Bolognese sauce

[PetiteRaleuse]

So I was told by someone who considers herself is an expert in everything food that my Bolognese sauce wasn't proper bolognese sauce.

To which my answer was 'well, whose is?'

So thought I'd ask you lot for your definitive bolognese tricks, just to see how varied recipes can be.

So...

Meat - pork? veal? beef? A mixture? (I use beef and lardons)

Tomatoes - fresh? canned? mixture? (I use canned)

Wine - red? white? (I used to use red but switched to white)

Mushrooms?

Other veg? If so what?

And I guess everyone puts in onions or garlic or both?

Felicity cloake did a column on the perfect bolognese in the guardian, all the variations covered. My aunts italian and she said it must have carrot and celery, but have to grate it to hide it from dp (ds1 & ds2 fine!)

A splash of vinegar, also in chilli. It really brings out the flavour.

Love Felicity Cloake, her's is the recipe I now use. Big yes to carrot and celery whizzed up in the mini chopper.

I remember Felicity Cloake's article - I like reading her columns.

Get you squoosh - ragu!May have to start saying that
Felicity cloake is great, her bread and butter pudding is gorgeous

Stock always feels like cheating to me. If you cover it and cook on a low enough heat, the juice from the tomatoes and the wine should keep it all moist enough.

Adding stock later on (as Antonio Carluccio suggests) undoes all the lovely flavour combining that happens the longer you cook it for imo.

Celery is the one thing I always leave out, no matter how essential to a recipe it's supposed to be.
It's one of my very few, 'no, never,' foods, the others being jam and rice pudding.
It's revolting.

Jam a 'no, never' food? Poor old inoffensive jam.

Mine is baked beans although I was served them up recently at a friend's house and had to remember my mother's mantra 'eat what you're given and don't complain'.

I love rice pudding too. Has to be homemade though and be quite thick with a lovely skin.

I think I could eat my hated foods to be polite, though I'd struggle and avoid them if at all possible without causing offence.
I don't even know why I hate rice pudding, I love the ingredients, and I love risotto which has a similar texture, but it's vile.
Jam is just too sweet and sticky.

I use a mix of pork mince and beef mince, along with carrot, onion and celery whizzed in the food processor, pancetta, oregano, pasatta, red wine, pinch of sugar, Worcestershire sauce, red wine and a bit of concentrated beef stock then cook uncovered in the oven on a low heat for about 4 hours making sure it doesn't stick.
Cool and then refrigerate for use the next day.

I didn't finish all the beans, just made an attempt at them.

Evil, pus filled little sacks.

I use the Marcella Hazan recipe:

Finely chopped carrot, onion, garlic, celery softened in butter. Add minced beef and pork. Cook I milk slowly until all milk evaporated. Add some grated nutmeg. Cook next In white wine until all wine evaporated. Finally add a moderate amount of tomatoes (tinned San Marzano) and cook veeeerrrrrryyyyy slowly (min 3 hours). Beautiful, and close to the one I first tasted in Bologna.

Onions, and at least 3 cloves of garlic.
Fatty beef mince.
(Maybe carrot, but I have to be persuaded as I think it takes half way to cottage pie!)
Mushrooms if dh begs
Passata.
Tom purée
Chicken stock
Red wine
Maybe some milk
Bay leaves etc

We lived in Italy for a few years when I was a baby. My mum said the really noticeable thing about Italians making Bolognese sauce was that they all did it differently! Anyway, she was taught to make it my her elderly neighbour who did the simplest: beef, onions, garlic, bay, dried mixed herbs, tin toms, tom purée, red wine, boil for 20 mins or so.

DD would agree with you Squoosh, she hates baked beans, so I never serve them to her, and don't eat them often myself as I prefer us to eat the same meals.
She does like homemade ones though.

Oh and with mine, there's so much liquid in it you have to spend at least a couple of hours reducing it.

Agree that it's better the next day (true for most one-pot things, chilli, stew etc). I used to always make it the day before, but never quite manage to do that any more; but I always make enough for at least two days' worth, so that's alright then!