Spaghetti Bolognese tomato sauce recipe, not watery!

[multipoodles]

I'm getting fed up of jars turning watery once added to the spaghetti at the table, we had been using Tesco own brand one for years and now water seeps out of it too. The Lidl one is the best but all the well known ones are doing the same, it's nothing to do with the spaghetti as it hasn't changed. So putting my laziness aside I think it's time to make my own, any nice recipes you use? Without the wateriness please :)

I've made my own for ages now, due to the same reason, and it's cheaper too.

Need
onion, finely chopped
garlic clove, finely chopped
carrot, finely chopped
mushrooms, finely sliced
half stick celery, finely chopped
basil and oregano, finely chopped
olive oil
2 tins chopped tomatoes
sugar
salt and pepper
tomato puree
worcestershire sauce

Add dash of olive oil to pan and gently fry onion, garlic, carrot, celery and mushrooms, 2-3 mins. Add the herbs stirring well. Add the tins of tomatoes and a tblsp of sugar (this takes away the bitterness of the tomatoes) , tomato puree I use 2 tblsps , salt and pepper and dash of worcester sauce.

Simmer for 40 mins until thickened .

If making bolognaise I add the mince, and brown after the veg , if I have any I add a finely shopped rasher of smoked bacon too. Also a dash of red wine into the tomatoes if I have any left.

I don't cover it and let it simmer away, so it thickens , just stirring occasionally.

Sorry, I couldn't tell you exact quantities, but I use about 1 onion, 4 cloves crushed garlic, 1 pack mince, a few chopped mushrooms if I have them, a spoonful each of green and red pesto, 1 jar passata, salt and pepper. Oh, and a splash of red wine. I find that passata makes a much thicker sauce than tinned toms, though the watery-ness of those varies from brand to brand. Simmer for about an hour, the longer the better.

I make mine almost the same as moonmother. But sometimes with passatta instead of tins of tomatoes. Tinned cherry tomatoes are v good too.
Another tip - if you have a hand blender, give the sauce a quick whizz with that when it's ready, but not so much it goes smooth, it gives a really nice texture. And, make sure your pasta is really well drained - the water could be coming from that.

(Chopped tomatoes are runny and are best avioded - I always buy whole tomatoes and whizz smooth with a stick blender if I needed).

Fry some finely chopped onion, when translusent, add one finely chopped carrot, maybe a red pepper, after a couple of minutes finely chopped garlic.if I have some red wine I'll add it here and reduce down the alcohol.

Add a few cans of tomato, some tomato puree if you want, a splash of Beluzu Balsamic vinegar if I haven't added red wine - or failing that some ketchup or sugar to reduce the acidity of the tomatoes. Cook for 30 mins or longer on a slow simmer. Finsh with a swig of Extra virgin olive oil.

Whizz with a stick blender if desired by small children.

Thank you for those, I wonder if I can do it in the slow cooker rather than simmer on the stove? I don't think it's the spaghetti as I'm doing nothing different with it. I do wonder is there more water content in jars now to save money?

Absolutely more water and more starch added to thicken it up!

I use Jamie Oliver's recipe from his Ministry of Food. However, he puts in two cans of waters (using empty cans from chopped tomatoes). I found this too watery so I only use half a can with a good dollop of tomato puree stirred in. I also leave out the parmesan - DH and I add this after it's served as I think the kids could do without the saltiness.

The secret to non-watery sauce is to almost turn your tomatoes (chopped/passata/fresh) into a 'confit'... i.e. use plenty of olive oil and simmer the whole thing very gently, uncovered until it is nicely thickened and there is no residual water. It doesn't really matter what else goes into the sauce, it's the reduction that counts. A slow-cooker isn't going to evaporate the liquid as effectively.

If you have a parmesan rind - add that too, when you add the tomatoes, it will give an extra depth. You really need to taste as you go along, try to figure out the best sauce for you.

Agree with thehamburglar - i heartily recommend Jamie Olivers bolognese recipe. This is my adaptation of it.

Fry off bacon & oregano (2 tsps i think).
Add celery, onion, carrots, garlic And cook for 10 mins.
Add mince and brown it.
Add carton of passata and some tomato puree. (found his too watery with tinned tomatoes).
Season & simmer for 45 mins.

Its delicious used in his lasagne too.

The secret when using tins of any kind of tomatoes (here in sth Italy we just grab whatever is on offer) is to heat the oil really hot before you lob the tins in and then whack a lid on straightaway for a minute or two. That gets most of the water that automatically comes out of tomatoes away and also lets the tomatoes release their natural sugars so the sauce is lovely and sweet.

(I could tell you that came from my Italian-chef dp,but it didn't, it was Saint Jamie)

(oh and obviously cook for a lot longer than any book tells you. I cook mine for about 2 hrs)

Sweat of onion,celery and garlic paste - this should take ages and be done on a really low heat.

Add the mince and turn up the heat - drain off all the excess fat - and add a big dollop of tomato puree.

Add pasta, sugar to taste, and an oxo stock cube with ver little water.

Let it simmer for ages and add some milk once it has got going.

I start mine like moonmother but without cerely (hate the stuff) then once browned bung im slow cooker until needed.

Exactly the same as moonmother
Except I use pancetta instead. Sometimes I use passata depends what is in the cupboard

Cogito has the secret- it's all to do with reduction; and Betty's parmesan tip sounds great- it does wonders for soup as well

The very simplest option is to chop a clove or two of garlic then add tinned tomatoes and simmer until the oil and tomatoes sort of separate. Season to taste and add to pasta which you have previously tossed in some oil or butter. Add parmesan

Bolognese needs to cook for ever to become really unctuous

Pasta sauce in jars, especially when endorsed by any celebrity, is a rip off

forgot to say that the garlic should be sweated for a minute or two in oil

I use delias ragu recipe which is never watery. She recommends cooking 20 mins with lid on then 20mins with lid off.

The ingredients are
Onion
Garlic
Bacon
Chopped tomato
Chicken liver
Mince
Red wine
Oregano

The best Bolognaise is cooked the longest. If you can cook more than you need and freeze some. If it is too runny when you are about to serve, then I use a little Coco powder to thicken, it gives a lovely meaty taste.

I'm using the Nigel Slater recipe on the bbc good food website - its yummy, has pancetta and milk in, and simmers for 1.5 hrs on the hob a little bit uncovered.

This is the dumbest question - apologies

When you add a parmesan rind, and it "adds depth of flavour" - what's the flavour? Does everything taste parmesan-y?

I love parmesan, but DH hates it, definitely an acquired taste.... but wondered if it just gave it a more rounded flavour instead?

Thanks :)

It doesn't taste cheesy. Think the idea is that Parmesan contains lots of the natural form of MSG - just like anchovies, bacon etc...so if you add a bit of any of these items to a sauce it will improve the flavour without tasting of the additive. Given there's no other use for the parmesan rind you might as well shove that in.

I add parmesan rind to minestrone as well.

Delia's oven-cooked ragu recipe, which is part of her recipe for lasagne in one of her series of 3 'How to Cook' books here. You cook it for hours in the oven with no lid on. It is completely different from any other home-made bolognese I've ever eaten. It's thick, rich and very un-watery. Seriously - the best ever. I often don't bother with following her recipe exactly, as it has stuff like chicken livers in it, which I never have. But if you make your normal bolognese and oven cook it for 3 hours it is still amazing.

Parmesan has the property 'umami' which gives foods that savoury, mouthwatering effect. Marmite has something similar. If you're cooking vegetarian and trying to avoid a bland result, umami is what you're looking to add without being over powering.

oh my goodness you all put me to shame :( going to give this real stuff a go and the oil idea sounds like it makes a lot of sense. Maybe spag bol night should become a little bit more special, rather than open a jar of sauce that you for guiding me to the light!