Instant Pot Beef Ragu
This Instant Pot Beef Ragu recipe turns simple roast and grits into something really special. This can be prepped in a pressure cooker and is loaded with rich, cheesy flavor!
You're looking at my absolute favorite freezer meal ever. Quite possibly my favorite recipe in my collection (and you guys know I have quite a few).
Beef Ragu is absolutely exploding with flavor. I look forward to this one each time we have it! The combination of the rich tomato sauce and creamy cheese grits is amazing. The parmesan on top gives it just a little bit of a bite to completely round out the meal. This is one of those meals that feels totally fancy when it totally isn't. It's incredibly easy to make and is a great fake-out meal when you need to entertain or serve guests something they'll remember.
You'll never know that this is a freezer meal – it tastes like you've been cooking all day. And readers agreed – this was high in the running when I asked what should be in this summer's Best of FMBC series.
As a reminder: I’ll be sharing a recipe for each week of the summer (10 weeks total). On the 11th week, I’ll have a full pack of printables, recipes, and prep instructions to make all of these recipes at once for your freezer, just like my other Freezer Meal Boot Camps!
(UPDATE: The full freezer meal boot camp is now available here!)
You can check out the other recipes in this series below:
- Part 1 – Smokey Penne
- Part 2 – Carrot & Butternut Squash Soup
- Part 3 – Mississippi Roast
- Part 4 – Firefighter Chili
- Part 5 – Italian Beef Sandwiches
- Part 6 – Beef Ragu (you're here!)
- Part 7 – Turkey & Sweet Potato Chili
- Part 8 – Zuppa Toscana
- Part 9 – Carnitas Over Sweet Potato Mash
- Part 10 – Taco Soup
In each of these posts, I’ll share how to make the recipe from either fresh or frozen. (And a note: if you’ve done my boot camps before, these recipes might vary slightly from the original version to make overall prep easier.)
(Don’t forget to label your meal – here’s a free printable for that!)
Instant Pot Beef Ragu
Ingredients
Ingredient List 1: If freezing, put the following in your freezer container:
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 3 tbsp minced garlic
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 3 lb boneless chuck roast
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 tsp beef better than bouillon
- 28 oz canned diced tomatoes
- 6 oz canned tomato paste
Ingredients Needed For Serve Day:
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
- 3 slices American cheese
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- 2 cups quick cooking grits
Instructions
(If Prepping From Frozen) On Serve Day…
- Thaw your meal enough to pop out of the freezer container.
- Add frozen meal & 1 cup water to the Instant Pot.
- Set Instant Pot for high, 90 minutes. Once cook cycle is up, allow the pressure to naturally release for 10-15 minutes before manually releasing remaining pressure.
- While the Instant Pot cycle is running, bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Once boiling, add grits and stir vigorously until blended and smooth. Add American and cheddar cheeses; stir.
- Once the Instant Pot cycle is done and pressure is released, shred beef and stir into sauce.
- Serve beef ragu over cheese grits. Garnish with parmesan cheese.
(If Prepping From Fresh) On Serve Day…
- Add ingredients from list 1 & 1 cup of water to the Instant Pot.
- Set the Instant Pot for high, 90 minutes. Once the cook cycle is up, allow pressure to naturally release for 10-15 minutes before manually releasing remaining pressure.
- While the Instant Pot cycle is running, bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Once boiling, add grits and stir vigorously until blended and smooth. Add American and cheddar cheeses; stir.
- Once the Instant Pot cycle is done and pressure is released, shred beef and stir into sauce.
- Serve beef ragu over cheese grits. Garnish with parmesan cheese.
Nutrition Facts
You can also download a recipe card for this meal here.
You won't regret making this one – I hope you love it!
(UPDATED: You can now find the full Best of Freezer Meal Boot Camp, including full prep instructions and labels, here!)
