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    Recipes » Main Course Recipes » Pasta

    Bolognese Sauce

    Published: Sep 13, 2018 · Modified: Sep 23, 2020 by Marissa Stevens · 72 Comments

    This post may contain affiliate links.

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    Bolognese Sauce tossed with pappardelle pasta in a shallow white bowl

    To me this is the absolute best Bolognese Sauce! It's an authentic recipe we learned in Bologna, Italy, the birthplace of this meaty, deeply flavorful, slow simmered sauce of pancetta, ground beef, onion, carrot and celery (soffritto), wine, tomatoes and a splash of cream. It's easy to prepare and just requires a little patience to let the sauce bubble away, developing it's rich flavor.

    Bolognese Sauce with pappardelle served in a shallow white bowl
    Jump to:
    • What pasta goes best with Bolognese sauce?
    • Pappardelle Bolognese recipe straight from Bologna, Italy
    • FAQ
    • How to make Bolognese Sauce
    • Recipe Video
    • Bolognese Sauce
    • 💬 Comments

    What pasta goes best with Bolognese sauce?

    Italians are serious about pairing sauces with the correct pasta shape and Bolognese Sauce is traditionally tossed with flat, broad pasta shapes like tagliatelle, fettuccine, or (my favorite) pappardelle. The rich sauce clings to the wide surface area making every bite sing with flavor! And if you'd like to make homemade pasta, this food processor pasta dough is quick and easy.

    Bolognese Sauce served with pappardelle in shallow white bowls

    Pappardelle Bolognese recipe straight from Bologna, Italy

    We left our pasta making class at La Veccia Scuolo with pappardelle that we'd made by hand, an authentic recipe for Bolognese Sauce and a strong resolve to make it in our tiny apartment kitchen. It turned out to be the easiest grocery shopping experience of our entire trip to Italy.

    We stop at a salumeria and say to the shopkeeper, "Bolognese?" His eyes ignite, "Si, si, si," he says. He turns and chooses one of the three pancettas he has for sale. He meets my eyes and makes a cutting motion with his knife. "Si," I answer, I would love to have him dice it for me. Next we go to the butcher. "Bolognese?," we say. His eyes ignite, "Si, si, si," he says. He wraps up just enough ground beef. Now down a small alley we choose a produce stand. "Bolognese?," we say. Her eyes ignite, "Si, si, si," she says. She turns and fills a small paper bag with one small onion, one carrot, one rib of celery.

    We've been making this Bolognese recipe ever since.

    FAQ

    What is Bolognese sauce?

    As with many cherished recipes in Italy (like ragu sauce), the definition of 'authentic' varies by region and even by kitchen! But the basic components of Bolognese Sauce include a small amount of fatty pork, a generous amount of ground beef, soffritto, white wine, tomatoes, tomato puree, or tomato paste and milk or cream.

    Some variations on this meat sauce recipe may include ground pork, ground veal, or Italian sausage swapped in for some or all of the ground beef, using dry red wine in place of white, adding a bay leaf while the sauce simmers, or cooking the pancetta and soffrito in a bit of good extra-virgin olive oil. Feel free to experiment to make this recipe your own. And it's not just for tossing with pasta, it works wonderfully in lasagna as well.

    Can you add cream to Bolognese sauce?

    Some recipes call for long simmering the meat in whole milk, but I prefer to add a splash of cream to the sauce just before serving. It makes the sauce velvety smooth and creamy and tames any acidity from the wine and tomatoes.

    This recipe takes about 90 minutes to cook, but the active time is 15 minutes or less. Perfect for a lazy Sunday afternoon, but easy enough for a weeknight. You could also layer it between Homemade Lasagna Noodles in my Lasagna with Cottage Cheese.

    How to make Bolognese Sauce

    Step 1: In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, cook and stir the pancetta until the fat starts to render.

    browning pancetta

    Step 2: Add onion, carrots and celery (soffritto); sauté until the vegetables are soft.

    adding onion carrots and celery soffritto
    Cooking pancetta and soffrito until soft

    Step 3: Add ground beef; cook and stir, breaking it into smaller pieces until browned all over. Drain and discard any excess fat. Add wine; stir and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes, until wine has mostly evaporated.

    Adding Ground Beef
    browned ground beef pancetta and soffrito
    adding white wine

    Step 4: Add tomatoes; stir and simmer 30 minutes.

    adding tomatoes to bolognese sauce

    Step 5: Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions so that it's al dente when the Bolognese Sauce is done or shortly after.

    cooking pappardelle pasta

    Step 6: Stir cream into Bolognese Sauce and scoop pasta directly from the cooking water into the sauce; gently toss to coat. Serve topped with grated parmesan cheese (ideally Parmigiano-Reggiano) and minced Italian parsley if desired.

    adding cream to bolognese sauce
    stirring cream into bolognese sauce
    tossing bolognese sauce with pasta to coat

    Recipe Video

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    Bolognese Sauce with pappardelle served in a shallow white bowl

    Bolognese Sauce

    Marissa Stevens
    The best authentic Bolognese Sauce recipe straight from Bologna, Italy! This classic Italian pasta sauce is heavenly and easy to make!
    5 from 11 votes
    Save Recipe Saved! Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 15 mins
    Cook Time 1 hr 30 mins
    Total Time 1 hr 45 mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Italian
    Servings 6 people
    Calories 646 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 4 ounces pancetta cut in to ¼ inch cubes
    • 1 medium carrot cut in to ¼ inch cubes
    • 1 small small onion cut in to ¼ inch cubes
    • 1 large rib celery cut in to ¼ inch cubes
    • 1 pound ground beef
    • 1 ¼ cups dry white wine
    • 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes with juice ideally San Marzano
    • ¼ cup heavy cream
    • 1 pound pappardelle pasta or tagliatelle, cooked according to package directions
    • kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
    • grated Parmigiano Reggiano to taste, optional
    • minced fresh Italian parsley to taste, optional

    Instructions
     

    • Heat a large pot over medium heat; add pancetta. Cook and stir until fat starts to render, 5 to 7 minutes.
    • Add the soffritto of vegetables: carrot, onion, celery. Cook and stir until soft, about 5 minutes.
    • Add the ground beef; break up with a wooden spoon and stir until lightly brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Drain and discard excess fat. Add wine and bring to boil; reduce heat and let simmer, stirring occasionally for 30 minutes, or until most of the wine evaporates.
    • Add crushed tomatoes and their juices; stir. Simmer 30 minutes more. This is a good time to put water on to boil for your pasta. (Cook pasta according to package directions, timed to be ready just after you've stirred cream into the sauce. And reserve some of the pasta water for loosening the sauce if necessary.)
    • Remove sauce from heat and stir in heavy cream.
    • Season ragu with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Add hot cooked pasta to sauce and gently toss to coat. Add reserved pasta water if necessary to loosen the sauce.
    • Divide pasta and sauce among serving bowls. If desired, top with grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and minced fresh Italian parsley; serve.

    Notes

    If you can’t find pancetta, substitute thick sliced bacon – the main difference is that pancetta isn’t smoked.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 646kcalCarbohydrates: 58gProtein: 26gFat: 29gSaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 143mgSodium: 213mgPotassium: 546mgFiber: 3gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 1940IUVitamin C: 1.8mgCalcium: 61mgIron: 3.2mg
    Keyword comfort food, dinner party, easy
    Tried this recipe?I'd love to see it! Tag me on Instagram at @pinchandswirl or leave me a comment and rating below.

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Josephine Chierchio says

      November 09, 2021 at 2:48 am

      5 stars
      Hello ,
      Both your ragu and bolognese sauces look delicious. I’m making lasagna for Thanksgiving. My Dad usually makes the sauce and I do all the rest. I’m doing it all this year. I was wondering which sauce you would recommend for lasagna. I’m using the ready bake lasagna. I find that that uses a lot more sauce than regular lasagna. Thanks for your help!
      Josephine

      Reply
      • Marissa Stevens says

        November 09, 2021 at 10:26 am

        Hi there, Josephine! For a special occasion lasagna, I'd definitely opt for the richer Bolognese Sauce. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

        Reply
        • Josephine says

          November 12, 2021 at 4:38 am

          Thanks ! You too!

          Reply
    2. E says

      November 01, 2020 at 7:07 pm

      If I don’t have the type of pasta mentioned, would this work with fusilli or penne?

      Reply
      • Marissa Stevens says

        November 02, 2020 at 7:58 am

        Hi there, E. Sure. Though long pasta is the traditional choice here (pappardelle, spaghetti, linguine, etc.), you can make it with any pasta you like.

        Reply
    3. Susan says

      June 25, 2020 at 5:39 pm

      This was unbelievably good. How the simplest ingredients make such a complex flavor is amazing! The best meat-based sauce I have ever made!

      Reply
      • Marissa Stevens says

        June 28, 2020 at 3:29 pm

        That's so wonderful to hear, Susan! Thank you for coming back to let me know!

        Reply
    4. Mary says

      March 31, 2020 at 10:40 am

      5 stars
      I really loved this recipe! And made it tonight! It was delicious! I was just wondering, why no garlic? I honestly didn't miss it - but was just curious! Thanks for this recipe--its definitely a keeper!!

      Reply
      • Marissa Stevens says

        March 31, 2020 at 1:01 pm

        I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Mary! If you do an internet search about garlic in Bolognese, you'll find that it's hotly contested. We learned to make it without garlic, and I love it this way. (Even though I'm a garlic lover!) But feel free to add garlic if you like... 🙂

        Reply
    5. Sofia says

      October 10, 2019 at 1:27 am

      Thank you for a wonderful recipe, I don't eat pork, is there anything I could replace the pancetta with?

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        October 10, 2019 at 11:12 pm

        Hi Sofia! I would substitute a beef bacon or turkey bacon or sausage. You could also make Ragu Sauce instead, delicious and no pork required. 😊

        Reply
    6. Doug says

      September 26, 2019 at 4:05 pm

      So, why no herbs, like rosemary, thyme, basil? Or would that make it a different sauce?

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 26, 2019 at 5:01 pm

        Hi Doug! That's a great question and "yes" is the answer. It would be a different sauce. But you'll be surprised at how complex the flavors are even with such simple ingredients - the same is true with this ragu sauce. I hope you'll give it (them) a try!

        Reply
    7. Sabrina says

      September 26, 2018 at 6:24 am

      5 stars
      Great recipe, Marissa! A good bolognese is the BEST.

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 26, 2018 at 2:26 pm

        Thanks so much, Sabrina!!

        Reply
    8. Kevin says

      September 19, 2018 at 8:00 pm

      5 stars
      Great sauce! I love trying new sauces on my pasta! Cannot wait to cook this up!

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 20, 2018 at 11:55 am

        Thanks, Kevin! Hope you and David love it!

        Reply
    9. Katherine | Love In My Oven says

      September 19, 2018 at 7:12 pm

      I have a secret....my husband LOVES his mother's bolognese sauce...but I don't really like it! Eek! I've been looking for a recipe that he will love just as much, and that I love too! Yours looks like it might just do the trick. I've gotta try it soon!

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 22, 2018 at 10:27 am

        I'm cracking up, Katherine! I hope this recipe does the trick for you... 😉

        Reply
    10. Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says

      September 18, 2018 at 12:36 pm

      5 stars
      First of all, how did I miss this when you originally posted it?! Shame on me! Second, you learned to make bolognese sauce in Bologna, Italy?!?!? I am beyond jealous! I swear I can smell how good this sauce is just by looking at it on my computer screen! I am drooling!!!! Hand me a shovel, because I want to dive in! Pinning to try! Cheers!

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 22, 2018 at 10:27 am

        Aww...thank you so much, Cheyanne! You leave the sweetest comments.

        Reply
    11. Mary Ann | The Beach House Kitchen says

      September 17, 2018 at 1:02 pm

      5 stars
      Bolognese is a favorite at our house Marissa! Your recipe looks delicious. Such a fabulous fall comfort dish!

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 22, 2018 at 10:28 am

        Thank you very much, Mary Ann!

        Reply
    12. Liz says

      September 17, 2018 at 5:41 am

      5 stars
      I cannot wait to try your traditional, tried and true bolognese recipe! It sounds amazing!!!

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 22, 2018 at 10:28 am

        Love to hear that, Liz! Thank you so much!

        Reply
    13. David @ Spiced says

      September 17, 2018 at 4:50 am

      It's so interesting how soffritos (plural?) change across cultures. Onion, carrot, celery in Italy. Onions, celery, bell peppers in the Cajun south. But that soffrito is the base of everything to come! I absolutely love a good bolognese sauce, and I love that you learned how to make this one in Italy, Marissa! I've got to make this version...ASAP. You know how much we love our pasta around this house! 🙂

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 22, 2018 at 10:30 am

        hmm, you've got me on the plural of soffritto. 😉 But it's so true! Interesting how different cultures start many of their classic dishes with a similar base. Thanks so much, David!

        Reply
    14. Jeff the Chef says

      September 16, 2018 at 5:51 pm

      What a delicious looking Bolognese! I love that it includes carrots and cream.

      Reply
      • Marissa says

        September 22, 2018 at 10:30 am

        Thank you, Jeff!

        Reply
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