Description
The Best Bolognese Sauce is slow cooked with beef, red wine, passata and milk for a rich, deeply flavored Italian meat sauce.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 tablespoons high-smoke-point oil
- 1/2 white onion, finely minced
- 1 1/2 celery stalks, finely minced
- 2 carrots, finely minced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 2 pounds ground beef, preferably 80/20
- Approximately 1/2 bottle dry red wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Pinot Noir
- 1 (24-ounce) bottle passata
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup milk
Instructions
- Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large, deep, oven-safe pot or Dutch oven.
- Add the minced onion, celery and carrots. Season with the salt.
- Cook the vegetables until softened and beginning to caramelize. Rather than simply sweating the vegetables, allow them to fry slightly and develop a little color.
- Add the ground beef. Break the meat apart as it cooks.
- Continue cooking over medium-high heat. As the meat cooks, it will release quite a bit of liquid. Do not drain it. Allow the liquid to cook off naturally. This is one of the most important steps in the entire recipe and can take 20 to 30 minutes.
- Once the liquid has evaporated, continue cooking. The meat will begin to fry in its rendered fat and develop a deep brown color.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Pour in enough red wine to almost cover the meat mixture, approximately half a standard bottle.
- Continue cooking until the wine has almost completely reduced. You will know it is ready when the meat mixture begins to fry and sizzle in the pot again.
- Pour in the passata and season with an additional pinch of salt. Cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Pour in the chicken stock and bring the sauce to a boil.
- Cover the pot and transfer to the oven.
- Cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the pot to ensure nothing is sticking.
- Carefully remove the pot from the oven and return it to the stovetop over medium heat.
- Stir in the milk and allow the Bolognese to gently simmer for a few minutes, until incorporated and heated through.
- Taste for salt and adjust, if needed. Toss with your favorite pasta, or freeze for later use.
- ENJOY!
Notes
- Do not rush the browning process. It can take 20 to 30 minutes for the liquid released from the meat to evaporate and for the meat to begin frying and browning.
- Do not drain the liquid or rendered fat from the meat.
- Finely mince the onion, carrots and celery so they melt into the finished sauce.
- Add enough wine to almost cover the meat mixture, approximately half of a standard 750-milliliter bottle.
- Allow the wine to reduce almost completely before adding the passata.
- Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir are excellent red wine choices. Dry white wine can also be used.
- A combination of ground beef and Italian sausage can be substituted for all ground beef.
- Stir the sauce occasionally while it is in the oven to prevent sticking.
- Taste and adjust the salt after adding the milk.
- Bolognese can be prepared ahead of time and freezes well.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours, 40 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Easy
- Cuisine: American, Italian