Slow-Cooked Beef Cheek Ragu

Half an hour before cooking, lightly sprinkle the beef cheeks with salt and allow to come to room temperature.

Pre-heat the oven to 170 degrees. Heat half the oil in a large, heavy frying pan and briefly brown beef cheeks all over. Place the browned beef cheeks into a large, lidded casserole dish.

Add the remaining olive oil to the frying pan. Sauté the lardons for a couple of mins until fragrant. Add the onion, garlic, celery, and carrot, and sauté for around 8 mins until the onion is soft. Stir in the porcini and cook for a further minute. Add the chianti, then turn up the heat and bubble vigorously for several minutes to take the edge off the alcohol. Stir in the passata and 1/4 cup porcini water. Season to taste, simmer for another minute, then pour into casserole dish with the beef cheeks and add the bay leaves.

Dampen a sheet of baking paper and place it over the dish, then place the lid on. Transfer to the oven and cook for 2 1/2 hours. Remove from oven and check the seasoning. Return to the oven, without the lid, and cook for at least another 30 minutes. After 3 hours the meat should be tender enough to pull apart, but if you have the time, cooking the dish for 4-5 hours is best. If sauce gets low, top up with a little porcini water or passata. Once cooked, shred the beef cheeks with forks and mix the meat into the sauce.

To serve, cook the pasta according to packet instructions. Fold the ragu through the pasta, and serve with fresh chopped Italian parsley and plenty of grated parmesan.