making bolognaise sauce from scratch

recovering_spendaholic

You could make your own "Ragu" - It's really easy and tastes miles nicer. You just fry and onion (and a little garlic if you like) in some olive oil until it is soft but not coloured and then add any or all of the following:
a chopped pepper
chopped mushrooms
a chopped carrot
2 or 3 sticks of chopped celery
some mixed dried herbs or dried italian seasoning
salt and pepper
Marigold vegetable powder or a veg stock cube
about 2 or 3 tbs of tomato ketchup (some use puree but if its for kids you get a sweeter sauce with ketchup)
large tin of tomatoes
slosh of wine
tsp of lea and perrins

cook it all together for about an hour on a low heat and then blitz it with a stick blender until it is the consistency you like. Then to make the bolognaise just brown the mince in a frying pan and add a crumbled beef cube, pour over the sauce and simmer for about 20 minutes.

embb

I use:

2 large onions (4 small if no big ones)
4 cloves of garlic (cut as small as poss)
4 tins chopped tomato's
1 tsp Oregano
1/2 tsp Basil (adjust both these to taste)
sliced mushrooms
Tomato puree
salt & pepper

Chop the onions and garlic and put them in a frying pan, add the mince to brown it off, then add the mushrooms, I transfer it to a big pan then add the tinned toms, tom puree (two big squirts) salt and pepper, oregano and basil, leave it to simmer for at least an hour, and it's delicious

Pink.

Hi pot'o'gold,

This is how I make mine....

Dry fry the mince, some mushrooms, a chopped onion and some garlic.

Next add red or green peppers, mixed herbs, black pepper and a stock cube.

Add a tin of chopped tomatoes and a good glug of white wine.

Let it simmer slowly for at least an hour.


We have an older thread with lots of recipes on it that will give you more ideas so I'll merge your thread with that one to keep all the suggestions together.

Pink

Little_Miss_Winner

Thanks Pink, didn't see the other thread, my mouth is watering now...

goonlord

Don't know if you saw the Heston Blumenthal (sp?) programme on the perfect bolognese sauce but I learnt that the basis of it should be diced carrot, onion and celery (and obviously tomatoes etc.) which I didn't know!

He cooked his for 6 hours but I reckon that is a little excessive. (!)

Pink.

goonlord wrote:

Don't know if you saw the Heston Blumenthal (sp?) programme on the perfect bolognese sauce but I learnt that the basis of it should be diced carrot, onion and celery (and obviously tomatoes etc.) which I didn't know!

He cooked his for 6 hours but I reckon that is a little excessive. (!)

Link to the Heston Blumenthal method and the Old Style discussion on it here.

Pink

spiddy100

You definitely need to simmer it for an hour at least, this is where most people go wrong with homemade bolognese and it ends up all watery. Take the lid off towards the end of the simmer to let it thicken up

I always put bacon in mine too, and a good lot of red wine. I find passata is better than tinned tomatoes for making it really thick and tomato-ey, cheapest place for passata is Lidl

HariboJunkie

You have lots of replies now but here's my recipe;

Fry onion, garlic, streaky bacon, diced carrots, celery and mince. Add 2 cans tomatoes, 2 tsp puree, dried oregano, basil and rosemary and a generous glug of red wine. Add a little water an a beef stock cube and simmer. I always make mine the day befor as the flavour really intenxifies the longer you leave it.

*zippy*

My favourite is margurite patterns recipe

1 tablespoon oil
one med onion
one med grated carrot (optional)
225-350g Mince
4 tablespoons tomato puree ( I buy one of those small tins)
a bay leaf
300ml beef stock
garlic and mushrooms optional

Fry the veg in a pan in the oil, add the beef, fry until particles have separated,. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 45 mins, continue simmering, but take off lid and stir allow excess liquid to evaporate.

Fivenations

Bolognese Sauce

It needs to simmer for at least three hours but is otherwise easy to put together.

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons chopped onion
3 tablespoons olive oil and 1 of butter
2 tablespoons celery, finely chopped
2 tablespoons carrot, finely chopped
450g (1lb) lean minced steak – use the best you can get
salt
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
600g or 1 ½ tins tomatoes, chopped

Method
Heat the oil and butter in a heavy pan and sauté the onion, carrot and celery until they start to change colour. Add the beef, separating it with a fork, and cook it quickly until it is no longer red – DO NOT BROWN THE MEAT. (Some cooks now add a few tablespoons of milk and a glass of white wine and cook it until the liquid evaporates.)

Add the tomatoes, salt and nutmeg and bring to the boil. Then turn down the heat, cover and simmer as gently as possible for at least 3 hours, stirring now and again. Check now and again to make sure it is not drying out. If it is, add a little water.

You will end up with a sweet, mellow rich sauce well worth the wait. And note the lack of ingredients. No garlic, bay leaves or veg other than onion, carrot or celery. Nothing wrong with adding them but if you do it is no longer a Bolognese sauce but a becomes a Ragu - meat sauce. Equally tasty but a different sauce.