Bolognese secret ingredient

[Pippylongstockings91]

So... I never knew to put sugar in bolognese! Tonight I've done it and everyone wolfed it down. My question is how much do you put in? I probs put to much in that's why everyone ate it 😂

I suspect I'll be shot down in flames here, but I sometimes stir in a dollop of mascarpone. Am sure it turns it into something entirely different to bolognese, but so rich and delicious 😋.
(And a teaspoon of sugar)

I almost always add a teaspoon of sugar to a sauce made with tinned tomatoes. It's surprising how much bitterness there actually is in the tomatoes when you add sugar and finally taste the difference.

Yes a half a spoon of sugar plus mushroom ketchup and red wine.

My closet friend puts chicken liver in hers; turns it into the food of Beelzebub.

I throw in a cup of milk - no sugar though.

Used to throw a tsp of sugar in chilli, but now I use a few chunks of dark chocolate instead - yum

Little bit of sugar, splash of balsamic, and a quarter of a tsp of gochujang.

Also, if you can be arsed, don’t use mince but use a a small supermarket roasting joint of beef - the cheaper the better - then cook it all together in a Dutch oven at about 140 for 5 hours then shred the beef, which will be falling apart.

Imo you only need a bit of sugar if you don't cook the bolognese for long enough and the tomatoes don't lose their acidity. Once my bolognese is simmering, I put it in the oven on a lowish heat for a couple of hours at least. No acidic tomatoeyness, just rich, thick tasty sauce with a hint of tomatoey sweetness.

I put Worcestershire sauce and smoked paprika in mine.
And a little bit of dark cocoa powder in chilli.

I make it with onions, garlic, grated carrot, finely chopped celery, mushrooms, beef mince, tinned toms, tom puree, black pepper, herbs and worcester sauce. I don't put sugar or salt in and my, dh and our young children love it. It gets its sweetness from the veg and we don't love overly sweet savoury sauces.

Also i cook it until everything is tender and agree with a pp that there is no bitterness when you do this and a lovely rich in flavour sauce.

The secret ingredient is milk!

I put a squeeze of honey in it

Peppered salami

A little balsamic, Henderson's relish and a pinch of nutmeg here

A teaspoon or two of balsamic vinegar makes bolognaise exceptional

A knob of proper butter is my secret ingredient

As another poster said, sugar is only required when the tomato is not well cooked

I also put a wee dash of fish sauce

A little sprinkle of paprika is my secret ingredient - gives it just a little pep. No sugar

You must use sugar in tomato based dishes to offset the acid. If you don't they are always too harsh.

Sugar removes the tomatoes acidity. I put about 10g (just under a table spoon) in for 600g tomatoes

All these great suggestions! I put half a teaspoon of mustard in mine and a dash of sweet chilli sauce, gives it a nice kick!

My mum told me to put in half a teaspoon of sugar to any meals using tinned tomatoes or tart fresh tomatoes. Makes such a difference.

I finely chop a few slices of pepperoni in when frying off the mince. Gives it a lovely smoky flavour

I put in an anchovy.