Serve this rich meat sauce on spaghetti or other long pasta. The sauce tastes even better if you make it a day ahead and refrigerate it overnight because the flavour has time to ripen.
- Portion size 5 servings
- Credits : Canadian Living Magazine: October 2007
Ingredients
Method
In large Dutch oven, cook beef over medium-high heat, breaking up with spoon, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer to bowl; set aside. Drain fat from pan.While beef is cooking, using mortar and pestle or bottom of small saucepan, crush fennel seeds; add to beef.
Add oil to pan; heat over medium heat. Cook pancetta, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, oregano, salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, about 8 minutes.
Add milk; simmer until almost no liquid remains. Add tomatoes, mashing with back of spoon. Return beef mixture to pan.
Add wine, tomato paste, bay leaf, sugar and hot pepper flakes; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thick enough to mound on spoon, about 45 minutes. Discard bay leaf.
Stir in parsley; cook for 2 minutes. (Make-ahead: Let cool for 30 minutes; refrigerate, uncovered, in airtight container until cold. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 1 month.)
Variation
Slow Cooker Bolognese Sauce: Cook as directed through the point of adding milk; scrape into slow cooker. Add tomatoes to slow cooker, mashing with back of spoon; add wine, bay leaf, sugar and hot pepper flakes. Cover and cook on low until vegetables are tender, about 6 hours. Stir in tomato paste and parsley; cover and cook on high until thickened and bubbly, about 20 minutes. Discard bay leaf.
Nutritional facts Per serving: about
- Sodium 320 mg
- Protein 12 g
- Calories 183.0
- Total fat 11 g
- Cholesterol 32 mg
- Saturated fat 5 g
- Total carbohydrate 9 g
%RDI
- Iron 16.0
- Folate 6.0
- Calcium 7.0
- Vitamin A 30.0
- Vitamin C 25.0
