AIBU to ask what goes in your bolognese?

[MishMashMummy]

I feel like every bolognese recipe is totally personal to the individual who makes it - so tell me what’s in yours!

Mine is a bastardised veggie version. The base is caramelised onions, celery and garlic. The ‘mince’ is puy lentils and finely chopped mushrooms. Then the sauce has the following:

Tinned tomatoes
Tomato purée
Ketchup
Red wine
Liquid smoke
Salt
Pepper
Dried basil
Dried oregano
Fresh basil

I’m aware this would make genuine Italian nonnas spin in their graves

@FatOaf you know that’s like the entire of Italy, right? All ragu starts with sofrito - carrots, celery, onions. Them’s the rules.

My Italian Mamma's recipe

• mince
• garlic
• onion
• passata
• chicken stock cube
• Bay leaves
• basil and oregano
• parmesan
• touch of sugar

The trick is to not fry the meat for too long, let the meat cook in the sauce for 2 hours

I add mushrooms to my own recipe

This is mine
www.spendwithpennies.com/slow-cooker-spaghetti-bolognese/
It's wonderful.

I roast Fresh tomatoes in olive olive, balsamic vinegar and garlic and then mix whole lot in at the end.

It knocks the socks off all other spaghetti bogs because of this. Other ingredients

More garlic
Onion
Leek
Tinned toms
Veggie mince
Tomato puree
Red wine
Stock

Finely chopped carrots, onion and celery. Beef and pork mince. Tomato puree, white wine and chicken stock. Salt, pepper and bay leaves.

Similar to the Italian way.

Start with soffrito (finely chopped onion, 1 chopped carrot and 2 finely chopped celery stalks) fried gently in 1tbsp olive oil until onions are transparent. Add garlic (minced or paste, to taste) and cook for a further minute. Add 350g of minced beef and 350g of minced pork and brown the meat, stirring thoroughly and breaking into small pieces. Add a tablespoon of plain flour to soak up any juices, then a small glass of red wine (100ml), 400g chopped tomatoes or passata, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper to taste and leave to simmer on a very low heat for around 30 minutes. Check throughout cooking and if too dry, add some boiling water to loosen the mixture to your preference. Finish with finely chopped fresh basil stirred through just before serving, and garnish with more basil and grated Parmesan or other cheese to your taste.

Beef mince
Beef stock
Diced carrots
Diced courgette
Diced onion
Diced pepper
Tin tomatoes
Carton passata
Tin anchovies
2 cloves garlic
Chopped bacon
Half a chorizo ring.

Brown the meats. Add the onions, once caramelised add the tomatoes, passata and anchovies. Add all other ingredients.

Turn heat down and cook for 45 minutes.

@Anoisagusaris

The phrase ‘5% mince’ is almost making me heave. It makes me think of crappy supermarket mince trying to brand itself as healthy.

Anyway I use:
Mince
Pancetta
Onions
Garlic
Carrots
Pepper (I know they’re not traditional but I try to pack in a bit of veg)
Passata
Tinned tomatoes
Dried oregano and basil
Black pepper
Sugar

5% mince is the fat content. Most other mince is 20% fat content. I go for 5% fat steak mince. All other mince is too fatty and makes me wonder what is in it.