Bolognese Sauce

As far as I was concerned in college, bolognese was nothing more than browned ground beef drowned in tomato sauce. It was quick and easy to plop on top of a plateful of spaghetti, and it tasted pretty good. It was never as good as what I got in Italian restaurants, but in all honesty I was too busy and/or lazy to figure out what I was missing.

Lately, however, I have been craving pasta and Brent suggested we learn to make bolognese. So, I did some research and found a wide variety of approaches in cookbooks and on the internet. Some of my results: the meat was not always just ground beef (some recipes even included pancetta!), some recipes included wine, and just about every recipe used a different mixture of herbs and spices. Traditionally, bolognese is named after its rumored birthplace, Bologna, Italy, and is often also called ragù alla bolognese or just simply ragù (like the commercial brand). Dating back to at least the late 18th Century, this is a hearty sauce that comes with an interesting history.

We hope you enjoy our rendition of bolognese over zoodles or other veggies!

Ingredients
3 Tbsp avocado oil
2 small onions, quartered
1 medium carrot, peeled
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
5 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed
2 pinches of salt
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground veal
1 lb ground pork
1 C tomato paste
2 C red wine, divided
2 tsp dried basil, divided
2 tsp dried thyme, divided
1 tsp dried oregano, divided
1 pinch of salt
chopped Italian parsley, optional for garnish

Method

Pulse the onion, carrot and celery in a Ninja, blender or food processor until minced.

Also, lightly mix meats in a large bowl with your hands.

Heat oil over medium in a large skillet. Sauté veggies, garlic, and 2 pinches of salt for 12 minutes.

Add meats and sauté for 8-12 minutes, until crumbly and lightly browned. Next, add the tomato paste and mix everything well. Pour in 1 cup wine and cook for 10 minutes, stirring continuously.

Add 1 tsp dried basil, 1 tsp dried thyme, 1/2 tsp dried oregano, and 1 cup wine; continue to gently stir while it cooks for 15 minutes. Then, add the remaining dried basil, dried thyme, dried oregano, and salt; continue cooking for another 10 minutes, stirring continuously.

Serve over zoodles (we used this awesome spiralizer) or your favorite veggies. Garnish with chopped Italian parsley.

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