Easy Weeknight Bolognese
Ingredients
- 30 ml olive oil
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 2 carrots, coarsely grated
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 kg beef mince
- 30 g tomato paste
- 200 ml red wine (or beef stock)
- 400 g tin chopped tomatoes
- 300 ml beef stock
- 200 ml full-cream milk
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 pinch sugar
- salt & black pepper, to taste
- 500 g spaghetti or tagliatelle
- Parmesan, to serve
Instructions
- 1
Heat the olive oil in a big heavy-based pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and grated carrot. Cook for 8 minutes until soft and starting to colour at the edges. Add the garlic for the last minute.
- 2
Push the veg to the side, turn the heat up, and add the mince. Break it up with a wooden spoon and brown it hard — don't stir too often. You want real colour, not grey meat. 10 minutes.
- 3
Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, until it darkens and smells toasty.
- 4
Pour in the red wine. Scrape the base of the pot and let it bubble down for 3 minutes.
- 5
Add the chopped tomatoes, beef stock, milk, bay leaves, a pinch of sugar, and a good grind of salt and pepper. Stir well.
- 6
Drop the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 45 minutes, stirring now and then. It's ready when it's thick, glossy, and a deep russet brown.
- 7
Cook the pasta in heavily salted water, 1 minute under the package time. Drain, keeping a mug of pasta water.
- 8
Toss the pasta through the sauce in the pot with a splash of pasta water until glossy. Finish with plenty of grated parmesan and a crack of pepper.
Cooked or served with
Handmade ceramic serving dishes with organic, slightly irregular forms that bring tactile warmth to the table.
Visit Wonki Ware →Notes & Tips
Bosvark tip
The grated carrot and the milk are the whole game here. Don't skip the milk — it rounds out the acid from the tomatoes and tenderises the beef. Makes a midweek ragù taste like it simmered for three hours.