Pasta Bolognese is a meaty sauce that is both rich and tender. Learn how to make this filling dish using simple ingredients!
In Italy, Pasta Bolognese is actually called Ragù which means a meat sauce served with pasta. This simple meal has many variations of preparation depending on the region. However, this recipe originally comes from my family and I have tweaked it after many years of discovering different cooking styles. So let’s get down to the meat…
Ingredients (for a party of 4):
1 lb ground beef
1-2 Italian pork sausages
1 white onion
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves
1 tbsp of butter
1/2 tsp of thyme
3/4 cups of dry white wine
28 oz can of Cento peeled tomatoes
1/4 cup of chicken stock
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional grated Parmesan cheese
Start by finely chopping your onion, garlic, carrot and celery. Grab a medium to large sized pot (preferably a dutch oven) and cover the bottom with olive oil. Turn on the heat and add your ground beef. Let the beef cook until brown and then remove from the pan.
Next, chop your sausages very finely and add to the pot to cook separately. Once they have browned, remove from the pot.
Now it’s time to add your onions to the same pot. Add your olive oil and butter to the pot for the onions as it may have gone dry from the meat. Let them cook until they’re translucent and slightly golden. Then add your garlic followed by the carrot and celery.
Stir these ingredients well and let them cook for about 5 minutes. Then add your peeled tomatoes. Stir and crush the tomatoes slightly with your spoon so that they can blend into sauce.
Next, add your white wine, chicken stock, thyme, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Turn down your heat to low and let these ingredients simmer for approximately 20-30 minutes stirring occasionally.
In a separate pot, begin to boil water with salt for your favorite type of pasta. I recommend spaghetti or penne!
Add the ground beef and sausage to your sauce and continue to simmer and stir.
Once your water is boiling, add your pasta for the recommended time for al dente.
After your pasta is al dente, add to your sauce with 1/4 cup of pasta water and continuously stir until the sauce and pasta has thickened.
Serve warm with grated Parmesan cheese on top.
Let me know how your pasta bolognese tastes in the comments!
