Fork tender shredded beef is pressure cooked with your favorite dry white wine, crushed tomatoes, crispy pancetta, and plenty of oregano. Unlike traditional ragu which is braised low and slow in the oven, this Instant Pot Beef Ragu is ready in just over 90 minutes!
Spoon the ragu over chewy papparedelle noodles and top with creamy mascarpone and freshly grated Parm for the ultimate weeknight comfort food dinner.
“I’ve made this recipe twice previously (in some cases changing the noodles) but the ragu has always turned out very well. It really is delicious with the mascarpone and parm no matter what noodles you use.” – Rebecca, So Much Food reader
Table of contents
I Love Using My Instant Pot to Make Ragu on Busy Weeknights!
This Instant Pot beef ragu is hands down one of my favorite things to put on pasta. It’s rich, hearty, and chockfull of flavor. Plus, it’s budget-friendly because the cuts of meat used in ragu are usually cheap and benefit from a long cooking time (chuck and brisket to name a couple).
The reason these cuts are so inexpensive is because they do take some time to tenderize. You can’t simply throw a hunk of brisket on the grill and expect a tender steak. They come from parts of the cow that do a lot of work and thus need more care to get them tender.
Braising a ragu in the oven would take at least 3-3.5 hours, whereas with the Instant Pot this recipe is finished in a fraction of the time. I love that I’m able to throw together a rich and elegant meal on a weeknight!
Oh, and what’s that dollop of white on the pasta? FREAKING MASCARPONE. I had it once at a little Italian restaurant in San Diego on my bolognese and now I always put it on my pasta. If you haven’t done this, be prepared to change your life. Buon appetito!
Kitchen Tools You’ll Need
The Main Ingredients
You can find the full list of ingredients, quantities & method in the recipe card at the end of the page.
- Beef. I love making a chuck or brisket ragu. These cuts of beef have good marbling (fat = flavor + moisture) and collagen, and after being pressure cooked they transform into meltingly tender shredded beef.
- Pancetta. If you can’t find Italian pancetta at your local grocery store, thick-cut bacon may be substituted.
- Soffritto. This is what Italians call the blend of carrots, celery, and onion that builds the flavor foundation of most sauces (including this Instant Pot ragu).
- Canned tomatoes. I strongly recommend buying a can of whole peeled tomatoes and crushing them by hand for the best flavor and texture. Whole peeled tomatoes are basically the filet mignons of the canned tomato world, while pre-crushed tomatoes are basically “ground beef.” The better your tomatoes are, the better your sauce will taste!
- White wine. Pick a dry white wine, you don’t want anything too sweet.
- Milk. Just like in my favorite bolognese sauce recipe, milk tenderizes the beef and gives the ragu a silky mouthfeel.
- Cheese. Mascarpone is rich, creamy, and adds a little coolness and balance to the acidic and fatty sauce. And of course it’s topped with copious amounts of freshly grated Parmesan, like all pasta should be.
- Pasta. I used chewy pappardelle noodles this time, but ragu is also delicious spooned over fettuccini, rigatoni, and gnocchi.
How to Make Beef Ragu in the Instant Pot (+ Tips)
- Crisp up the pancetta. You can do this right in the Instant Pot on the “sauté” function. Allow 4 to 5 minutes for the pancetta to get super crispy and for most of its fat to render (the drippings add so much flavor to the sauce!).
- Brown the beef. You might have to do this in batches so the beef develops a golden brown sear and doesn’t steam. Remove the beef to a plate after all sides have been browned.
- Sauté the aromatics. You want the onions and celery to soften and develop some color before adding everything else to the Instant Pot.
- Deglaze with wine, then add the remaining ingredients. Since we’re pressure cooking the beef ragu, the alcohol in the wine won’t be able to fully cook off. Use it to deglaze the Instant Pot and let it simmer for a couple of minutes to reduce before adding the rest of the ragu ingredients.
- Pressure cook until the beef is fork tender. I typically cook my ragu for a little over an hour at high pressure on the “meat / stew” setting, then manually release the steam before shredding the beef and returning it to the pot to simmer for a little longer to thicken up the sauce.
- Garnish and serve. I love spooning my beef ragu over pappardelle and topping it with a dollop of creamy mascarpone and plenty of grated Parm.
Don’t Own an Instant Pot? Here’s What to Do
If you’re craving fork tender beef ragu but don’t own an Instant Pot or yours is in use for a different recipe, you can make this easy recipe in a Dutch oven instead.
Follow the directions as instructed, and after browning and sauteeing everything on the stove transfer the Dutch oven to a 375ºF oven and braise with the lid on for 2 1/2 hours, then uncover and cook for 30 minutes more. Or simply follow my braised beef ragu recipe!
Side Dish Suggestions
Pair your beef ragu with a fresh side salad and a hunk of crusty bread for mopping up the sauce!
- Warm bread. No-Knead Focaccia, Fluffy Dinner Rolls
- Side salad. Little Gem Caesar Salad, Italian Chopped Salad, Classic Panzanella
- Veggies. Grilled Lemon Asparagus, Roasted Carrots with Whipped Feta, Almond Garlic Green Beans
If you do give this recipe a try, I love hearing about it! Leave a comment with a star rating below. Be sure to subscribe to my weekly newsletter and never miss a new recipe! You can also snap a photo & tag @JENNYGOYCOCHEA on Instagram.
More Classic Italian Sauces to Master
- White Bolognese Sauce
- 30-Minute Pink Sauce Pasta
- Pasta Alla Vodka
- Dad’s Sunday Sauce
- Classic Spaghetti and Meatballs
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Instant Pot Beef Ragu Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 lbs. cubed beef (brisket or chuck work well)
- 3 oz pancetta , diced (or bacon)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion , finely diced
- 2 medium carrots , finely diced
- 3 ribs celery , finely diced
- 6 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes , plus more for topping
- 28 oz canned whole peeled tomatoes , crushed by hand
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 1 lb. pappardelle pasta , cooked to al dente according to package instructions
- mascarpone , for topping
- freshly grated parmesan , for topping
Instructions
- Crisp the pancetta. Turn your Instant Pot onto the 'sauté' function. Add the diced pancetta and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring regularly until the pancetta has crisped up and rendered some of its fat. Transfer pancetta to a plate and set aside.
- Brown the beef. Add the olive oil to the Instant Pot and the cubes of beef into a single layer. Let the meat get very brown on all sides. You may have to do this in two batches. Remove the beef from the pan and set aside with the pancetta.
- Sauté the aromatics. Add the onions, carrots and celery and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally until soft. Add the minced garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Pressure cook on high. Return the beef and pancetta to the pot. Add the wine, and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the wine is almost completely evaporated and then add the tomatoes and juice, bay leaf, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and milk. Place the lid on the pot and lock into place. Cancel the sauté setting and change to 'meat/stew' high pressure for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- Shred the beef, then simmer to thicken. Manually release the pressure on the Instant Pot (make sure to do this away from walls or shelves that could be damaged by steam). Remove the lid, shred the meat with a fork, and transfer again to the sauté function and simmer for 15 min or so until thickened, stirring once in a while so that the ragu doesn't stick.
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta. While the ragu simmers, cook your pappardelle until al dente and drain.
- Plate and serve. Transfer the pasta to your bowls, top with ragu, mascarpone, freshly grated parmesan, and red pepper flakes (if desired).
Notes
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Rate & Review This Recipe
Shannon,
I appreciate the feedback. Was your beef by-chance previously frozen? That may account for the extra liquid. I’m so sorry the recipe didn’t work out for you this time.
I’ve made this recipe twice previously (in some cases changing the noodles) but the ragu has always turned out very well. It really is delicious with the mascarpone and parm no matter what noodles you use. Thank you for posting and keep the instant pot recipes coming!
This is one of the most delicious and easy recipes I’ve ever made! I’m not very experienced at cooking, a fairly new user of the Instapot, and not overly skilled at cooking in general, but this came out absolutely delicious and perfect! The sauce was very good, and made so much that I was able to have multiple servings with part, and froze the other part for later meals! It thawed perfectly and was great even then!
The mascarpone and parmigiana were perfect on it.
Please keep creating more things like this! 🙂
[…] Instant Pot Beef Ragu with Pappardelle […]
I haven’t finished this yet so will comment later on the finished product but I will say one of the steps that might have caused there to be too much liquid is when you saute vegetables, add the white wine then, reduce, and then add the meat back in.
Made this (or something closely based on it) the other week – big success. I don’t have one of these electric instant pot things, so I seared the brisket whole on a skillet for ~ 5 minutes on each side and left it to rest while chopping the vege (substituting the celery with half a bulb of celeriac, small dice). Then cut the brisket into bite-size chunks and cooked everything in my stove-top pressure cooker for 70 minutes on high. Delicious!