How do you Bolognese?

[LoveFall]

I have been making a ground meat and tomato pasta sauce for many years. Spiced with garlic, oregano, basil, some nutmeg, and red wine. Not to mention lots of garlic. Always a hit in my house.

In fact, my first date with DH 35 years ago involved the same sauce, all innocent of course,

Today, in the throes of lockdown boredom in B.C. I lazily decided to look up an authentic recipe. I was shocked! I have been committing sacrilege it seems. No garlic, no oregano, no basil etc.

Maybe I should just confess to the Italian gods and carry on. My sauce tonight was a big hit as usual.

I usually make enough to create a lasagna also.

What about you? Is the pure Italian recipe better? Am I guilty of culinary crime?

Mine is definitely not traditional but it is yummy.

Brown off onion and garlic, add in grated carrot and grated zucchini and brown that off. Put all that in a bowl, brown the mince then add the veggies back in. Stir through some tomato paste, stir in a tin of crushed tomatoes, tin of condensed tomato soup and a jar of Passata, some basil/Italian herbs plus a little bit of soy sauce and some brown sugar then simmer until you think it’s done.

You do you - my parents put cream in their bolognaise (as I believe does Nigella). The authenticity police aren’t going to come for you

I think i do it the traditional way. Only onion, carrots and celery. Then the meat, tomato puree and tinned tomatoes. That's it! It's the only dinner in this house all 5 of us will happily eat so it's doing something right!

I tried the Mary berry one the other week after 30 years of doing it the other way, god it was good

Differences are:
mix pork mince with beef mince
Include celery and carrots with the usual onions etc
Add wine, she uses white
Prepare as usual then slow cook for 2 hours
Add some cream towards the end .

I do as a standard

Beef, garlic, onion, carrot and celery
Tinned tomatoes, tomato purée, red wine, beef stock, Worcestershire sauce, herbs, plenty of black pepper and a sprinkle of sugar

Sometimes if I'm feeling a bit 'jazzy' I'll add a few different bits such as- courgette, nutmeg, sunblushed tomatoes, pork mince

Definitely not authentic and I'm sure the Italian's will be offended, but always a big hit in my house.

I have my own made up recipe but I also like the Mary Berry one mentioned by @billybagpuss. I add whole milk rather than cream though.

Honestly? Mostly, by browning mince with frozen chopped onions, with a jar of bolognese sauce stirred through, jar of passata too if it needs stretching, then simmer for 20 minutes or shove in the slow cooker for a few hours.

But back when I could actually cook more easily (not currently safe with autistic child), sofritto - carrots onions celery and whatever all fried off with the mince, passata and tomato purée, garlic, oregano, basil, salt and pepper, glug of red wine and a pinch of sugar against the tomato.

No celery and carrot here. Onion , garlic, herbs, tin tomatoes, passage, beef stock pot, Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, sugar. In the oven a little too high for half an hour then low and slow until I remember it's in there. Delish.

Mine's not traditional but works for us. Mince beef, passatta, onions, garlic, grated carrott, spinach, green Pesto, marmite, red wine or red wine vinegar, beef stock. Cook slow and low.

Doesn't sound as though yours is very far away from the authentic one, OP. Adding a few herbs is hardly sacrilege. Besides, if you went into 20 different Italian kitchens, you'd probably find some variation!

Mine is fairly standard, I think. Sometimes just onion and garlic beforethe meat, sometimes also celery and carrot. No red wine, because it doesn't agree with me, even in cooking. I don't tend to add herbs, but don'tobject to them. For me the key is browning the mince well, plus a long, slow cook in the oven. That's what gives it the deep, rich flavour, so I don't really feel the need to add non-traditional things like Worcestershire sauce, soy or marmite.

69p bolognese sauce from Aldi.....
Darts out the door to avoid the horrified Pearl clutching looks from proper cooks!

Pancetta cubes fried in butter
Add onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf
Add pork and beef mince in 1:2 ratio
Glass of red wine
2 tins chopped tomatoes
Simmer for a long time - at least 2 hours, more if possible
Add whole milk or cream for last 30 mins

I'd like to think it's "authentic" but I don't really care, I love how rich it is

Oh mamma mia cos'hai fatto .

When I've had it abroad on holiday, the sauce is a thin, runny tomato, a bit tart. I can't even remember if they put meat in it. I've tried to find a recipe for it but no luck.

I've done the authentic version with celery and carrot recently. The family have concluded they prefer my version:

Chopped onion
Garlic
Mince
Tomato puree
Tin Tom's
Small bottle red
Oregano
Bay leaf
Salt
Pepper

Fry off the mince before adding and simmer for an hour.

There have been spag bol threads on here previously. One of the joys of family life is remembering what is unique to a family's life.

I was always under the impression that traditional bolognese had chicken livers in it - but I've never used them in mine.

Brown mince off with chopped onion and mushrooms then add garlic,passata,half a vegetable stock pot and black pepper.Slow cook for 2 hours.

Oh good. Someone else adding mushrooms! I have beef/turkey mince, onion, mushrooms (lots), garlic, grapeseed oil, Italian herbs, tinned chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, a beef stock melt and some thick gravy made from granules. 1-2 heaped tspn sugar. Yum!

I follow Antonio Carluccio’s recipe - no tin of tomatoes will ever go into my ragu! (or anything else for that matter, can’t stand them). No oregano etc in it, but can’t see the harm in that. He didn’t use garlic either, but I can’t say I miss it in the cooked recipe.

Fry bacon, onion and garlic and mince and a stock cube, tin of tomatoes, mushrooms and peppers, tomato purée, herbs and seasoning and simmer, voila !

Splash of red wine too and I sometimes add a handful of spinach right at the end, sounds odd but it works !

Onion, garlic, oregano, red wine and a splash of balsamic vinegar here.

Oh, and minced beef and chopped tomatoes.

Fry onion for a while, add garlic, fry meat, add tinned tomatoes, purée and carrots with a spoonful of sugar and some mixed herbs. I also add a handful of porridge oats which definitely isn't in the Italian recipe! Cook for about an hour and try to remember to stir.

Oh I forgot to say my recipe is based on Marcella Hazan and has tomatoes but no chicken livers, I just add pancetta, wine, a lot more meat, and less tomato than hers. So who knows what is really authentic...

I thought the authentic recipe included white (never red) wine and milk?

My latest revelation on the bolognaise front is that for reasons I don't understand, it always always tastes better when I cook it in my le creuseut pot vs my regular large frying pan (with a lid). Something to do with the way the heat is conducted perhaps? But there's absolutely no doubt about it coming out richer and better using the le creuseut. On plus side, it's getting me into the habit of using these more often which is not a bad thing.