Easy Bolognese Sauce Recipe - Self Proclaimed Foodie (2024)

FAQs

How to make Bolognese sauce Gordon Ramsay? ›

The best tip for intensifying the flavour of your sauce is just to cook it slowly on a low heat for a long time. This reduces the sauce and intensifies the flavours – four hours is not uncommon for my bolognese.

According to our Food Director Amira, not only does milk add a rich flavour to the bolognese, but it also “helps cut through the acidity of the tomatoes and red wine”. She adds: “It also makes the mince meat nice and tender, creating that melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness.”

Bolognese sauce is a classic Italian sauce for pasta made with ground meat such as beef or pork. It's slow cooked with a soffritto of onions, carrots, and celery, tomatoes, and milk to give it a creamy texture. Pronounced "bow-luh-nez," the sauce comes from the Bologna region of Italy, hence the name.

Usually no. But putting (a very small bit) of sugar or even a tiny pinch of baking soda in the tomato sauce can help if it is too acidic, but this is only done if the person cooking it is really in a rush.

The reason for sprinkling a pinch of sugar into a simmering saucepan of tomatoes is simple: sugar cuts the acidity of the tomatoes and creates an overall more balanced sauce. The exact acid levels in tomatoes can vary quite a bit depending on whether they're fresh or canned, the tomato variety, and the time of year.

Put the oil, butter and chopped onion in the pot and turn the heat on to medium. Cook and stir the onion until it has become translucent, then add the chopped celery and carrot. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring vegetables to coat them well. Add ground beef, a large pinch of salt and a few grindings of pepper.

Drain grease. Add all remaining sauce ingredients EXCEPT fresh basil and heavy cream and bring to a simmer (add dried basil at this time if using). Simmer uncovered over low heat for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally until reduced and thickened to desired consistency.

Your spaghetti sauce may taste bland due to insufficient seasoning. Try adding more salt, herbs (like basil, oregano, or thyme), and other flavor enhancers like garlic, onion, or red pepper flakes. Also, a dash of sugar can balance flavors and bring out the natural sweetness of tomatoes.

What thickens a bolognese? ›

As the sauce simmers, the water in it will evaporate and the sauce will get thicker. You can also add a little bit of cornstarch to the sauce to thicken it without changing the flavor. If you don't mind altering the sauce's flavor, try adding grated cheese, tomato paste, or even mashed potatoes to thicken it.

Like most recipes the longer you leave it to slowly cook the better the flavour will be but this can also be knocked up with in an hour.

Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring often, until mixture cooks down into a thick sauce, at least 3 hours but preferably 4 to 6 hours. Skim fat from the top of sauce if desired. Add more water if sauce is too thick. Taste and adjust seasonings before serving.

Even though both are considered meat sauces and are thusly chunky, ragù is more like a thick tomato sauce with recognizable bits of ground beef within it. Bolognese, though, is creamier and thicker because it is made with milk. It is not considered to be a tomato sauce.

But at the end of the day taste is subjective and if you would like wine to be the dominant flavour of the dish, you can always add it after. I personally can also recommend using red wine vinegar instead of red wine, if you like it tangier.

It all comes down to the meat and tomatoes. While both are pasta sauces, Bolognese places more emphasis on the meat.

But to me, the biggest difference when compared to the tomato-heavy meat sauce I grew up with, is that Ragù Bolognese uses milk, white wine and notably less tomatoes. The milk tenderizes the meat and mellows out any tart, acidic notes. The flavor is soft, light and slightly sweet! That's the selling point.

Even though both are considered meat sauces and are thusly chunky, ragù is more like a thick tomato sauce with recognizable bits of ground beef within it. Bolognese, though, is creamier and thicker because it is made with milk. It is not considered to be a tomato sauce.

Add Ground beef and ground Pork, and cook until meat loses red, raw color. Raise heat and add wine and consomme. Cook sauce until wine and consomme are mostly evaporated. Turn heat down to simmer and add oregano, salt, pepper, sage, red pepper flakes, and nutmeg.