Pasta Ragù alla Bolognese (Italian Meat Sauce - Classic)

Bolognese sauce has sort of become the generic name for a meat and tomato sauce in North America. Tasting it in Italy reveals a surprisingly different experience. The taste is meaty but surprisingly delicate, aromatic, creamy and subtle. Bolognese is a meat sauce that has a stick-to-your-ribs heartiness to it. It combines tomatoes, pancetta, onions, garlic, ground beef or pork, celery, and carrots for a taste that is out of this world for anyone who loves Italian food.

Bolognese sauce (known in Italian as ragù alla bolognese or simply ragù) is a meat-based sauce originating from Italy, In Italian cuisine, it is customarily used to dress tagliatelle al ragù and to prepare lasagne alla bolognese. In the absence of tagliatelle, it can also be used with other broad, flat pasta shapes, such as pappardelle or fettuccine. Genuine ragù alla bolognese is a slowly cooked sauce, and its preparation involves several techniques, including sweating, sautéing and braising. Ingredients include a characteristic soffritto of onion, celery and carrot, different types of minced or finely chopped beef, often alongside small amounts of fatty pork. White wine, milk, and a small amount of tomato concentrate or tomatoes are added, and the dish is then gently simmered at length to produce a thick sauce.

The earliest documented recipe of an Italian ragù served with pasta comes from late 18th century Imola, near Bologna. A recipe for a meat sauce for pasta that is specifically described as being "bolognese" appeared in Pellegrino Artusi's cookbook of 1891. The ragù alla bolognese that is now traditionally associated with tagliatelle and lasagne is somewhat different from Artusi's recipe. Many traditional variations currently exist. In 1982 the Italian Academy of Cuisine registered a recipe for authentic ragù alla bolognese with the Bologna Chamber of Commerce (incorporating some fresh pancetta and a little milk). In Italy, ragù alla bolognese is often referred to simply as ragù.

Outside Italy, the phrase "Bolognese sauce" often refers to a tomato-based sauce to which minced beef (or pork) has been added; such sauces typically bear less resemblance to ragù alla bolognese being more similar in fact to the ragù alla napoletana from the tomato-rich south of the country. Whereas in Italy ragù is not used with spaghetti, so-called "spaghetti bolognese" has become a popular dish in many other parts of the world.

Ragù Bolognese:
2 Tbsp. olive oil (30 mL)
¼ cup butter (60 mL)
1 large yellow onion, finely and evenly diced
4 small (or 2 very large), carrots finely diced
4 stalks celery heart (or 2 large celery stalks), finely diced
4 cloves garlic, very finely diced
4.5 oz pancetta, diced into ¼" cubes (125 mL)
sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
2.2 lb lean ground meat; blend of veal, pork and beef (1 kg)
1 cup dry white wine (250 mL)
2 cups milk (500 mL)
1 (28 oz) can whole San Marzano tomatoes, both the liquid and the tomatoes (828 mL)
1 cup beef stock (250 mL)

Pasta:
1½ lb pasta (tagliatelle, pappardelle, spaghetti, rigatoni, farfalle or even gnocchi)
4 Tbsp. sea salt

To Serve:
few knobs of butter
Parmigiano-reggiano cheese, freshly grated
fresh basil leaves

Heat the butter and the oil together in a large saucepan over medium heat. When the butter is melted and the saucepan is hot, add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic and a good pinch of salt (about ½ tsp. (2.5 mL) and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring often. Add the diced pancetta and cook for a further 10 minutes, until vegetables are softened and pancetta is golden.

Finely dice the onion, carrot and celery to make a basic soffritto - and to end up with a better sauce texture too.

Increase the heat to high and add the meat a third at a time, stirring and breaking lumps with a spoon between each addition. Adding the meat gradually allows its liquid to evaporate - which is key if you want to brown your meat and not boil it. After the last addition, when no pink can be spotted in the meat and no lumps remain, set a timer to 15 minutes. You want your meat to caramelize and even become crispy in spots. More liquids will evaporate and flavors will concentrate. You want golden bits of meat to stick to the bottom of your pan, which will be deglazed later. Watch over your pan as you don’t want the meat to burn. When you see some serious caramelization action happening, lower heat to medium to reach the end of the 15 minute sautéing time (on my stove, that’s after 8-9 minutes).

Over medium heat, pour the white wine into the sauce pan. With a wooden spoon, scrape all the brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Push the meat all around to make sure you scrape it all off. By the time you’re finished, the wine will be evaporated (2-3 minutes). Be careful not to let the meat stick again (lower the heat if necessary).

Add milk, diced tomatoes and their liquid, beef stock, 1 tsp. (5 mL) salt and a good grinding of black pepper. Bring to a boil and then lower to the lowest heat and let simmer very slowly, half-covered, for 4 hours. Stir once in a while. If your sauce starts sticking before the end of your cooking time, lower the heat (if possible) and/or add a bit of stock or water. In the end, the sauce should be thick, more oil- than water-based and thick like oatmeal. Adjust the seasoning one last time - don’t be afraid of adding more salt (tasting each time you add some), it is this recipe’s key seasoning.

Simmer the bolognese sauce very slowly, half-covered, for 4 hours on the lowest heat possible.

To Serve:
Reheat the sauce. Mix in a knob or two of butter and about two generous Tbsp. (30 mL) of freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano per serving - these last additions will produce an incredibly creamy flavour. Cook the pasta, drain it thoroughly and return to the pot. Spoon some sauce, just enough to coat the pasta.

Serve in bowls with a few leaves of basil sprinkled on top and more freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano, to taste.

Cook's Note: Rigatoni Bolognese is an all-time favourite! Maybe it's the way the meat sauce gets trapped inside the rigatoni that makes it so good. Just mix this sauce with about 1½ lbs cooked rigatoni for a meal that'll satisfy the heartiest of appetites.