We're making a big pot of Bolognese sauce and serving this with some tagliatelle pasta for an incredible plate of Ragu alla Bolognese. Although the Bolognese can be served with other broad pastas like pappardelle and even short sturdy and rigged pastas like Rigatoni or Penne Rigate. This recipe makes a large batch of Ragù (about, 2500g or a bit more) and requires patience and time to develop the rich brothy flavors in a good bolognese sauce. With plenty of leftovers to make other bolognese-based dishes.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 lb Pasta - 400g to 500g
Pasta Water
- 16 C Water
- 2 Tbl Sea Salt
Bolognese
- 1/4 C EVOO - or 2 Tbl EVOO & 2 Tbl Butter each
- 1 C Onions, Carrots, and Celery - each, range from 112 - 150g of each vegetable
- 1/2 C Tomato Paste
- 1 C Wine - preferrably red, white works too though
- 1 lb Ground Beef & Ground Pork - each
- 2 tsp Sea Salt
- 1 tsp Black Pepper - or more for some heat
- 2 x 680 ml Passata
- 8 C Water
- 1/2 C Whole Milk or Cream
Instructions
- Bolognese Sauce: Weigh out your onion, carrots and celery and run through a food processor with both the shredder and blade to almost puree it. In a large saucepot over medium heat, add olive oil and the vegetables. Cook for 10 minutes stirring once in a while, do not let brown. Add in the tomato paste to cook for a few minutes mixing well. Then add wine and reduce to half. Add in the meats with salt & pepper and break apart while mixing and cooking. Cook until only the fat remains.Empty the passata into the saucepot with water. Use some of the water to rinse out the passata jar and empty into the saucepot. Mix well and bring it to a boil. Once it starts to simmer, lower the heat to low. Keep it at a gentle simmer partially uncovered or with a splatter screen for 4 hours or longer until thick. Stir occasionally and more frequently as the sauce thickens. Once the sauce is thick, add in your milk or cream and cook a few minutes. Make any final adjustments with the salt & pepper if needed and remove from heat.Weigh out 800 g of bolognese sauce and place into a large pan of skillet large enough to hold all of the pasta and sauce.
- Pasta: On the back burner, bring the salted pasta water to a boil. Add the pasta and mix and continue to boil until the pasta is just al dente.
- Pan Pasta: Just as the pasta is done, heat over medium heat, the weighed out bolognese sauce and pick up the pasta with tongs and transfer directly to the bolognese sauce in the pan. Agressively mix the pasta around until the sauce thickens and clings to the pasta, about 3-5 minutes. Plate and serve. Optionally with feshly grated parmigiano on top.
Notes
Servings: This recipe prepares 4 servings using 1 lb of pasta. There is plenty of Bolognese sauce (just over 2500g) to accommodate up to 12 servings, just by using more pasta. Or portioning out the sauce to make this recipe again 2 more times and with different types of pasta.