RAGU' ALLA BOLOGNESE, THE MEAT SAUCE OF BOLOGNA

I made a Bolognese Sauce tonight pretty much holding onto the rules set forth by the Accademia Italiana della Cucina, Bologna Chapter, back in 1982. After much thought, this group of foodies decided to preserve Ragu' alla Bolognese in it's original and most perfect version. Most versions of Bolognese sauce are like the "meat" sauce my Mom made, very good, delicious and great on pasta..ground beef or pork, or both sauteed up with onions, basil, black pepper, salt, wine, then the tomatoes added and it was cooked until it resembled an Italian Sloppy Joe. According to the Accademia it must contain Chopped minced Beef, Pancetta, onion, milk, tomato paste, stock, wine,carrots, celery, and a spoonful of heavy cream at the end. Toss the pasta with 2 tbs. of unsalted butter, a good grinding of black pepper, and 1/8 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. Then sauce with about 3 ladles of the Ragu'..no more..as with all pasta dishes in Italy, the sauce is secondary to the pasta..having said that.. add as much as you like, I will not dictate how you like something, but I will guide you on what is considered the proper way a dish is to be prepared and eaten. For the sauce: finely dice 2 celery stalks, 2 peeled carrots, and 1 large onion, 1/2 lb. of pancetta, and 3/4 lb. skirt steak or chuck steak all minced... In a large heavy bottomed pot, heat 3 tbs of good Olive Oil, then add the chopped steak and pancetta. Let this saute' for about 5 -8 minutes stirring frequently. Now add the carrots, celery, and onion. Let this saute together for about 15 minutes, then add 1 cup of white wine, salt, mix. Then add 1 cup of stock and let this come to a boil, add 1/2 can of tomato paste and stir. Let this simmer on low. Over the course of the next 2 hours, add 1 1/2 cups of milk in small batches. Why? Because the Accademia said so. Let this simmer for a total of no less than 3 hours, stirring frequently. When you've reached that point and it's sufficiently thickened..add 2 tbs. of heavy cream. Then dress the pasta you have prepared with the three ladles..Shower it with lots of shaved Parmigiano and cracked black pepper.

This is a very earthy sauce made this way, the garden freshness of the vegetables and the 1

long simmered meat...very different in many ways from what we are used to thinking of as a Bolognese Sauce...and with the leftover sauce, I may just HAVE to turn that into a Lasagne Bolognese with Spinach and Bechamel over the weekend.. Posted by peter battaglia at 10/2/2013 3:13 PM MEAT SAUCE

Meat Sauce...doesn't sound too great, but most people know it means a tomato sauce for pasta that contains...MEAT. What kind? I guess you can decide for yourself what you would like to put into it, but if you want my opinion on it, Let's go with my definition of what Meat Sauce means. A tomato based pasta sauce simmered with ground beef and some pork, onions, basil, oregano, olive oil and maybe some wine, maybe. Here's your first piece of info...Meat Sauce is not Bolognese Sauce, although a Bolognese Sauce is a meat sauce. See what I did there? Of course Bolognese is a sauce with meat in it..but a meat sauce is not a true or proper or close to autherntic Bolognese. There are many ingredients in a Bolognese which, in a plain old Meat Sauce do not show up. My version of Meat Sauce, which can be used for Lasagne, for Baked pastas like a Baked Ziti al Forno or for any other pasta you would serve with a tomato sauce, contains lots of onions for sweetness and flavor, good tomatoes, olive oil, fresh basil, dried oregano. A Bolognese would contain some butter, milk, carrots, celery, ground meats, not a whole lot of tomato. I limit my cooking of the sauce to 1 hr and 15 min. Why? Because I'm not making chili. The longer you cook tomato, especially with ground beef in it, the closer it comes to tasting in that instiutional way. Let me show you how to make this in a straightforward no fear sort of way and it will fast become one of your go-to sauces especially on those in between after work during the week nights or on a long weekend where you want maximum flavor without have 20 different menu items on your docket.

Start by heating 1 tbs. of olive oil in a heavy dutch oven or sizeable sauce pot. Add 1 lb ground beef. then 1/2 lb loose Italian Sweet Fennel Sausage meat. Add 1/2 tsp. of kosher salt, 1/2 tsp of cracked black pepper, 1/2 tsp. oregano (the Greek and Sicilian types that you can get in Italian and Greek Markets are great, or a good dried brand works well too, just, as always, rub it between your hands especially cooking..forget kitchen utensils, your hands ARE your most used tool when cooking) before you add it. This releases all the locked in essential oils and flavor of the dried herb. The most common fallacy regarding all Italian Cuisine is that garlic is in everything. Not true. And this is not a PSA for the Anti-Garlic Movement. I love garlic. But, resist the temptation to add it to every single dish that comes from the Italian playlist. I've said this before (and guess what, here is comes again), my Grandma Scaramuzzi had a rule which was meat in the sauce...no garlic....no meat in the sauce, use garlic. So, out of respect for her, and just because it tastes so good, my meat sauce is flavored with no garlic Keep stirring the meat around on medium heat for a good 6-7 ,minutes. It will be partially browned. Dice 2 medium or one large onion and add it to the pot. Let this cook on medium for 10 minutes, until the onions are softened. As always, check the onions for softness at this point. For some FoodScientific reason, if your onions are not softened, when you add the tomatoes and liquid, they will still have some bite to them. You don't want that.

Flavor booster: Italian Grating Cheese Rinds.. I read some recipes that assume you all have these hanging around your refrigerator. I know. It's just not true. Big HOWEVER, if you do have one, or can get your hands on some, many stores actually sell them in the cheese dept, a piece of Parmigiano or Romano rind is an awesome way to add that deliciously cheesey, yet subtle background flavor to something. Yes, you can add grated cheese while you're cooking but that will eventually fall to the bottom of the liquid and begin to actually burn onto the pot surface. So, grated cheese is always added after a sauce, soup, or dish is off the flame. Ok. If you have a piece add it now, that''s a rind piece from a finished wedge of ParmigianoReggiano in the picture. Now add the tomatoes. 1 can of paste, distribute throughout the meat mixture. Then, one can of wine or water. Now add a can of Crushed Italian tomatoes, but seriously, in this sauce, the Meat, not the tomato is the dominant flavor. Add 3/4 of that can filled with water to the pot. Mix well. Add 5 torn basil leaves. Now set the pot on the back burner and let it simmer for a good 1 1/2 hours, stir frequently.

What are you looking for? You are looking for most of that water to cook out of the sauce, the water helps the meat continue to release it's flavor into the tomato. It's a happy marriage. The sauce will have reduced, changed color, and become thicker. Let it rest 4

and then remove all the fat that has risen to the top and discard. This sauce is amazing over Ravioli and like I've already mentioned in Lasagne, baked pastas, over just over some other type of macaroni.

So there is your finished Meat Sauce. Have I captured the change in color and the thickness in this pic from the one above it? They were taken 1 1/2 hrs apart from each other. Note: Tastes better the next day, freezes well for all you Bulk/Freezer Happy types out there. It makes enough sauce to dress 1 -1 /2 lbs of cooked pasta. That's about 8 people or kids who will love you for doing this. I wound up making it last night for a sleepover my girls were having. It's what I make when I want meat and sauce and macaroni but really don't feel like doing meatballs. Salad on the side...nice dinner.

Posted by peter battaglia at 11/16/2013 11:57 PM