making bolognaise sauce from scratch

Olliebeak

I'm not a fan of 'tomato-based' sauces - so find it very difficult to eat a 'real spag bol' - home-made or otherwise.

However I can manage 'my own version'. For two of us: brown half a pound of mince beef and drain off all the fat (using kitchen roll if necessary), fry a chopped onion till clear with a clove (or 2) of crushed garlic, fry a chopped red pepper and some mushrooms till softened, add all together and add a tin of chopped tomatoes (value range), a beef stock cube and some dried mixed herbs bring to the boil and simmer for around 20 mins. There's usually some left over after serving the two of us and then that either goes into the freezer for another meal or into the fridge for OH to have with a jacket potato the following day.

It's more like a savoury minced beef with tomatoes but I find it very useful and can be turned into a shepherd's pie or a chili mix very easily.

FrenchMaid_2

I make mine in bulk and freeze it. I usually make 7 portions (each portion: 2 Adults and 1 kid) that I then use for a variety of dishes.

2 onions (roughly 5p when bought at Lidl)
3 gloves of garlic (none - got given loads from a neighbour)
1 tablespoon of tomato puree
1 teaspoon of soy sauce
1 splash of veggie Worcestersauce
Pinch of Sugar
1 or 2 carrots (5p)
4 cans of chopped tomatoes (each 21p now - ouch)
1 can of water
some herbs
a bit of cornflour to thicken it because of water if needed

-> round about £1 per cooking session or £o.14 per meal.

spaghetti_monster

I make my tom sauce with the value tins, a bit of garlic, chilli, sometimes oregano, bay leaves, thyme (whichever is to hand) bit of salt/pepper, drop of red wine vinegar, olive oil.

I've found that the trick to make this really tasty is just to cook it for a while - I leave it simmering for about an hour while I get on with other things. When it reduces so slowly I think the flavours really intensify.

Whenever I've eaten pre-prepared sauce from a jar, it's just not the same, a bit synthetic.

kippers

I always make my own as it doesn't take much more time than opening a jar. If you buy a jar you hardly have any mushrooms or veg in it either. Also when i make my own i usually have enough to freeze some (with the pasta) for my hubby to take to work for lunch.

Stephen_Leak

A proper Italian ragu is simplicity itself: olive oil, onion, garlic, tomatoes, herbs, salt & pepper.

PS. If you are doing it for speed, then use tinned tomatoes and dried herbs (added at the beginning). If you are doing it to impress, then use fresh tomatoes and fresh herbs (added at the end).

My recipe for Bolognese sauce is also nice and simple. It is the above ragu plus mince and a stock cube.

BOLOGNESE SAUCE (and vegetarian version)

Enough for spaghetti for 2

INGREDIENTS

2 cloves of garlic
2 onions
1 tablespoon of olive oil
500g of minced beef
400g tin of plum tomatoes*
1 beef stock cube
2 teaspoons of basil, oregano or mixed herbs
Ground pepper to taste

METHOD

Peel the garlic and chop it into tiny pieces. Peel the onions and chop them into tiny pieces.

Put the oil into the frying pan on a medium heat. Add the garlic and onion. Fry the garlic and onion for about 2 minutes. Stir frequently to stop it sticking.

Put the meat into the pan and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring all the time. By this time, it should have broken up and be an even colour, with no pink bits.

Open the tin of tomatoes. Pour the juice into the pan. Chop the tomatoes while they are still in the can (it’s easier than chasing them around the pan).

Pour the chopped tomatoes into the pan. Crumble the stock cube into the pan. Add the herbs. Season with the pepper. Mix thoroughly. Continue to cook, stirring as the mixture boils, until the sauce has reduced.

ADDITIONS & ALTERNATIVES

Use minced lamb, pork or turkey instead of minced beef.

The vegetarian version is made by substituting the meat for a 150g packet of soya mince or Protoveg Burgamix, made up according to the instructions on the packet. You can even use 500g of broken up vegetarian hamburgers. Substitute the stock cube for a vegetable one.

TIPS

Always "take the pasta to the sauce". Put the cooked pasta in the pan with the sauce and stir together until thoroughly coated.

* Plum tomatoes can be used either whole or chopped. It is difficult to stick chopped tomatoes back together again if you need to use them whole.

kittykat500

I make mine as follows:

2 tins value chopped toms
plenty of dried herbs - 2 tsps
2 cloves garlic
1 large onion finely minced and softened
2 tbs puree
1 tsp approx sugar
glug of olive oil

worcestershire sauce
All reduced down in a slow cooker for approx 4-6 hrs. Cooled down and put in jars and used within 2 weeks. The addition of a glug of leftover red wine also helps - don't usually have much left over tho!!!

System

i want to make spag bol from scratch but other than tomatoes /meat/mushrooms and onions im not sure what else to use

Skint_Catt

garlic?

• 350g Quorn mince (or meat!)
• 30ml olive oil
• 1 large onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 5ml dried mixed herbs
• 20ml red pesto
• 60ml tomato puree
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 150ml red wine
• Salt and ground black pepper
• Spaghetti to serve

http://www.quorn.co.uk/CMSPage.aspx?ssbid=425&rid=26

Catt xx

Oliver27

I love this dish, but at the moment I cheat abit using
a mix of fresh ingredients and pre-made sauces which
bumps the price up and I guess wont be as nice as a
totally fresh dish

normally use

mince
onion
garlic
chopped tomato's
glass of red wine
tomato puree
Jar of bolognese sauce

I would like to do a full bolognese from totally fresh ingredients,
so would love to hear any suggestions.

sallya_3

Oliver27 wrote: »

I love this dish, but at the moment I cheat abit using
a mix of fresh ingredients and pre-made sauces which
bumps the price up and I guess wont be as nice as a
totally fresh dish

normally use

mince
onion
garlic
chopped tomato's
glass of red wine
tomato puree
Jar of bolognese sauce

I would like to do a full bolognese from totally fresh ingredients,
so would love to hear any suggestions.

I basically use what you do, but without the jar of sauce!

I fry onions, carrots and garlic in some olive oil with a bit of chopped rosemary until soft, then add the mince and fry that til browned. Add a bit of flour and cook for another minute or two. Then pour in a glass of red wine and cook down for a couple of minutes. Stir in some tomato puree, then add a tin of chopped tomatos and a bit of stock. Put it in a moderate oven for about 1.5 hours.

If I have any bacon in, then I chop that up and fry it for a while before adding the onions etc.