Beef ragu with mushrooms and vegetables

I love preparing healthy food. A ragu is a protein stewed with vegetables and spices cooked over low heat for a long time, or at least that's what I understood while doing some research on the types of ragu, their origin and how to prepare them. I remind you that I am not a professional cook, but a great amateur and this hobby motivates me to try cooking techniques and also to combine elements that give beautiful results to our preparations. You might think that this dish is simply stewed ground beef, but believe me, the simple change in the method of preparation makes a huge difference. If not, the next time you cook ground beef leave it on low heat for no less than an hour after we have added all the ingredients and you will know what I mean. Now here is the list of ingredients.

500 grams of ground beef.
200 grams of sliced mushrooms.
1 cup of diced carrots.
1/3 cup of tender peas.
5 small potatoes cut in cubes.
5 ripe tomatoes.
1 thick branch of chives.
4 cloves of garlic.
Powdered combined spices.
Vegetable color.
Salt and oil.

We begin by placing the meat in a pot with two tablespoons of oil, a teaspoon of salt and with a palette or spoon we crumble the meat until it is loose. This step is important to do it with patience so that lumps do not form in the meat, since we want a loose meat.

At this point we add the chopped carrot, the peas and the chives but only the stem part. Stir to make something similar to a stir-fry cooking for about 5 minutes. Then add the grated tomato, the vegetable color and the combined spices. I buy this combination already prepared and it contains oregano, basil, cumin, rosemary and thyme. It gives a touch of Italian spices and is very good.

Cook until a sauce begins to form and add the mushrooms. You can add chopped or filleted mushrooms. I chose filleted because I like the mushrooms to be noticeable, on the other hand, if I add them too little I feel they get lost. We also add the potatoes chopped in small cubes and the grated garlic. Add a cup of water. And lower the heat to minimum. We cover it and stir it eventually to prevent it from sticking to the bottom. We keep it on the fire for at least 1 hour, but the ideal would be two hours according to my research.

I was surprised that the vegetables remained intact during the whole time it was on the fire, I presume this is because the fire is low. This sauce is very tasty and I have cooked ground beef a million times in my life, but this time it was different, all the flavors are intensified when the reduction is done since almost all the liquid evaporates and all the ingredients remain. I used it with toasted bread as a snack, but ideally with a good pasta and it can also be stored in sterilized glass jars. A very practical recipe. I hope you like it.