Super Delicious Bolognese

While homemade bolognese may sound like a long process that can be overwhelming, it’s not actually a hard recipe to make. Bolognese is a delicious, flavorful meat sauce that works so well when paired with pasta. And while this recipe is not truly traditional, it’s packed with so much flavor that you’ll want to make it time and again!

Why this recipe works.

Bolognese is a traditional Italian meat sauce. The concept is simple, but the key to making a good bolognese is the steps needed to ensure tender meat and maximum flavor. The steps are easy, with each one adding a layer of complexity to the sauce. It starts by chopping celery, onion, and carrots finely. A food processor makes quick work. The vegetables give the underlying flavor needed and are finely chopped, so they melt away during cooking. Next, a mixture of beef and pork. Beef has a strong flavor, and pork offers a lighter counterpart than can mimic veal. Milk is added and cooked until condensed completely, leaving a rich flavor and tender meat. Whole tomatoes with their juice are slowly simmered with the mixture to create a rich, full-flavored bolognese that is a meat sauce unparalleled by other sauces.

Everything you’ll need to make this recipe.

• Ground beef, with its robust flavor, will help supply a meaty undertone to the sauce. Choose beef with some fat since fat carries flavor, 85% lean.
• Ground pork has a lighter flavor than beef and gives the idea of a traditional veal.
• Whole milk is added and cooked until it is dry. The milk leaves behind a rich flavor and helps tenderize the meat.
• Red wine is cooked off but helps add a rich flavor. Choose a red wine that you enjoy drinking, a Pinot Noir is a great choice. Beef stock can be added as a substitute.
• Tomato paste adds a deep tomato flavor without the effort of cooking tomatoes for a long time, the work is already done in the paste. To bring out the most flavor, the paste is cooked until it caramelizes.
• Whole tomatoes are used since the sauce is simmered for a long time. The tomatoes will slowly break down and thicken to create the correct texture.
• Parmesan rind adds flavor without the cheese melting into the sauce. The rind holds an immense amount of flavor and can be easily removed once the sauce is finished.

Here’s how to make this recipe.

1. Chop and cook the vegetables. Roughly chop the carrots, celery, and onion and add them to a food processor. Pulse the food processor, scraping if needed, until all of the vegetables are in small pieces. Pour the chopped vegetables into a large stockpot over medium-low heat with the melted butter. Add the salt and mix everything together to begin cooking.

2. Brown the meat. When the vegetables have cooked for a few minutes and begun to coat the bottom of the pan, add in the minced garlic. Stir the garlic in and let it cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Then add the ground beef and ground pork. Use a spoon or spatula to break up the meat while it is browning.

3. Add the milk. To the browned meat mixture, add the whole milk. Mix it into the meat and let the mixture cook until the milk has dissipated and been absorbed into the meat. Once absorbed, add in the ground nutmeg and mix it in.

4. Add the wine. To the meat mixture, add the red wine. Just like the milk, let the red wine soak into the meat mixture and reduce.

5. Add the tomatoes. When the wine has soaked in, add the tomato paste, salt, and black pepper. Mix these ingredients into the meat mixture to ensure everything is combined. Once the tomato paste has cooked, add in the crushed whole tomatoes, Parmesan rind, and bay leaves. Mix everything together. Turn the stove down to a very low simmer and let the mixture cook for at least 1 hour uncovered.

6. Cook the pasta. When the bolognese has 10 minutes left to simmer, begin cooking the pasta. Follow the package directions to cook the pasta to al dente. Once cooked, do not drain the pasta.

7. Assemble the final dish. When the bolognese is done simmering, remove the bay leaves and Parmesan rind. Use a spider to ladle the pasta into the sauce, letting some of the pasta water drain off before adding each ladleful. Mix the pasta into the sauce and let it cook for a few minutes. Then remove the pan from the stove and serve immediately with fresh Parmesan grated on top.

These pro tips will make this recipe a success.

• One of the best things to make anyone a better cook is to season as you cook. For this recipe, adding the salt right away when cooking the vegetables will cause you to have a better-tasting dish and use less salt in the end.
• For this recipe, the whole tomatoes in their juice need to be crushed. This can be accomplished by either using your hands to break up the tomatoes or using scissors to slice the tomatoes. Use whichever method is preferable. I personally love to use scissors to achieve the result I want. While crushing the tomatoes, remove any pieces of peel that are visible, as these will affect the resulting texture of the bolognese sauce.
• To source the Parmesan rinds in this recipe, check at your local grocery store. The cheese counter is a great location to begin before moving on to other areas of the store. If you can’t find Parmesan rinds by themselves, purchase some fresh Parmesan cheese and cut off the rind.
• For the most intense flavor in this bolognese, simmer the mixture for up to 3 hours. The longer the mixture cooks, the more flavor will be imparted into the sauce. Cooking for a longer amount of time may require a bit of water or stock to be added every so often.
• Once the pasta is added to the sauce, if the mixture seems too thick, simply use some of the pasta water to thin it out.

You’ll love these other pasta recipes.

• Three-cheese stuffed shells
• One skillet lemon chicken with orzo and kale
• Meat sauce with spaghetti
• Baked macaroni and cheese
• The best homemade goulash
• The best beef and noodles
• Sungold tomato pasta bake
• Fresh tomato herb pasta
• Tomato zucchini summer pasta
• Spicy peanut noodles