Beef shin ragu

So a long time ago, I somehow ended up with some lovely beef shin from a farm. I never cooked beef shin before, so I did a little Googling to figure out what would be a simple, fool-proof method of making something tasty with this cut of meat. After seeing multiple suggestions for a beef shin ragu, I combined a few different recipes and made the sauce - and it was blissful. A kept asking for more and was really sad when we finished it. No pictures, but I'll have to source some beef shin in the great state of Texas and then update with a photo the next time I make it. So worth it.

Beef shin ragu
Serves 6
Adapted from Beef + Lamb NZ

Ingredients

800g beef shin
2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 sticks celery, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
2 teaspoons dried oregano
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 anchovy fillets, chopped (I used 4)
1 cup red wine
2 cups beef stock (I used water)
1 bay leaf

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 150ºC.
2. Season the beef with a little salt and pepper. Heat a dash of oil in a large frying pan over a very high heat and sear the beef to brown all over (you may need to do this in two batches). Set the beef aside. 
3. Reduce the heat to medium, add the butter and another dash of oil to the pan and cook the onion, garlic, celery, carrot and oregano for about 7-10 minutes until the vegetables are soft. 
4. Add the tomato paste and anchovies and cook for another few minutes. 
5. Add the wine, turn up the heat and let it bubble for 30 seconds. 
6. Add the water and the bay leaf. If your pan is ovenproof, add the beef and its juices back to the pan and cover with the lid or, transfer everything to a covered casserole dish.
7. Bake in the oven for 3 hours, stirring a couple of times to ensure the beef stays mostly covered with liquid.

To serve

Remove the meat with tongs and place on a clean board. Remove and discard the bones and pull the beef into chunks with two forks. If necessary, at this point you can simmer the sauce in a saucepan on the stovetop to reduce and thicken it. Add the meat back into the sauce, taste and season as required. Spoon the meat sauce onto the hot pasta and sprinkle with grated Parmesan and chopped parsley.