Dinner · Italian

Proper bolognese

Name: Proper bolognese
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 500g Beef mince; 1 Brown onion; 2 Carrots; 2 sticks Celery; 2 cloves Garlic, crushed; 1 tbsp Olive oil; 2 tbsp Tomato purée; 1 tsp Dried oregano; 100ml Semi-skimmed milk; 2 tins Chopped tomatoes; 1 cube Beef stock cube; 400g Spaghetti; 40g Italian-style hard cheese, grated

Low and slow, with a splash of milk. That is the bit most recipes leave out.

Start to finish: 1 hr 20 min
Hands-on: 30 min
In the fridge: 3 days
Freezes: Yes

Contains gluten, dairy, celery

Ingredients

4 portions

500gBeef mince
1Brown onion
2Carrots
2 sticksCelery
2 clovesGarlic, crushed
1 tbspOlive oil
2 tbspTomato purée
1 tspDried oregano
100mlSemi-skimmed milk
2 tinsChopped tomatoes
1 cubeBeef stock cube
400gSpaghetti
40gItalian-style hard cheese, grated

Plus salt, pepper and water.

Method

1
Heat the oil in a large pan and brown the mince over a high heat for 8 minutes, breaking it up, until it is properly brown and not grey.
2
Meanwhile, finely chop the onion, carrots and celery, and crush the garlic.
3
Turn the heat down, add the chopped veg to the mince and cook gently for 10 minutes, until soft. Stir in the garlic, purée and oregano for a minute.
11 min, mostly hands-off
4
Pour in the milk and let it bubble away until it has almost disappeared, about 5 minutes. It keeps the mince tender.
5
Add the tomatoes and the stock cube crumbled into 200ml water. Simmer very gently with the lid ajar for 45 minutes, stirring now and then, until thick and rich.
47 min, mostly hands-off
6
Season well. Serve over spaghetti with the cheese grated on top, or cool and portion into tubs.

On the day

Reheat until piping hot all the way through. Cook the spaghetti fresh on the night and grate over the cheese at the table.

Cook’s tip

Toss the reheated sauce and pasta with a spoonful of the pasta cooking water. It helps the sauce cling instead of sliding off.