The Ultimate Bolognese Sauce Recipe
This is the king of Bolognese recipes. Slow-cooked pork and beef melt together with a rich soffritto, peppery pancetta, tomato paste, passata, and peeled tomatoes to create a velvety sauce that’s full of bold, meaty flavour and satisfying depth. It gently bubbles away for hours, developing that silky richness with every stir. It’s perfect with al dente pappardelle or tagliatelle and creates an incredible base for lasagna too. A splash of milk toward the end adds a creamy finish that balances it together beautifully. Meaty, hearty, and soul-warming, it’s the kind of comfort food you’ll want to eat all week. One bite, and you’ll see why this needs to be on your go-to recipe list.
Equipment
- Food processor
- Large-sized pot
- wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 500 g / 17.6oz pork
- 500 g / 17.6oz beef
- 100 g / 3.5oz pancetta
- 1 brown onion chopped
- 2 celery sticks chopped
- 3 carrots chopped
- 1 bottle Italian passata
- 100 g / 3.5oz tomato paste
- 400 g / 14.1oz peeled tomatoes
- 1 glass of wine
- 1 mug of full cream milk optional
- Extra virgin olive oil EVOO
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Add pancetta to a food processor and blend until finely chopped.
- In a large pot over low medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of EVOO and the blended pancetta. Let it sweat gently, then add the chopped onion, celery, and carrots. Cook the soffritto with the lid on for about 10 minutes. Every 2 minutes, check and stir to prevent burning using a wooden spoon.
- After about 7 minutes, or when all ingredients are tender and glossy, add a splash of red wine, close the lid again, and let it finish cooking. Drizzle in a little more EVOO, then add the ground beef and pork, using a wooden spoon to break up the meat really well, and mix it into the soffritto until well incorporated.
- Once the meat turns grey, pour in the remaining wine and mix well. Let it simmer for 10 minutes than season with a generous amount of salt and pepper. Next, stir in the tomato paste and mix until it’s spread throughout the meat, then add the passata and peeled tomatoes.
- Cover with a lid and cook on low heat for 3 hours. Every 30 minutes, check the sauce, give it a stir, and make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom.
- After 3 hours, remove the lid, stir the sauce well and continue cooking uncovered for 1 more hour. Add more salt and pepper to adjust the seasoning (after you taste it), and scrape the bottom of the pot as you stir. Keep the heat low.
- If you want a silkier sauce, add a splash of full cream milk and let it cook for another 5 minutes. This step is optional, but highly recommended.
