Spag Bol, why does mine taste so bland??

[imwithspud]

For some reason lately when ever I've made spaghetti bolognese it's turned out really bland and quite tasteless. It used to be one of our favourite meals as a family, not sure what happened. Just wondering if anyone has any tips to jazz it up a little as I'm making it again tonight and DP has moaned but I really want to work to improve it.

Here is the recipe I currently use, off the top of my head so apologies if I miss anything:
500g Lean Minced Beef
1 Carton Passata
1/2tbsp Tomato Puree
About 150ml Beef Stock (recent addition in an effort to try and add some flavour)
1 Onion
1 Leek
1/2 Grated Carrots
4 crushed Garlic cloves
Lots of mixed herbs
Pinch of ground nutmeg
Pinch of sugar
Pepper

Ketchup. Sorry if someone's said this already, but I promise it will change your life!

500g of mince for 2 adults and one child ..... hope you're making 15 meals to freeze with that, as per other thread

Not read the whole thread so not sure if it's been mentioned, but you need to use mince with a higher fat content. Don't use the lean stuff, fat carries flavor.

Yes, ketchup. Forgot I add that too.

We had the exact same thread a couple of days ago! Amazing.

I've just made a batch with 500 minced steak which will do our family of four twice. I think browning the mince until it crisps a bit helps with flavour, then tip in finely diced celery, carrots, leek, onions, garlic and cook through on a medium heat. Then finely chopped chestnut mushroom and cook for another 15 mins or so. Good glass or two of red win to deglaze the pan, scraping up the tasty bits from the bottom. While it bubbles away bung in a good serving spoon of tomato past, a teaspoon of Marmite (Mumsnet tip) an OxO cube or M&S concentrated stock is good too, salt and black pepper, dried Italian seasoning plus a good teaspoon each of dried oregano and dried basil. Cook it all through before adding liquid Then either two tins of chopped tomatoes or one and a carton of pasata plus one can of water, a teaspoon of sugar. I leave it on a low for as long as possible, four or five hours and then finish with a handful of fresh basil and perhaps some chopped fresh baby plum tomatoes.

I'm going to add my secret ingredient here!

A couple of heaped tablespoons of Branston Pickle (other brands are available!!)

Makes a massive difference, in a good way

I add smoked paprika to most things I cook. Brings out a lovely flavour. Fancy bolognese for dinner now...

Eating it the following day is my best tip. Same with chilli and curries.

After leaving it in a slow cooker/low oven for several hours.

Made it yesterday
Onion - softened
Minced beef & garlic - brown
Add mushrooms & tomatoes - only a few of each left in fridge
Passata, oxo cube
Little Splash balsamic vinegar - had no red wine
Worcestershire sauce - makes all the difference
Dried thyme & oregano
Salt & pepper
Cooked very slowly all day (aga)
It was delicious

Agree with others who say browning is the key

No colour = no flavour

And good quality lean mince of course

I add pancetta, and diced chorizo or pepperoni. And peppers. I fry the pancetta and chorizo first, then do the veg in the tasty fat, thrn add all that to a couple of tins of tomatoes, passata, herbs, salt and pepper and tomato purée. Then I fry the beef then combine. Then simmer. I add wine and Worcester sauce too.

Thanks for all the replies, so many good suggestions, definitely going to give some of them a go in future.

My bolognese was a hit tonight! I made sure to cook it for a good couple of hours, I also crumbled the stock cube into the sauce directly rather than using water, I was also very liberal with the tomato purée. It was lovely and thick, DP was very impressed. Also had a friend over who enjoyed it too. I think the long simmer was what really helped but the stock cube and extra purée obviously played a part too. A long and slow cook is definitely the way forward in future. Yes I do have a slow cooker, I tend to use it if I'm heading out for the day.

Yes there are usually left overs which get frozen for 'freezer nights' aka when I can't be bothered to cook properly. Usually an adults portion and then a smaller portion for DC1.