Bolognese Sauce (An Italian tomato and meat sauce)

By Craig Claiborne

Total Time
1 hour 50 minutes
Rating
4(358)
Comments
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Featured in: FINE ITALIAN HAND IN STUFFED FOODS

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Ingredients

Yield:about 4 cups
  • 2tablespoons butter
  • 2tablespoons olive oil
  • ¼cup (2 ounces) bulk sausage
  • ½cup onion chopped fine
  • ⅓cup celery diced fine
  • ½cup carrot diced fine
  • ½pound beef ground fine
  • ½pound pork ground fine
  • 2chicken livers, chopped fine, about ⅓ cup
  • ½teaspoon rosemary
  • ⅛teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • Salt to taste, if desired
  • Generous grinding of black pepper
  • 1cup dry white wine
  • 3tablespoons tomato paste
  • 3cups imported canned Italian plum tomatoes
  • 1cup beef broth
  • 2tablespoons chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried
  • ¼cup heavy cream
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

258 calories; 16 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 7 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 17 grams protein; 542 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat butter and oil in heavy saucepan or casserole and add sausage, onion, celery and carrot. Cook, stirring, until onion wilts.

  2. Step 2

    Add beef, pork and chicken livers and cook, stirring with side of heavy metal spoon to break up lumps, until meats lose raw look. Add rosemary, nutmeg, salt, pepper, wine and tomato paste. Stir to blend.

  3. Step 3

    Puree tomatoes in food processor or blender or crush them by hand. Add tomatoes and broth. Bring to boil and let simmer, skimming surface of fat, 1½ hours.

  4. Step 4

    Stir in basil and cream and remove from heat

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Ratings

4 out of 5
358 user ratings
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Comments

Michael

The basic sauce you will recognize from your favorite mom & pop Italian joint. A very flexible base that will survive a little substitution and flair. Far from being a chore, waiting during the long simmering time will allow the aroma to suffuse the house and arouse the appetites of lucky diners.

Johanna

Oops, didn't see that you need both sausage and pork. Made it with just sausage, hehe. And I decided to use liverwurst instead of chicken livers, since I don't know where to find chicken livers. It was awesome anyway!

Maura

I love this recipe. My only addition is to add a few tablespoons of toasted pignoli nuts to the sauce (i had this in a restaurant in Long Island City across from the courthouse).

Caroline W

I didn't use liver or ground pork but used sausage and ground beef and also added chopped shitake mushrooms from Trader Joe's (frozen) and found this sauce came out great.

Diane

I skipped the sausage and used a beef-pork-veal mix. I used red wine and a whole (small) can of tomato paste. This was fab and I will use this recipe again. Good for a cold windy weeknight.

Susanna

What, no garlic???

Did you try adding some?

@Susanna would love to know if you thought it improved the taste!

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