Description
Weeknight Bolognese Sauce is a family favorite and comes together in about half an hour. If using this with spaghetti squash noodles, think ahead a bit as the squash needs to roast for about 40 minutes. Start your squash or pasta water before you begin making the sauce if you plan to eat right away. If you love it, please leave a star rating in the comments below to help other readers in our community.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small (or 1/2 large) onion, minced
- 1 medium to large carrot, minced or shredded on a box grater
- 1 pound ground beef (90/10 for leaner, 80/20 works great, too)
- 2-3 cloves garlic, minced, grated, or pressed
- 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning (or dried oregano and/or dried thyme)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 (28-ounce) can or box of crushed tomatoes (preferably San Marzano)
- 1 small can of tomato sauce (5-ounce can, or use a 14-ounce can if desired)
- Sea salt: about 1 tablespoon, divided, more or less to taste
- freshly ground black pepper, about 8 spins (1/4 teaspoon)
Instructions
Note: The sauce takes about 30 minutes total. If using right away, boil a large pot of water when you start making the sauce for the pasta, or prepare your spaghetti squash noodles (or anything you plan to eat with this) in advance. Always salt the water with 2 tablespoons of salt before adding pasta to boiling water.
Method:
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the minced onion, carrot, and a big pinch of salt and saute over medium heat until very soft but not brown, about 7-8 minutes. Push the veggies to the side of the pan and move that side of the pan off slightly off your burner (or remove to a plate if you think they’ll burn or if they start to brown too much).
- Turn the heat to high and wait a minute, then add the ground beef, not moving it for a few minutes so it starts to brown on the bottom. Break up the meat with a wooden spoon into very small pieces as it cooks, and cook until it’s no longer pink, about 10 minutes.
- Turn the heat down to medium, stir the veggies into the meat, then add the garlic, Italian seasoning, 2 teaspoons of sea salt, and a few spins of freshly ground black pepper (and a bay leaf if you have one). Cook 3-4 minutes until the garlic is very fragrant.
- Add the crushed tomatoes and can of tomato sauce and continue to cook over medium-low heat for another 10 minutes to allow the flavors to come together. It should lightly simmer but not boil. If you have time, simmer up to 30 minutes. If using, add a few grates of nutmeg when you add the tomatoes.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the spaghetti (or any pasta) according to package instructions until al dente. Drain the pasta and plate the spaghetti with red sauce right away.
- Serve the sauce over cooked spaghetti noodles or any pasta you love, or on top of spaghetti squash noodles. Add a few grates of real Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and/or chopped basil, if desired.
Notes
Note: this sauce is awesome right out of the pan, and is one of those dishes that gets even better overnight in the fridge. To make ahead: use a 6-quart Dutch oven or pot, allow to come to room temperature, cover with a lid and set in the fridge. Heat the next day and serve. Keeps in an airtight glass container in the fridge 3-4 days. Freezes well up to 3 months.
Optional Additions:
- optional: 1 large stalk of celery, minced, add it with the carrots
- optional: 2 tablespoons high-quality red wine, if you have some open, add after the garlic and let it cook for a minute
- optional: a few grates of fresh nutmeg at the end, if you happen to have some
