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Spaghetti Bolognese - my way
Unaffectionately known as 'spag bol' by too many people, this simple dish has become one of those hideous store-cupboard classics - with diced carrot, pepper, dried herbs and who-knows-what-else added. In my book, simplicity is the key to this dish - simplicity and long, slow cooking.
I usually make big batches of the sauce as it freezes well (so long as it doesn't hang around in the deep-freeze for too long). Then it makes a great week-night meal, taking as long as it does to boil the pasta.
Here are my ingredients to serve six (or three lots of two, as I do):
1tbsp good olive oil
3 shallots, finely sliced
500g lean minced beef
500g minced pork
1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 bottle dry white wine
500g passatta or creamed tomatoes
1tbsp tomato puree
salt & black pepper
spaghetti, good extra virgin olive oil and grated parmesan cheese to serve.
The ingredients will raise a few eyebrows, I know. Minced pork? The addition of pork makes the sauce lighter and more moist than 100% beef. White wine? Yes - red wine is too dark and strong for this.
The cooking is simple:
Soften the shallots over a low heat in the olive oil. Turn-up the heat and brown the mince. When all the meat is coloured, add the garlic and the white wine. Let the mix simmer a little to burn-off the alcohol then add the tomatoes and tomato puree and seasoning. Allow to simmer very gently for an hour or more with a lid on. Remember, we're looking for a sauce here, so the mixture has to stay wet. You can add a little chicken or vegetable stock if it's getting too dry.
Boil the spaghetti in plenty of salted, boiling water according to the packet instructions. Drain, return to the dry pan with as much olive oil as needed to make sure all the pasta is lubricated and coated.
To serve, place the spaghetti on plates (if you're a parmesan nut like me, sprinkle a little onto the pasta directly at this stage), the sauce on top, then pull some of the pasta through the sauce to coat it all, then sprinkle with more parmesan...
If you're re-heating the sauce, you'll note that it has solidified somewhat. To prevent it burning, put a little olive oil in the pan before heating the sauce through.
If you want to go down the whole basil-route (I don't usually with this one), I would suggest a few torn leaves scattered over the top of the finished dish.
The flavour of this recipe is quite different to most people's 'spag bol'. It's deeply savoury (in the same way as miso soup is, if you know what I mean) and should bring-out the taste of the pasta. Remember, it's spaghetti bolognese, not bolognese spaghetti!
Food
I already linked this page to my recipes. The pork idea is intriguing. I
will let you know how it comes out.
I usually use minced pork in this classic dish, as you say, it makes for a
lighter sauce. I like the idea of the white wine.
Thanks, toffeeapple. I think we in the UK tend to eat more sauce than
pasta - I think there's a relectance to go for the 'purity' of pasta (just
as there is with rice). I think where pasta or rice are a staple, they are
appreciated for themselves, whereas we tend to see them as a vehicle for
something else.
You are right, we also tend to see meat as the principal ingredient of any
dish rather than as the accompaniment to vegetables.
i make this recipe its delicious get some more recipe for pasta
Interesting recipe. I like your decision to opt for white wine instead of
red. Sadly, pork is not eaten in my house, but I will need to try it with
beef. any suggestions on how to achieve the moist consistency without using
pork?
Hi Blender Benefits - if you don't want to go down the pork line, maybe try
some minced or finely chopped chicken liver? They are often used in ragu
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