One of my favorite dinners is spaghetti and I also love a thick, meaty Bolognese Sauce. Serve with a simple green salad, warm crusty bread and a good bottle of wine and you have the makings for a simple and elegant dinner for two .
Bolognese sauce is a meat-based red sauce from Bologna that uses three techniques, sautéing, sweating and braising, to create an intensely flavored meat sauce of ground beef and a fatty pork meat, such as pancetta. The classic way to serve this is over broad noodles like pappardelle or spinach tagliatelle or as a sauce for lasagna. We’re straying a little and going with spaghetti. Make the sauce in advance; it freezes well.
Method
Heat the olive oil over high heat in an ovenproof slow cooker liner or a heavy-bottomed 7-quart Dutch oven, add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. Remove to a bowl.
Add the beef to the hot pan, use the tip of a wooden spoon to break it up into small pieces. Brown over high heat, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the pancetta, onion, carrot, celery and garlic, reduce the heat to low, cover and sweat for five minutes.
Push the meat and vegetables to one side and brown the tomato paste for three minutes, stirring frequently.
Stir in the dry herbs and pepper.
Add the wine, bring to a boil and reduce by one-half.
Stir in the tomatoes, bring to a boil, lower the heat to barely a simmer, cover and continue cooking:
- Stovetop: 2 hours
- Slow Cooker: 6 hours
Makes 1 quart, enough for one pound of pasta or a lasagna.
Bolognese Sauce
Bolognese sauce is a meat-based red sauce from Bologna that uses three techniques, sautéing, sweating and braising, to create an intensely flavored meat sauce.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 7 hours
- Total Time: 7 hours 20 mins
- Yield: 1 quart 1x
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Slow Cooking
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 pound pancetta, diced
- 1 pound ground beef (15% fat)
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1/2 cup diced carrot
- 1/2 cup diced celery
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 can (six ounces) tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Italian herb seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 2 cups dry red wine
- 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil over high heat in an ovenproof slow cooker liner or a heavy-bottomed 7-quart Dutch oven, add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. Remove to a bowl.
- Add the beef to the hot pan, use the tip of a wooden spoon to break it up into small pieces. Brown over high heat, stirring occasionally.
- Stir in the pancetta, onion, carrot, celery and garlic, reduce the heat to low, cover and sweat for five minutes.
- Push the meat and vegetables to one side and brown the tomato paste for 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Stir in the dry herbs and pepper.
- Add the wine, bring to a boil and reduce by one-half.
- Stir in the tomatoes, bring to a boil, lower the heat to barely a simmer, cover and continue cooking:
- Stovetop: 2 hours
- Slow Cooker: 6 hours
Notes
Makes 1 quart, enough for one pound of pasta or a lasagna.
