Authentic Bolognese (Dutch Oven)
This Authentic Bolognese is a complex and intensely flavored sauce. The soft and braised meat with the combination of sofrito, garlic, and tomatoes makes for an insane combination of flavors, perfect over pasta.
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 766kcal
Cost: $25
Equipment
- 1 dutch oven
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef, 85%
- 1 lb ground pork
- 2 carrots, chopped
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- ½ onion, chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 28 oz can whole plum tomatoes
- ½ cup sage, chopped
- ½ cup basil chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- 2-3 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup red wine
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 4 anchovy filets, chopped
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ lb pancetta, chopped
- 1.5 lbs pappardelle
- 1 parmesan rind optional
Instructions
- In a dutch oven, bring olive oil to medium-high heat. Add pancetta and saute for 6-8 minutes until the fat is translucent and the meat starts to turn golden brown. Stir in chopped onions, celery, and carrots and saute for another 8 minutes until vegetables soften, but not brown. Add ½ teaspoon of salt while cooking. Add minced garlic and stir for another minute. Create a well for a tomato paste and add directly onto the pan. Let tomato paste sit for 2 minutes then stir throughout the mixture. Remove from the heat and place the mix in a bowl.
- In the same pot, add butter and wait until the foaming subsides. Add in pork, ground beef, 1 teaspoon salt, and chopped sage. Do not sear the meat. Stir often to avoid searing and cook for about 8-10 minutes until meat is no longer pink. Stir in chopped anchovy and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Pour milk into the meat mixture and cook for about 6-10 minutes until most of the milk becomes absorbed. Add the vegetables back in and then add red wine, and allow it to simmer for about 10-15 minutes until mostly absorbed.
- Hand crush the whole tomatoes and pour them into the meat. Add 2 bay leaves, half of the basil, parmesan rind and ½ teaspoon salt. Stir and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot leaving an opening and low simmer for 4-5 hours. Bolognese should not be saucy, when it is finished when it is a very thick meat sauce. Stir occasionally throughout simmering.
- Serve over pappardelle with extra parmesan and basil.
Notes
- Typically, using a red wine high in tannins will be best for bolognese. Tannins will help break down the meat flavor and develop the sauce into a richer and more intense flavor.
- Think about when you order a steak. A red wine, like cabernet or syrah, would go great with that because the tannins help cut through the fat in the steak. I use a cabernet for bolognese.
- Be patient after you pour the milk in. Let it slowly absorb into the meat and simmer away. The milk will soften the meat so that the meat sauce never feels chewy.
- An authentic bolognese needs to simmer over hours not minutes. Let this meat sauce develop over 4-5 hours in a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pan for the best results.
- Do not sear the meat. That's why we place it in butter not oil. Break apart the meat and move it often. We're not looking for crispy beef or pork, you want the meat to be soft.
- Bolognese can be prepared a day ahead and stored in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Calories: 766kcal | Carbohydrates: 70g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 102mg | Sodium: 1491mg | Potassium: 777mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 2803IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 97mg | Iron: 3mg
