Bolognese

[FiF]

I tend to batch cook a good quantity of soffritto in order to have ready as a base and save time.

OP's recipe sounds fine to me, though being largely non drinkers and the one who does avoids red tend not to add that.

Milk sounds interesting, will try.

[loskie]

The fat adds flavour as will a decent smoked pancetta/bacon. Slow cooking is a MUST and this is one of the things that tastes so good the next day or frozen for a later date.

[Halmyre]

Fastchas said:

Two sticks celery, two carrots, large onion, some Italian herbs, cooked for 10mins until soft, tip about 200ml red wine, another 5mins then add passata.
When cooked, blend until all limbs removed.
Add mince, either beef or beef & pork. Stir until all mince separated and cook for an hour.
Cook pasta, add some pasta water to the sauce to thicken it.
When pasta is cooked add the pasta to the sauce as soon as drained and make sure all pasta is covered. Serve from the pot into bowls with basil on top.
No garlic in Italian bolognese, I’ve heard.

ISTR reading that you never have onion AND garlic in Italian cooking - it's one or the other.

But what do they know.

[AndrewCrown]

Buonasera PH’ers

My take …which is probably a Giorgio Locatelli derivative.

Large deep sauce pan and lid

1. Sizzle pancetta or lardons until cooked.. optional Nduja…
2. Remove with a slotted spoon so oil/fat remains.
3. High heat brown, beef mince in small batches … let it caramelise
4. Add the mirepoix (onion, carrot, celery super finely chopped) heat down to simmer …lots of salt and pepper… lid on
5. Add garlic and pancetta / lardons stir and leave for 10 minutes.. lid still on.
6. Stir in one bottle of Italian wine… I tend to use Chianti
7. Crumble a beef stock cube in…. Let it all bubble for a minute or two.
8. Add a bottle of passata
9. Dollop of tomato paste
10. Medium simmer lid off for an hour.
11. Season with Balsamic vinegar and or Lea & Perrins.

Once done… let it rest…. And reheat to serve,

Always better next day.

Big fan of adding cream at end and stirring in….
Chopped Parsley/ basil mix to serve…

[Chris Stott]

Cook sofritto. Bit of garlic. Brown 50:50 beef and pork mince (or sausage removed from casing. Deglaze with white wine. Add canned chopped tomato, some tomato purée, an oxo cube, splash of Worcestershire, oregano and MSG. Stick covered pot in the oven for 3-4 hours at c.160*c.

Allow to stand overnight.

[shirt]

Jordie Barretts sock said:

I'm sorry. That sounds utterly revolting. Why on earth is there carrot and celery in there?

Those and the onion are mirepoix. Cooked low and slow with olive oil it forms a full bodied base. The Italians call it battuto I think, used as the base for most pasta sauces.

Agree on the lack of garlic, what’s going on there!


ETA I see almost everyone has already pointed this out

Edited by shirt on Thursday 16th May 22:25

[ambuletz]

as others have mentioned, its a peasant dish, like much of italian cooking, so minimal ingredients. They have the 'official' recipe out there.


As for things to add that aren't mentioned (and would trigger an italian).
onions, garlic, finely chopped chicken livers, MSG (or grate parmesan, basically itallian msg)

[fttm]

I would be more than happy with Andrew Cowans version. , bit of this slosh of that , and as we know 10 x better tomorrow . Simple dish done how you prefer

[craigjm]

Milk is very much a part of bolognaise and the wine is white wine not red. Also, its served with tagliatelle

[OMITN]

We do Marcella Hazan’s ragu recipe. Takes 4 hours to cook. Tastes amazing.

Shame that red meat is out in our household currently..!

[craigjm]

OMITN said:

We do Marcella Hazan’s ragu recipe. Takes 4 hours to cook. Tastes amazing.

Shame that red meat is out in our household currently..!

Great recipe from an excellent book

[OMITN]

craigjm said:

Great recipe from an excellent book

First cookbook I bought Mrs OMITN when we started seeing each other (over 25 years ago..!). It's well used.

[illmonkey]

Regbuser said:

Half a teaspoon of fresh human excrement, really gives a umami tang.

No doubt ferret and illmonkey will be along in a bit, advocating for peas, eurgh, disgusting

How dare you! Even I know peas do not belong in a bolognese. They are a side dish...

OMITN said:

craigjm said:

Great recipe from an excellent book

First cookbook I bought Mrs OMITN when we started seeing each other (over 25 years ago..!). It's well used.

The book, or...?

[fat80b]

Just to screw with all the traditionalists.

MSG - I bought a kilo of the magic white powder on amazon a year or so back and once you've added it to anything saucy, you won't go back.

[Jimjimhim]

theplayingmantis said:

Jordie Barretts sock said:

Lotobear said:

I love a good bolognese and regularly batch cook and bag it in portions for the freezer. I've played with various recipes but my usual way is:

Plenty of carrot, onion and celery, chopped as fine as possible and sweated down in a heavy cast iron pot (with some pancetta) to reduce moisture, some Basil and Rosemary in there.

Pork and minced beef added in then broken down with 4-5 chopped anchovies, off the heat tilt pan and skim off excess fat (leaving some in). Back on heat and add some milk then boil off. A generous glug of decent Italian red wine (Primitivo is great for this) and reduce back down then add half a tube of tomato paste and a tin of chopped tomatoes (or passata). Season to taste and a pint or so of good stock.

Bring to boil then simmer for a couple of hours with lid on or in oven at 125 degrees for 2-3 hours, lid off for last 30 mins to reduce down.

This usually hits the spot but...any variations/recommendations?

I'm sorry. That sounds utterly revolting. Why on earth is there carrot and celery in there? Let alone anchovies and milk????? Pork??

Where's the garlic and oregano?

You don't know much about food do you jordie...pasties and now this gem!

It made me laugh too

[fourstardan]

quite relevant for this weekend as I recall seing a documentary about an Italian traditional chef who makes bolognaise for the F1 drivers when it's on.

She hardly had any tomatoes sauce, it was the secret apparently.

[hungry_hog]

My recipe

Passata as opposed to chopped tomato - less fibrous
Cayenne pepper
Salt
Black pepper
Agree with the milk when cooking the mince
Carrot
Star anise
Dried porcini (rehydrate first)
Bay leaf
Glug of red wine

Slow cooking gives more time for flavour to infuse

If not sweet enough sometimes I add teaspoon ketchup - tip from Ramsay!

[Silvanus]

I don't use mince. I use beef shin and pork ribs. I slow cook the meet in the tomato sauce (a simple sauce made from tomatoes, passata, onions, good stock, garlic and herbs) for a good few hours. First meal is a good portion of meat served on polenta with some sauce spooned over. The meal the following day (or freeze it) is the rest of the meat shredded off the bone and added back to the sauce. Try it and thank me later.

[M5-911]

A slightly different take on the Bolognese (courtyard Ragu):

https://youtu.be/0R-GR_qijQ0?si=ejsF5q7S0BVLkPAJ

Great YouTube channel.

[AKjr]

illmonkey said:

Regbuser said:

Half a teaspoon of fresh human excrement, really gives a umami tang.

No doubt ferret and illmonkey will be along in a bit, advocating for peas, eurgh, disgusting

How dare you! Even I know peas do not belong in a bolognese. They are a side dish...

OMITN said:

craigjm said:

Great recipe from an excellent book

First cookbook I bought Mrs OMITN when we started seeing each other (over 25 years ago..!). It's well used.

The book, or...?

Great book, right enough. I cannot comment elsewise.....