Marcella Hazan’s Bolognese sauce recipe is authentic as can be and is, according to many we’ve heard of the absolute best Bolognese sauce recipe ever. It’s also easy and impressive.
Marcella Hazan, in her inimitable fashion, offers the home cook an authentic Bolognese sauce recipe, the traditional kind an Italian grandmother would approve of, thank you very much. This is my version of her recipe, with very subtle tweaks. It takes a while to make, although most of the time the Bolognese is spent simmering, unattended, on the back burner except for occasionally making lazy eights with a wooden spoon.–David Leite
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☞ Contents
Bolognese Sauce FAQs
What’s the difference between Bolognese and spaghetti sauce?
In essence, Bolognese sauce is spaghetti sauce. Though it’s no ordinary meat sauce. It’s a long, slowly simmered sauce that’s richer and creamier than your everyday marinara due to the inclusion of milk. It also is less predominated by tomatoes than your typical marinara. It’s named for its city of origin, Bologna.
Is there really no garlic, oregano, and basil in traditional Bolognese?
Believe it or not, traditional Bolognese contains none of the aromatic herbs or spices that many consider necessary in all Italian dishes. You may be tempted to add them, but do your best to resist. The nutmeg is a must – don’t leave that out.
Marcella Hazan’s Bolognese Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 8 tablespoons (4 oz) unsalted butter divided
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 1/3 cups chopped celery
- 1 1/3 cups chopped carrot
- 1 pound ground chuck (I used 1/2 pound chuck and 1/2 pound veal)
- 1/2 pound ground pork
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg or a pinch ground nutmeg
- 2 cups dry white wine
- 3 cups canned imported Italian San Marzano tomatoes, crushed by hand with their juice
- As much pasta as you wish (Marcella prefers tagliatelle) cooked and drained
- Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese at the table
Directions
- In a heavy 5-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, warm the oil and 6 tablespoons butter until the butter melts and stops foaming. Toss in the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is softened and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Toss in the celery and carrot and cook, stirring to coat them with the oil and butter, for 2 minutes.
- Add the chuck and pork, a very healthy pinch of salt, and a goodly amount of pepper. Crumble the meat with a wooden spoon and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meats have just lost their raw-red color.
- Reduce the heat to low. Pour in the milk and simmer gently, stirring frequently, until the liquid has completely evaporated, about 1 hour.
- Stir in the nutmeg. Pour in the wine and gently simmer, stirring frequently, until it's evaporated, about 1 1/4 hours more.
- Add the tomato purée or crushed tomatoes and stir well. When the tomato puree begins to bubble, turn down the heat so that the sauce cooks at the laziest of simmers with just an intermittent bubble breaking the surface.
- Cook, uncovered, for 3 hours or more, stirring from time to time. While the sauce is burbling away, there's a chance that it'll start drying out. To keep the sauce from sticking to the bottom of the pot and scorching, add 1/2 cup water if necessary, just know that it's crucial that by the time the sauce has finished simmering, the water should be completely evaporated, and the fat should separate from the sauce.
- Take a spoonful—or two—of sauce and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter to the hot pasta and toss with the sauce. Serve with freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano on the side.
Notes
What You Need To Know About Making The Most Classic Italian Bolognese
Following are some techniques and tricks to ensure the most classic Italian Bolognese: The more marbled the meat, the sweeter the ragu. (The most desirable cut of meat is the neck portion of the chuck. You may have to special order it from your butcher.) It’s important to salt the meat as soon as it hits the pan. This draws out the juices and imparts flavor to the Bolognese. Use a heavy pot that will retain heat. I use my Le Creuset 5-quart Dutch oven. Avoid using cast-iron, as the acid can interact with the metal and turn the sauce a blech color.Show Nutrition
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Recipe Testers’ Reviews
This is the perfect recipe to make if you’re stuck in the house doing chores and can’t leave. A little prep work and a little stir every now and then gives you a wonderful smell throughout your house and a nice, thick sauce for your pasta. I love that there isn’t a strong tomato taste to this sauce, unlike most commercial jar sauces. This is pure, hearty, stick-to-your-ribs comfort food.
All you need is some warm bread and you have a meal. The next time I make it I’ll probably omit the oil, as I felt there was a little too much oil floating on top when it was ready to serve.
Originally published January 31, 2012
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If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We'd love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
I am always troubled when a recipe calls for wine. Yes, I cook with it but I never know what “flavor” to buy when a recipe calls for “dry white wine” or a “hearty red.” What dry white do you think was used by MH?
JuneC, while I don’t know for certain what the lovely Marcella Hazan used in terms of a dry white wine for cooking, I dare say she would have used a Pinot Grigio. (If not sticking to Italian whites, a sauvignon blanc would also work well.) In response to the larger question, you don’t want to uncork an amazing bottle of wine to pour into a pot, but you do want to use the same quality wine that you’d pour into a glass for yourself.
Thank you for the information, I have the heavy pot to cook this in so now I will get the wine.
JuneC, one of our recipe testers who’s made this Bolognese several times just mentioned to me that she purchased a Gruner Veltliner 2012 from Trader Joes and used it in the sauce and in her words, “it was absolutely delicious…and the best part about it..the bottle was $4.99 and it was very easy drinking as well.”
Perhaps for the next time you make it, JuneC?
Wonderful, JuneC. Would love to hear what you think of the Bolognese—and the wine, of course.
I wish you could send a copy of this recipe to Prince William and Kate. Parade magazine printed his favorite recipe of ground beef and pasta and I decided to make it…it was completely tasteless. I don’t think the Brits do much flavoring. This would warm William, Harry, and Kate’s evening with a good bottle of their favorite wine.
Ha, Marilyn! I’ll get my UK readers on the case.
It is so wonderful to know that the Hazan version of ragu is still being made, enjoyed, and adored. In 1980, her book “Classic Italian Cooking” was published and its ragu has been a recipe to which I return again and again. Her instructions on risotto and polenta are also impeccable and should be followed precisely. I never make the Bolognese unless I can obtain veal and have even used cream once instead of milk, though my cardiologist has to be kept in the dark. Thanks to both of you!
Dennis, yes, her sauce is alive and well and living in my kitchen–and the kitchens of many. Her risotto recipe is one of my favorites, too–really a master class in patience.
David- you always touch my heart when you talk about your grandmother. You make me think of my own and how I too enjoyed cooking in the kitchen with my grandma. Best, Dana
FoodieGoesHealthy, thank you. Thanks very kind. It’s always amazing to me that so many of us have this deep connection to food through our grandmothers. I hope that continues as many people step away from the stove….
After learning of this recipe through this site, I became a believer after making this delicious sauce. Soon after trying the recipe I purchased Marcella Hazan’s book and I love it! I received a pasta maker as a gift and I have already experimented with fresh pasta. I have also made the green spinach lasagna with this sauce, it was delicious! Thank you David for posting this recipe!
Dawn, your comment was 100% perfect because 1.) You found the recipe, 2.) You liked the recipe, 3.) You bought the book, and 4.) You made even more from it. What more can a publisher ask?!