Tasty Oxtail Spaghetti Recipe

If one of your New Year’s resolutions includes enjoying more homemade food, then you have to try making Spanish recipes; they come in all shapes, forms, and levels of complexity.

The oxtail spaghetti is the perfect recipe for home cooks who are just starting this task or for people who want to tackle an easy recipe that yields a mesmerizing dish as the finishing result.

In this article, you will learn how to make the oxtail spaghetti sauce from scratch, along with some super helpful tips for storing and serving this dish, and insights into ingredient substitutions that you can make.

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Pssst…!!?? You can’t get enough of Spanish oxtail recipes? Have a look at my other posts:

• Mexican oxtail soup

• Oxtail dumplings

• Fried oxtail recipe

Background of the Dish

Records show that since the 1600s, different types of Spanish oxtail recipes have existed. 

This is attributed to the fact that the working-class residents of the region would often receive the less desirable cuts of meat, such as oxtail.

What was once considered a disadvantage became a gift, and over time, the best oxtail recipes were created. 

Some of them are more simple, like stews and soups, while others are fusions between cuisines, such as Mexican oxtail soup and oxtail dumplings.

Oxtail spaghetti is the perfect dish for when you need to indulge in a cozy and hearty meal that will warm your soul and fill you up.

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Things You’ll Need for Oxtail Spaghetti

To prepare this Rabo de toro recipe you will need oxtails, onion, beef broth, carrot, crushed tomatoes, garlic cloves, and a bit of olive oil as the main ingredients.

You will need a pressure cooker to make this oxtail spaghetti, but you can also use a large pot and adapt the cooking time (it would be from 1.5 to 2 hours to cook the meat).

Ingredients

• 1.5kg oxtail
• 2 cans (450gr each) crushed tomatoes
• 2 cups (480ml) beef broth
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1 carrot
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 bay leaf
• 500gr spaghetti
• Salt and pepper (to taste)
• Grated Parmesan cheese for serving

How to Make Oxtail Spaghetti – Step by Step Guide

1. For the first step in this oxtail spaghetti recipe, you have to peel and chop the carrot and onion into small squares. Also, peel and mince the garlic cloves. Set aside.

2. After that, pat the oxtail dry with kitchen paper and cut it into bite-sized cubes. Season each side with salt and pepper.

3. Now grab a saucepan, heat the olive oil and saute the oxtail pieces until golden. Remove the oxtail and set aside. Using the same pan, saute the vegetables for about 7 minutes or until they get a softer texture (they will finish cooking later). Set aside.

4. Then grab a pressure cooker, and add crushed tomatoes, beef broth, oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, and bay leaf. Mix them for 2 minutes and add the oxtail pieces and the vegetables. 

5. For the cooking step on this Spanish oxtails recipe, close the lid and cook on high pressure for 45 to 60 minutes or until the oxtail is tender. You can prepare this oxtail spaghetti sauce recipe with a normal pot, but it would take from 1.5 to 2 hours to cook.

6. Now let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes, then manually release any remaining pressure. To get that classic oxtail ragu texture, remove the oxtail pieces, shred the meat, and return it to the sauce.

7. To finish this oxtail pasta recipe, simmer the sauce for an additional 10 to 15 minutes for the flavors to meld. Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.

8. Your Spanish-style oxtail recipe is now ready. You just have to serve the oxtail sauce over cooked spaghetti and garnish it with grated parmesan cheese.

Substitution of Ingredients

There are some substitutions that you can make to the oxtail spaghetti ingredients, especially if you want to adapt the flavor profile of the dish.

For example, you can turn it into a spicy oxtail recipe by adding one extra teaspoon of chili flakes, one jalapeño pepper (cook it alongside the onion), and two tablespoons of hot sauce (add it with the crushed tomatoes).

For this Spanish pasta recipe, you can use any type of pasta or noodles of your choice, such as pappardelle, tagliatelle, rigatoni, fusilli, and pene, or use their Gluten-Free versions.

If you made other simple oxtail recipes such as the braised oxtail or the roasted oxtail and you have meat leftovers then you can use those to prepare the sauce instead of cooking the oxtail from scratch.

Try other pasta recipes like the oxtail pasta recipe and oxtail rasta pasta.

Tips on Serving Oxtail Spaghetti

The oxtail spaghetti is an amazing dish to serve as a main course and it will become the protagonist of the meal, no matter if it is for lunch or dinner.

As listed in the recipe, you can top this pasta dish with grated parmesan cheese (or manchego cheese), and let it melt for a couple of seconds before enjoying your meal.

In a similar way to what you would do with the Spanish oxtail soup, you will need a slice of bread (or toasted bread) to serve with your oxtail spaghetti, as you will need something to dip your sauce in.

Lastly, you can take inspiration from healthy oxtail recipes like the oxtail stew with potatoes or the oxtail soup with mixed vegetables and serve a smaller portion of pasta and complete the dish with roasted or steamed veggies.

How to Store Oxtail Spaghetti

You can store the oxtail spaghetti both in the fridge or freezer and here we will give you some tips to nail that.

First, you have to let the oxtail pasta cool to room temperature after cooking it, and then place it in a covered airtight freezer-safe container.

Once you do that you will be able to store your oxtail spaghetti for up to 4 days in the fridge or 45 days in your freezing, and after that, you can reheat it in the oven, microwave, or a large pot in the stove (in all cases you may have to add 1/2 cup of water so that it gains back the liquid content).

If you want to prepare more oxtail recipes that you can make and store for later then you have to check our oxtail noodle soup and our fantastic old-fashioned oxtail soup recipe.

Recipe Card: Oxtail Spaghetti

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