Italian
Classic Beef Bolognese
Ground beef simmers with soffritto, tomato, a splash of milk, and a little wine until the sauce turns thick. It tastes savory and rounded, with a gentle sweetness from the carrot and tomatoes.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 1 hr 10 min
- Total
- 1 hr 30 min
- Servings
- 6
- Difficulty
- Medium
Why you’ll love it
- Browning the beef before the vegetables gives the sauce a deeper base.
- Milk softens the acidity of the tomato.
- A real simmer, not a five-minute boil, thickens the sauce.
- Finishing the pasta in the sauce coats it better than a ladle on top.
Ingredients
Ingredient amounts scale. Oven temperature and cook time do not. Salt, spices, and leaveners are a starting point after you scale. Taste and adjust.
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Instructions
- 1
Heat the olive oil in a wide pot over medium heat. If the oil smokes, turn the heat off and let the pot cool slightly before continuing. Cook the onion, carrot, and celery until soft, about 8 minutes.
- 2
Add the garlic and stir 30 seconds. Add the ground beef, salt, and pepper. Cook, breaking it up, until no pink remains and the beef reaches 160°F, about 8 minutes.
- 3
Pour in the milk and simmer until it mostly cooks off, about 5 minutes.
- 4
Add the white wine and tomato paste. Simmer 2 minutes.
- 5
Add the crushed tomatoes. Simmer uncovered at a gentle bubble, stirring now and then, until the sauce is thick, about 45 minutes.
- 6
Boil the tagliatelle in salted water until just tender. Drain it and toss it with the sauce. Serve with the Parmesan.
Pro tips
- Chop the carrot, celery, and onion small so they melt into the sauce.
- If the sauce sputters too hard, lower the heat; a gentle bubble is enough.
- The wine cooks off, so the finished sauce should not taste boozy.
Easy substitutions
- white wine
- more milk
- tagliatelle
- pappardelle or spaghetti
- ground beef
- half ground beef and half ground pork, still cooked to 160°F
Storage and reheating
Storage
Refrigerate the sauce for up to 4 days, and cook fresh pasta when you serve it.
Reheating
Reheat the sauce in a saucepan over medium heat until bubbling, then toss with hot pasta.
Nutrition
Estimates per serving, using standard ingredient averages and rounded to the nearest gram. This is not a lab analysis, and it shifts if you change brands or add sides.
- Calories
- 466
- Protein
- 28 g
- Carbs
- 48 g
- Fat
- 18 g
- Fiber
- 4 g
Moderate · Stovetop
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From the kitchen
Kitchen tools we love
Practical tools these recipes actually use. This is not a review roundup, and these are not paid placements. If affiliate links are added later, they will be labeled and disclosed.
A heavy 12-inch skillet
Most of the chicken and steak recipes are written for one pan that holds heat. Stainless or cast iron both work.
An air fryer with a real basket
The air-fryer recipes expect a single layer. A crowded basket steams instead of browning.
A half-sheet pan
Drumsticks, potatoes, sausage, and carrots all use one. A dark pan browns faster than a very shiny one.
A sharp chef’s knife
These recipes do not need a specialty blade. A sharp 8-inch knife is faster and safer than a dull one.
A large cutting board
Big enough that the onion and the raw chicken are not sharing the same puddle.
Dry cups and a liquid cup
Desserts in particular expect level dry measures and a separate cup for milk.
An instant-read thermometer
Use it for poultry, pork chops, and meatloaf. Color is a weak guide.
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