Spaghetti Bolognese Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do the Italians serve spaghetti bolognese? ›

The dish is often served with grated Parmesan on top, but local cheeses, such as grated cheddar are also often used. It may be served with a larger proportion of sauce to pasta than is common in Italian spaghetti dishes.

Drain the spaghetti and either stir into the bolognese sauce, or serve the sauce on top. Serve with more grated parmesan, the remaining basil leaves and crusty bread, if you like.

Cornstarch: Make a slurry of half water, half cornstarch and whisk until smooth. Cornstarch is a powerful thickener, so start by whisking in no more than 1 tablespoon of the mixture per 2 cups of simmering sauce; stir and simmer for 2 minutes, check the thickness, and repeat with more slurry as needed.

Cook and stir ground beef and pork in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain and discard grease. Stir bacon mixture, tomatoes, mushrooms, tomato sauce, carrots, celery, wine, stock, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper into meat mixture. Bring to a boil.

Do Italians put cheese on pasta before sauce? First, Italians does not use sauce on pasta. You cook the pasta, then you toss it with something lik a ragu, butter fried mushrooms or whatever. Then the pasta is served and only then do they offer to grate some Parmigiano or Pecorino on top.

It sounds unconventional to use milk in a meaty red sauce, but upon further investigation, it makes total sense why Italians swear by it. According to our Food Director Amira, not only does milk add a rich flavour to the bolognese, but it also “helps cut through the acidity of the tomatoes and red wine”.

Secret to Best Bolognese Sauce

The base for this sauce is made from a combination of diced onion, carrot and celery cooked in olive oil. Italians call it 'soffritto” and use it as a foundation for many sauces, soups and stews.

The best tip for intensifying the flavour of your sauce is just to cook it slowly on a low heat for a long time. This reduces the sauce and intensifies the flavours – four hours is not uncommon for my bolognese.

Whereas true Bolognese is just as much about the aromatic base of vegetables as it is the meat, Italian-American versions are very meat-heavy (and often use red wine) and more reminiscent of southern Italian dishes.

Do Italians put sugar in spaghetti bolognese? ›

"A pinch of sugar is a Southern Italian trick that was used when the sauce was made with end-of-season tomatoes that did not get ripe, or the tomatoes were so tart they needed to be balanced," Chiarello explained to Epicurious.

Far and away the most compelling thing I've heard on the show is Spag Bol, the perversely short British derivation of pasta with meat sauce, aka spaghetti bolognese. Such curt vowels, it's like running into a wall twice. “Spag!” and “Bol!” sound like an Italian superhero's cartoon punch exclamation bubbles.

Most of us aren't used to adding dairy to tomatoey, meaty sauces, but adding milk to your bolognese adds such a richer depth of flavour, and results in much more tender meat.

Whether you can pronounce it or not, Worcestershire sauce is an easy, effective way to load up spaghetti sauce with umami flavor. It is salty, tangy, and has lots of potent vinegar, all of which cut through tomatoes to create a soothing, savory flavor.

According to our Food Director Amira, not only does milk add a rich flavour to the bolognese, but it also “helps cut through the acidity of the tomatoes and red wine”. She adds: “It also makes the mince meat nice and tender, creating that melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness.”

Like most recipes the longer you leave it to slowly cook the better the flavour will be but this can also be knocked up with in an hour.

Never rush a bolognese, good things take time. Cooking it for anything less than an hour is seen as rushed. We recommend 1.5 – 2 hours cooking time, or as much time you can spare the better.