Bolognese Ragu with Spaghetti. Italian chef, Gennaro Contaldo shows you how to cook the traditional version of the popular dish, spaghetti Bolognese in this recipe video. Bolognese sauce is a meat-based sauce in Italian cuisine, typical of the city of Bologna. It is customarily used to dress tagliatelle al ragù and to prepare lasagne alla bolognese.

Spaghetti alla Chitarra or Spaghetti with Meatballs is a similar dish with versions made in Puglia and also being popular near the coast in Abruzzo that uses small meatballs the size of an olive cooked in a tomato sauce. Bolognese is such a classic everyday dish loved by young and old and Mary's slow-cooked sauce won't disappoint. Our best ever spaghetti bolognese is super easy and a true Italian classic with a meaty, chilli sauce. You can have Bolognese Ragu with Spaghetti using 13 ingredients and 6 steps. Here is how you cook it.

Ingredients of Bolognese Ragu with Spaghetti

You need 3 or 4 of medium onions.
You need 3 of medium carrots.
You need 3 or 4 sticks of celery.
You need of some streaky smoked bacon or pancetta lardons.
Prepare 1 kg of minced beef, or half beef half pork/veal.
It's 1 of large glass dry vermouth.
You need 1 of couple sprigs fresh rosemary.
It's 1-2 tsp of dried sage.
It's 2 of big cloves garlic.
It's 2 tins of plum tomatoes.
Prepare half litre of beef stock (or a little more).
You need of Salt and black and white pepper.
It's of To finish: grated lemon zest, 1 clove garlic, crushed, a few sprigs of rosemary, very finely chopped, spaghetti and grated Parmesan to serve.

This recipe comes courtesy of BBC Good Food user Andrew Balmer. Spaghetti Bolognese, as you most likely know it, is about as Italian as Snooki. Sadly, the beloved plate of tomato-based meat sauce splattered In fact, spaghetti Bolognese doesn't even exist in Italy—in part, because true Bolognese ragù is customarily served with fresh tagliatelle, a flat porous noodle. More spaghetti squash recipes I absolutely love are Baked Spaghetti Squash and Cheese, Spaghetti Squash Enchilada Bowls and Spaghetti Squash You cut out a great deal of carbs and calories by swapping out the pasta for spaghetti squash which also happens to be gluten-free and grain-free.

Bolognese Ragu with Spaghetti instructions

First make the soffritto, finely chop the onion, carrot and celery and sweat it down gently in a large pan with plenty of olive oil, put the lid on, and stir every so often, for about 15 to 20 minutes. You want everything to be soft, sweet and golden, but not browned..
While the vegetables are cooking fry the bacon until the fat is rendered, then remove from the frying pan and add the minced beef. Fry this until browned and any meat juices released have bubbled away..
When the vegetables are cooked, add the garlic, fresh rosemary and stir until the aromas are released, then pour the vermouth in to the pan. This has to be plain dry vermouth, you can use white wine instead, as Antonio suggests, but vermouth keeps longer, is cheaper and does the same job..
Tip the meat into the pan too and deglaze the frying pan with a little more vermouth. Add that to the pan together with the dried sage, tinned tomatoes and the stock. Cut the tomatoes up roughly. Add lots of black pepper, and some white pepper too if you have some. Add a little more stock if you need to, you should have quite a loose soupy mixture so there's lots of liquid to cook away..
Put the lid on and simmer on a low heat, stirring every now and then, for about 1 and a half to 2 hours. Taste, and add more salt and pepper if you need to. Keep cooking until most of the liquid has been absorbed..
When you're ready to eat, cook the spaghetti, drain and toss in melted butter, salt, pepper and a little Parmesan cheese. Then add to the ragu some grated lemon zest, the crushed garlic and finely chopped rosemary. This is a tip from Jamie Oliver, it adds a lovely zingy finish to the beef. Serve the ragu on top of a pile of spaghetti, with some grated Parmesan..

It doesn't take a lot of ingredients (or a lot of money) to make a classic Bolognese recipe. What it does take, though, is patience for the sauce to achieve the ideal authentic texture. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. For a healthier and leaner alternative to red meat but still made in authentic Italian fashion, try this Chicken Bolognese. Spaghetti Bolognese is a classic Italian meat sauce that is a staple in most families.