Chris and Colin’s Ragù Bolognese
Written by Chris
Shh…you’ve found our secret recipe. One of the things that brought Colin and I closer together was our love for good food. From hunting down the best eats on trips, to our favorite restaurants in Boston, to a homemade meal, Colin and I are constantly searching for new restaurants and recipes.
One of our Sunday favorites, this Ragù Bolognese is a dish that Colin and I have tried to perfect. With this came the pleasure of taste testing in Boston’s North End and at local eateries in Bologna itself. After trial, error, and a healthy amount of pasta, we’re delighted to share our recipe with you.
P.S. You’ll need a dutch oven with a lid.
Ingredients
1 lb ground Pork
1 lb ground Beef
1 lb ground Veal (or more beef, or bison)
2-4 oz smoked bacon or pancetta, chopped into small pieces
1 medium Vidalia onion, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
2 large carrots, finely chopped
6-8 garlic cloves, minced or finely chopped
2 Tbsp tomato paste (we use cento double concentrated)
3/4 cup dry white wine
1 28 oz can whole peeled tomatoes (cento certified San Marzano will do)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
1 tsp Cinnamon
Olive Oil
Salt/Pepper
Recipe
Preheat your oven to 225°F
Prepare the onion, carrot, and celery by finely chopping (or, you can use a food processor on the pulse setting). Mince the garlic (keep this separate from the onion, carrot, and celery mixture).
Mix the ground beef, veal, and pork and season generously with salt and pepper. You’ll need more salt than you think you should need. Make 18 meatballs from the ground meat mixture.
Heat 1-2 Tbsp of olive oil in a large dutch oven on medium-high heat. Place the meatballs in the dutch oven in 2 batches, browning on all sides. Take care not to scorch the bottom of the dutch oven. Remove meatballs and set aside on a baking sheet or plate once browned all over. If you have a lot of fat, drain some of it - but make sure some oil & fat remains.
Reduce heat to medium.
Add bacon (or pancetta) and cook until light brown and crispy (5 minutes)
Add chopped onion, celery, and carrot and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft (6-8 minutes). Add salt to help the vegetables release some water and soften.
Add minced garlic and cook until fragrant (1 minute)
Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly and coating the vegetables, until the paste darkens (2 minutes)
Add wine and cook until the wine is nearly completed evaporated (4-5 minutes)
Increase heat to medium high
Empty the can of tomatoes into a large bowl and crush the whole tomatoes with your hands.
Add the tomatoes and sauce to the dutch oven.
Cook until sauce is jammy and reduced by half (8-12 minutes). When scraping the bottom of the pan with a spatula, the sauce should be jammy enough that the bottom of the pan is not immediately covered by sauce/water.
Add the chicken broth and heavy cream and stir.
Add 1/2 tsp of nutmeg and 1 tsp of cinnamon and stir.
Add meatballs back to the dutch oven and submerge in the sauce.
Bring the sauce to a simmer.
Cover the dutch oven, leaving the lid slightly ajar, and place in a 225°F oven. Adjust the temperature after 30 minutes if the sauce is not simmering (up to 250°F). Cook sauce for 3-4 hours. You do not need to stir the sauce, but check every hour to ensure the sauce is simmering.
Remove the dutch oven from the oven and use a potato masher to break apart the meatballs. Stir. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Reduce over medium-low heat as needed on the stove if sauce needs to be thickened.
Serve over pasta and top with freshly grated parmesan cheese (aged 24 months) and ground black pepper.
A glass of red wine definitely doesn’t hurt either!
Note: You can make the sauce, let it cool, and freeze individual portions in zip-loc bags for up to 3 months.