Jim's Pasta Bolognese
I grew up in a household with a mother who was of Canadian descent. I pay homage to her side of the family by learning and speaking the French language since I was in grade school. My family grew up with our French-Canadian cousins, and summers usually included a visit by them to Massachusetts or us to Montreal. In fact, we just had an awesome visit with our cousins in Montreal this past summer and one of those cousins is a regular reader of this blog. Bonjour Louis! As much as I cherish my Canadian heritage, that love doesn’t extend to the cuisine. Meals are unimaginative with lots of heavy carb meat offerings sprinkled with meat by-products like liver, kidney and brains. One of the most famous Canadian foods is a heart howitzer of French fries smothered in beef gravy called Poutine. It’s beyond gross. I do like Canadian bacon and maple syrup though!
Luckily, my father came from a traditional Italian family where my grandparents emigrated from the motherland in the early 1900’s. My Nonna raised 11 kids and lived to the ripe old age of 102 years. She was also an amazing cook. Me and my 54 first cousins (yes, you read that right) were lucky to have spent a good deal of our lives with our grandparents around us. We visited Nonno and Nonna once a week and, on every visit, grandma was in the kitchen cooking something. The aroma was an Italian potpourri of garlic, olive oil and Romano cheese. I took the time to learn some of her dishes when I was a young man, and I attribute my love of cooking to her. Quick shout out to my sister Cathy (alias Kiki) who also learned from Nonna and is still the best chef I know.
Now that winter is here, I start to long for those comfort foods like stews and soups and pasta dishes. One of my go-to recipes is pasta and Bolognese sauce, or ragù alla Bolognese. It’s one of Italy's most celebrated culinary creations. This rich and hearty meat-based sauce has a long and storied history tied to the city of Bologna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. The concept of meat sauces can be traced back to the Roman Empire. Ancient Romans enjoyed meat-based stews and sauces, often cooked with wine, herbs, and spices. However, these early versions lacked tomatoes, which were introduced to Europe only after the discovery of the Americas in the 16th century.
The word ragù comes from the French ragoût, meaning a type of stew or slow-cooked dish. During the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, Italian chefs began adapting this French culinary concept into their own cuisine. These early ragùs were meat-heavy, often featuring minced or finely chopped meat, and were served with bread or pasta. The first recipes resembling what we now call Bolognese sauce appeared in the 18th and 19th centuries. Bologna, known for its rich culinary tradition, became the birthplace of this iconic dish. Early versions of ragù alla Bolognese were less tomato-centric than modern iterations, focusing more on meat, wine, and milk or cream.
Pellegrino Artusi, often called the "father of Italian cuisine," included a recipe for “maccheroni alla Bolognese” in his influential cookbook, Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well (1891). His version featured veal, pancetta, butter, carrot, and onion, with a touch of broth and cream—no tomatoes yet. This recipe laid the foundation for the modern dish.
The addition of tomatoes became common in the 20th century, reflecting the growing popularity of the fruit in Italian cuisine. Over time, Bolognese evolved into a slow-cooked sauce made with ground beef and pork, Soffritto (a base of onion, carrot, and celery cooked in olive oil), white wine, milk or cream, and tomatoes. In 1982, the Italian Academy of Cuisine officially registered the recipe for ragù alla Bolognese with the Bologna Chamber of Commerce to preserve its authenticity. This "official" version uses the following ingredients:
· Ground beef and pancetta
· Onion, carrot, and celery
· Tomato paste and a small amount of tomatoes
· Milk
· White wine
· Broth
Outside Italy, Bolognese sauce has been adapted into various versions, often featuring more tomatoes and served over pasta. In Italy, it is traditionally paired with tagliatelle (a wide, flat pasta) or used as a filling for lasagna. Ragù alla Bolognese is more than just a recipe; it represents the culinary heritage of Bologna and Italy. Its meticulous preparation and balance of flavors reflect the Italian philosophy of cooking: simplicity, tradition, and the use of high-quality ingredients. Bolognese sauce has undergone centuries of transformation, from ancient stews to the creamy, meaty dish we know today. Despite its evolution, it remains a symbol of Italian culinary excellence, cherished both in its homeland and around the world.
I have certainly made Bolognese the traditional way with all fresh ingredients and simmering the sauce for hours on the stove, as I made fresh pasta to serve it with. It was incredibly delicious and always a showstopper with dinner guests. Over the years, my recipe has evolved to be more efficient and timesaving without sacrificing flavor. I start by substituting the ground beef with ground lamb along with the ground pork and pancetta. Lamb adds a rich flavor that is hard to duplicate with any other meat. I encourage you to use grass fed meats whenever you can. It tastes better and is better for the environment. I also sometimes substitute peeled tomatoes and paste with a reliably delicious Classico jarred sauce. I know this might seem like culinary heresy for you purist chefs out there, but I don’t cook for a living and want something delectable that I can put together in a couple hours.
Handmade pasta is something I love but it’s been many years since I’ve made it because, well, it’s a lot of work. You can find good fresh pasta choices in your local market, and you should look for wide noodles like tagliatelle and pappardelle. The sauce clings better to wide noodles and the texture in the mouth is just glorious. If you can’t find fresh, dried pasta like penne or rigatoni is preferable. Don’t use traditional spaghetti because it just doesn’t hold the sauce, and its texture isn’t as good.
While Bolognese sauce takes a bit of time, it’s shockingly hands off! All the work happens up front, and the sauce simply simmers for a couple of hours. You can even make the sauce ahead of time! Bolognese is one of those recipes that only gets better when it sits. Then, all you have to do is cook up some of your favorite pasta and swirl it together in a pan with some pasta water, cream, and gobs of this Bolognese sauce. Finish with a mound of grated parmesan or Romano cheese and dinner is done!
What Makes My Bolognese Sauce Recipe Unique?
There are thousands of recipes for Bolognese sauce out there, so why am I adding yet another one? The primary reason falls in the domain of my obsession with simplification which informs most of my behavior, sometimes to my detriment I have been told. 😊Simply put, this recipe is the best value for the time invested. The task is to orchestrate a delicious meal that makes your guests beg for more and for the recipe. They don’t need to know if you are using jar sauce or using a food processor or if you made your own fresh pasta. Tell them it’s an ancient family secret. And most importantly, my dearly departed grandmother Cesira Fini would approve of this time-saver because raising eleven kids requires constant cost-benefit decisions.
The second reason my sauce is unique is that I do substitution and addition, the combination of which I’ve never seen before. I substitute jarred sauce for the tomatoes, ground lamb for beef, and add pesto to the sauce. There are those that might say the jar sauce is a disqualifier. To that I say, the basic recipe calls for a tomato-dominant sauce. Why should you care how I get there if the destination is the same? It’s a delicious meal. It has layers of flavor. This comes from the crispy pancetta, ground lamb (or beef or bison) and Italian sausage mixture, and all the aromatic veggies. Milk, wine, and tomatoes seal the deal and a couple of hours of simmering melds all the flavors.
How to Make Jim’s Bolognese Sauce
As with all my long simmering recipes I recommend a Dutch oven. It distributes heat evenly and is a total workhorse in the kitchen. No home cook is complete without one! Then you will need a sharp knife. If you don’t have a good chef’s knife set, put it on your Christmas list. Finally, I sometimes use a food processor to save time and guarantee a good uniform chopping of veggies.
The Strategy
Meats. This recipe calls for ground lamb and Italian sausage, as well as pancetta for flavor. Plain ground pork is traditional, but I just love the extra flavor that Italian sausage adds, and you can usually find it in its ground form, not in link sausage form.
Veggies. Soffritto is the backbone of the sauce and contains onion, garlic, celery, and carrot. I usually throw in the garlic at this stage as well.
Traditional Italian Basil Pesto. I use the Classico Traditional Basil Pesto which is more coarsely ground and has lots of basil. It also has garlic and depending in your taste, you can skip the chopped garlic and just add the pesto.
Wine. Choose a medium-bodied red wine and in keeping with the theme, choose and Italian wine! If you want a lighter sauce, you could use white wine instead. However, even if you don’t normally drink red wine, it makes a better sauce. I usually drink wine to lubricate my cooking process, so I throw that in.
Tomatoes. If I am having a fancier dinner party, I will do the traditional crushed tomatoes. I like imported Pastene Ground Peeled Tomatoes because that’s what Nonna used from the time she came to this country. Any brand that’s been around for 120 years has my vote. If I am shorter on time, I will substitute tomatoes with really good jar sauce. I prefer Classico Vodka Sauce which already has cream in it so you can avoid having to add as much cream separately, however any of their many flavors will work fine. I find Classico brand to be an inexpensive pasta sauce that is simply excellent. They have lots of flavors so if you choose something other than the Vodka sauce, then you should add the cream separately.
Half and half. Half and helps tenderize the meat and gives us a silky and tender sauce. You could swap in whole milk, but don’t go with anything with less fat.
Romano cheese. Ditch the pre-grated stuff and get a small wedge of Romano. Add the rind to the sauce for extra flavor and freshly grate the rest on top when serving. You can substitute Parmesan if that’s your jam, but again, Giovanni and Cesira Fini ran a Romano cheese house where we all appreciated its spiciness. Most stores you can find a high quality pre-grated Romano cheese. It is my go-to grated cheese for pasta. My Italian family jokes that Parmesan is for the non-Italians!
The Ingredients
· 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
· 1 tablespoon butter
· 6 oz pancetta diced small. If you don’t want to use ground pork, just use a little more pancetta.
· 1 lb ground Italian pork sausage
· 1 lb ground lamb (or bison or beef). Use organic if you can. Pay a little more, help the earth
· 3 jars of Classico sauce. 4 cheese, caramelized onion, regular marinara.
· 1 jar Classico Rustic pesto
· 2 tablespoons minced garlic.
· 18 oz beef stock
· 1 cup diced yellow onions
· 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
· 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
· 2 celery ribs, chopped
· 1 and 1/2 cup red wine
· 2 bay leaves
· 3 tablespoons of grated Romano cheese
· Kosher salt
· Freshly cracked pepper
· Couple pinches of red pepper flakes
· Large, covered pot. Dutch Oven preferred
· 1 cup half and half (or whole milk)
The Process
Crisp up the pancetta. Melt the butter and olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium low heat. Add the pancetta, and cook while occasionally stirring, until crispy. This process takes about 6-8 minutes, don’t rush. Use a wooden spoon to remove the pancetta from the pot and transfer to a small bowl.
Finely mince the veggies. While the pancetta cooks, Add all the veggies and garlic to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until everything is finely minced. This saves tons of time!
Cook the meats. Add the ground lamb and Italian sausage to the pot and keep the heat low. Cook while stirring often until the meat is cooked through and really finely broken up. Don’t brown the meat, just cook low and slow until it’s cooked through.
Add the veggies. Increase the heat to medium and add the finely chopped veggies to the pot. Cook for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the veggies are soft. Add half cup of the Classico jar sauce to the pot and really mix it in. Cook until it’s darkened in color, for about 5 minutes.
Add the remaining ingredients including the jar of pesto for that subtle basil aromatic. Add wine to the pot and use it to help scrape up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Add the balance of the jar sauce, the cream (or milk), bay leaves, crispy pancetta, and Romano to the pot. Season with salt and pepper and reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot.
Simmer on low for 2 1/2 – 3 hours, stirring every hour or so. The sauce should be thick and deep red in color. Then season to taste with salt and pepper and remove the bay leaves.
Cooking Tips
This is a forgiving recipe that doesn’t require a ton of culinary know-how. Even a novice cook can easily throw this together! Here are my tips for making the best Bolognese sauce every time.
1. Use a food processor. For the veggies to melt into the sauce, they need to be teeny tiny! Instead of spending excessive amounts of time dicing, use a food processor to get the veggies uniformly and finely chopped.
2. Let the meat come to room temperature. If you let the meat come to room temperature before cooking, it breaks up a lot easier! Bolognese sauce needs meat that’s been really broken down into tiny pieces. Starting with room temperature meat makes the cooking process so much easier!
3. Don’t brown the meat. Browning the meat can often times make it tough and dry, so I always cook the ground meat over medium-low heat. Cook low and slow, breaking the meat up into fine bits as it cooks.
4. Don’t skip the milk/cream. It may sound odd to add it to a red sauce, but the milk helps tenderize and break down the proteins in the beef and pork. The result is a soft and luscious sauce.
5. Use drinkable red wine. I am of the mind that you should cook with wine that you’d drink! This doesn’t mean you need expensive wine but use something that you’re happy to drink if there are leftovers.
The Pasta
The biggest mistake people make when trying to make pasta Bolognese at home is just dumping sauce over some pasta. This is not the way! If you only ever take one thing away from this recipe, know that restaurant-quality pasta is more than that.
Great pasta is always, always finished in the sauce with some starchy pasta water and just a splash of cream. Finishing the pasta in the sauce ensures that the pasta absorbs all the flavor from the sauce. I make the Bolognese sauce in advance and just re-warm small portions with pasta and pasta water and plate for each person.
1. Cook your pasta in a large pot of salted water to al dente, which is slightly chewy. Al dente literally means “to the teeth” in Italian. Test the pasta several times while boiling. There is nothing worse than soggy bloated pasta. I love serving Bolognese sauce with pappardelle, but you can use any pasta (except spaghetti) you love most. I prefer pappardelle or tagliatelle with Bolognese sauce!
2. Warm some of the sauce in a large skillet. I always make enough Bolognese to freeze half of it and I always make it ahead of time because the sauce gets better as it sits. Rewarm some of the sauce in a large nonstick skillet.
3. Reserve 1 cup of starchy pasta water, then carefully drain the pasta. Resist the temptation of rinsing your pasta with water once it’s drained. Doing so rinses away the starches on its surface, preventing it from properly adhering to the Bolognese sauce.
4. Toss! Add the hot pasta straight into the skillet with the Bolognese sauce, tossing to combine well. Use your judgment & adjust pasta Bolognese as needed (a splash of the reserved pasta water will help loosen up the pasta Bolognese; a handful of extra Romano will tighten it up a bit, etc.).
5. Simmer: Let the pasta Bolognese simmer for 1-2 minutes, allowing the pasta to absorb some of the Bolognese sauce as it finishes cooking.
6. Serve! Finally, the best part! Portion into individual bowls & serve immediately. Top with a mound of freshly grated Romano.
Freezing, and Reheating the Bolognese Sauce
Bolognese sauce stores SO well – it’s one of those things that gets even better as it sits and its flavors have the chance to meld together. Once cooled, transfer to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Whip up a batch of pasta Bolognese during the week by reheating the Bolognese sauce in a skillet & following the steps above.
Bolognese sauce is incredibly freezer-friendly! To freeze, transfer the cooled Bolognese sauce to a freezer-safe Ziplock bag or Tupperware. Take care to press most of the air out before sealing, this helps prevent freezer-burn. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge and rewarm in a skillet.
I hope you enjoy this simple but delectable recipe. I’ll be making this for our Christmas party in Park City, UT in a couple weeks. This is the ultimate Italian comfort food especially for those cold snowy nights.
If you’re listening to this on my podcast and want the recipe, just navigate to jimfini.com/blog/Jim’s Pasta Bolognese. Merry Christmas and Abondanza!