pasta dough made in the food processor.) It’s also wonderful over rice. I top it in a variety of ways: a sprinkle of sheep’s milk feta, a dollop of ricotta, or shaved Pecorino Romano or parmesan and slivers of fresh basil or mint. If you like a spicy ragu, red pepper flakes add a flavorful heat.
More Must Try Lamb Recipes
- Homemade Gyro Meat (If you love gyros, you'll be happy to know how easy it is to make the meat at home!)
- Pan-Fried Lamb Chops (Dinner party elegant and weeknight easy.)
- Lamb Burgers (These truly are the ultimate lamb burgers, especially when served on homemade Brioche Buns.)
Lamb Ragù
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 1 rib celery finely chopped
- 1 carrot finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 pounds lean ground lamb
- 1 cup dry red wine
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes with juice ideally San Marzano
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 7 ounces feta cheese crumbled, to taste
- ½ cup torn fresh mint or fresh basil
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a wide, high sided skillet over medium heat. Add onion, celery, carrot and garlic. Cook and stir until onion is translucent, about 10 minutes.
- Add lamb; cook and stir until the lamb has browned and most of the liquid has evaporated. Add wine and let simmer, stirring occasionally, until wine has reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Stir in tomatoes with their juices; bring to boil.
- Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until ragù is thick and flavors have fully melded, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Serve lamb ragù over hot cooked pasta such as pappardelle or tagliatelle (save some of the pasta water to loosen the sauce if necessary) or over hot cooked rice. If desired, top with crumbled feta and fine slivers of fresh basil or mint.
We just had a lamb Ragusa here st an Australian winery. Would love to serve this for our annual Christmas/wine tasting dinner. Would it be OK to make ahead and reheat for our party?
I love that you plan to make this ragu for your annual dinner! Yes, absolutely you can make it ahead and reheat. It will be even more flavorful that way.
How about serving this over polenta, for those of us who are avoiding wheat?
Hi Lydia! Yes, absolutely! We often have it over rice and it would be delicious over polenta as well.
Delicious, beautiful, simple recipe. I made it last month with lamb. Perfect! Right now I am giving a final simmer to a batch made last night with ground wild boar. Just as good! Thanks!
So glad you're enjoying the recipe, Laura! Love the idea of making it with wild boar!
This is so yummy! I like a wet sauce so I only use a pound of lamb. Thank you for the recipe.
Yup, you cannot be in rush with an authentic Italian ragu - few hours of simmering and waiting (dreaming of that delicious pasta you might or might not have sooner or later:) And I know some Italian families cook ragu for up to 10 hours. Could you imagine that? This pasta looks absolutely delicious. And I do love some feta crumbled over the pasta - great combo!
That lamb ragu sounds absolutely delicious, Marissa!
Thank you, Sabrina!
This looks fantastic! I love that the prep is quick but that the ragu is unrushed. I so appreciate the flavor of food that's been unhurried. Beautiful dish, my friend!
Thank you, Beeta! That's very well said - food that's been prepared in a way that's unhurried, definitely tastes different.
Love the lamb twist here and the mint! Love the slow cooker because it's always so little effort and it makes magic. Plus a house filled with an aroma of this doesn't hurt, either. Cheers and have a great weekend!
Oh yes! The aroma... 🙂 Hope you have a great weekend too!
I've made beef and pork ragu but not lamb…I'll definitely be trying this soon.
Hi Karen! I was the very same way up until a couple of years ago - always made ragu with beef and/or pork. It's nice to have one more version to mix things up! 🙂
That's also what we were taught in an Italian cooking class. They really know their slow food! 😀 This looks fabulous Marissa!
Thank you, Lorraine. And yes they do! 🙂
What a lovely meal! There's nothing quite like the aroma of a simmering sauce on the stove. Love the use of fresh herbs for topping, they add such bright flavor!
That is so true, Faith. I love the smell of simmering sauce almost as much as bread baking in the oven. Both are so comforting. And you're right about the herbs - I always love to add a little freshness in long simmered sauces. xo
Oh man, you're talking my kind of language here, Marissa! I mean I love a good meal that cooks itself...and pasta? Yes, please! I'm pretty sure I could eat pasta every.single.night and not get bored of it. Love the ragu...and those shots are beautiful! Hope you have an awesome weekend, my friend!
I love how you put that, David! "A meal that cooks itself..." Always up for that. Thanks my friend!
I wish I was digging into a big bowl of this for dinner tonight! Looks so fabulous - there's nothing more comforting than a big bowl of spaghetti with ragu!
I wish I could MAKE you a big bowl of this for dinner tonight. You bring dessert! 😉
On the weekends my absolute favorite activity is making things like this fabulous ragu. There is nothing more relaxing and comforting (and tasty) than a dish that just requires a bit of time and love. I adore that you used lamb in here instead of beef!!! I'm a huge fan of lamb and it doesn't get enough love, so I'm over here cheering! I need to add this to the weekend plans for sure! This ragu and some homemade bread equals HEAVEN!! Cheers, my dear- to a wonderful weekend!
It's so true that lamb seems to get shunned for beef - and lamb is so darn flavorful!! I like how you think with a side of homemade bread...think of having the combined aroma of simmering sauce and bread in the oven!
I have to be in the mood to deal with a lot of time prepping or cooking but hands off time is easy! you can do so many other things while it is cooking away. The only problem is that it smells so good I just want to eat it straight away 😛
So true! The waiting can be torture!!! 🙂
Any dish that you can get going and then pour a glass of wine for yourself is fantastic in my books 🙂 How good does this look? I saw this on your IG and instantly got hearts in my eyes, lol 😀 I could get this every single day and not get tired of it. Total comfort food and I know for a fact that hubby would devour this too!
aww, thank you so much Dawn! xo
Hi Marissa. This is pure comfort food for me. Unfortunately, ground lamb is not is not something I can get here very often. I make a beef ragu that is similar, but it is finished off with milk during the last 45 minutes of cooking.
Hi Dorothy. I love that style of ragu too - with the richness of milk added in. When we visited Italy, in Tuscany we were taught to make ragu without milk and in Bologna to make ragu with milk - I discovered that I love it both ways! xo