Easy Pork Ragu Recipe

This easy pork ragu recipe is a hearty pasta sauce full of tender pork and veggies, cooked slowly for maximum flavor. This pork ragu recipe uses simple ingredients and you can eat it over pasta or even cabbage noodles for a low carb pasta dinner.

You might also like my mom’s awesome lasagna recipe!

Many, many, many years ago I learned about cabbage noodles on a dieting forum. Since I mostly eat low carb this was a great discovery because when you slice and cook cabbage in the form of noodles they make an awesome substitute for pasta. And they taste best with a hearty pasta sauce like this easy pork ragu recipe.

I’ve been updating old posts and was really excited when I rediscovered this recipe. My husband I just loved this recipe and it will definitely be in our meal rotation. The tender pork roast is cooked slowly along with a variety of veggies and spices and just creates such a flavorful and rich tomato sauce. You could also most eat it as is!

And while you don’t have to make the cabbage noodles, if you do you will find the sweetness from the soft cabbage noodles goes great with the rich flavor of the chunky, meaty sauce.

Recipe ingredients I used and substitutions.

The simple ingredients I used for this Italian meat sauce were a small boneless pork roast, olive oil, bacon, onion, carrot, celery, fresh garlic, mushrooms, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, beef broth, kosher salt and black pepper. Some people like to use white wine in this kind of sauce but I didn’t think it needed it.

Pork Roast
Below you can see the small pork roast I used. Originally I used boneless country pork ribs but I like the roast better. You can use other cuts, of pork and I think they would all be fine but a boneless pork shoulder or pork butt would be best. You might want to trim some of the fat if piece of pork shoulder has a thick layer so the sauce doesn’t get too greasy.

Bacon
The bacon really adds an extra layer of flavor and is delicious in this sauce so I would not skip it if you can. You use both the grease and the bacon in the dish.

Vegetables
I used fresh mushrooms, carrots, yellow onions and celery. This combination of veggies cooks down and adds lots of flavors. If you are not a fan of mushrooms you can skip them but keep them otherwise as they go well. I would use fresh mushrooms and not canned if you can.

Tomatoes and Fresh Garlic
Originally I used canned tomatoes (whole) and crushed them with a potato masher but this time I used a can of crushed tomatoes and it was much easier and just as tasty. I also use tomato paste which is necessary as it adds a concentrated sweetness to the rich tomato sauce.

This recipe uses a lot of fresh garlic. I used 6 medium garlic cloves and it adds tons of flavor. I would not use garlic powder as a substitute but if you have to, 1 cloves of garlic equals ¼ teaspoon of garlic powder.

How to make this easy pork ragu sauce.

Step 1: First finely dice the carrots, celery and onion. I LOVE this vegetable chopper to do this quickly but of course you can do it by hand. Also slice the mushrooms and cut the pork roast into a few big hunks to speed up the cooking process.

Step 2: Get out a dutch oven or large pot and heat to medium high heat. Add the olive oil and let it heat up for a minutes. Season with salt and black pepper over the pork chunks then add them to the hot pot and brown them on both sides. This should only take a few minutes per side. Then take the chunks of meat out and place on plate and set aside.

Step 3: Turn the heat down to medium heat and then add the chopped bacon pieces to the pan. Saute the bacon pieces until they start to brown. Then add the mushrooms, onions, carrots and celery. Saute for 2-3 minutes until the vegetables soften.

Step 4: Add the broth, tomato paste, crushed garlic and crushed tomatoes. Stir well and using wooden spoon try to get up some the brown bits on the bottom of the pot from the roast and bacon. Cover with a lid and cook for 5 minutes.

Step 5: Add the meat to sauce, put the lid back on and and simmer on medium low for about 1 ½ – 2 hours until the meat is fork tender and falls apart. Note cooking time may vary.

About a half hour before the meat should be done, get a pot of water boiling and make your pasta (if using dry pasta). Fresh pasta will take less time to cook.

Step 6: Once done, shred the pork pieces with two large forks and mix well with the sauce. Simmer for a few minutes to let the flavors combine with shredded meat.

When done, take off the heat and serve over your cooked pasta of choice for a delicious and hearty family dinner. I used linguine because that I all I had on hand but it would be GREAT with fresh pasta or wide noodles like a pappardelle pasta.

You can serve this with a green salad and garlic bread to make it a meal. If you want to add a veggie side dish try green beans or sautéed zucchini. If you want you can also add a sprinkling of parmesan cheese at the end or serve it on the side. And that is all there is to this simple but delicious dinner.

This makes a lot. It tastes great the next day too but you could also freeze it for another day. Store leftover sauce in an airtight container. Please scroll down for the printable recipe card.

Cabbage noodles for a low carb pasta substitute.

For a low carb pasta option you can try the cabbage noodles. Just slice the cabbage to make long noodle like strands. Then saute it in a large skillet in a tablespoon of olive oil for a few minutes over medium heat. Then turn up the heat to medium high and add a little bit of water, maybe two tablespoons.

Cover the pot and let the cabbage steam. Turn the heat back down to medium and stir. You want to cabbage to get soft but not brown It sounds more complicated than it is.

You can also microwave it with a tablespoon or two of water until soft. Drain and then top with the pork ragu.

More delicious and easy Italian recipes to try.

My family as most families love Italian food and pasta recipes in general and we eat it often in our house. Here are a few of our favorite Italian recipes.

• vegetable bolognese or meat bolognese sauce
• easy tortellini with vodka sauce and sausage or brown butter and spinach
• simple spaghetti with fresh tomatoes and basil
• creamy orzo with peas and mushrooms
• easy sheet pan ravioli lasagna
• homemade Italain sausage without casings
• tortellini and meatball soup and creamy tortellini soup
• pasta e fagioli soup

We really loved this easy pork ragu recipe and was so glad I rediscovered it. My son is in college but I can wait to make it for him because he will love it and it’s such a comforting meal. And if you are doing Paleo or watching your carbs, try the cabbage. You might be surprised at how good they taste with the tender meat sauce. Enjoy!

And if you try this recipe and like it, please come back and give it a star rating!