Bolognese Sauce from My Family in Bologna, Italy -- The Real Deal

• Gluten free

• Meat

  • 1 Ground beef
  • 1 Pancetta

• Produce

  • 1 Carrots
  • 1 Celery - one entire bunch with leaves attached
  • 3 bunches Italian parsley
  • 2 small bags Yellow onions

• Canned Goods

  • 1 Tomato paste
  • 1 Water or beef broth to

• Oils & Vinegars

  • 1 Olive oil -- a cup

• Dairy

  • 1 Milk/cream

• Beer, Wine & Liquor

  • 1 Wine

Found on italianbellavita.com

Description

Ingredients

• Olive oil -- a cup or so
• Ground Beef, Pork & Veal -- 20 pounds total
• Pancetta (optional) -- 1/4 pound, cubed
• Yellow Onions - 2 small bags, chopped
• Celery - One entire bunch with leaves attached, chopped
• Carrots (optional) -- 2 large carrots, grated
• Italian Parsley -- about 3 bunches, stemmed removed, chopped
• Wine (optional) -- 1 - 2 cups (red or white, depending on how strong you want it)
• Milk/Cream (optional) -- my family does not include -- 1 cup
• Tomato Paste, sauce, or fresh/frozen tomatoes -- about 10 12-oz cans to start with
• Water or beef broth to thin the sauce

Directions

• Clean and chop the onions and celery. If adding carrots, shred one or two with a micro-grater. Use two heavy pots: One to saute the beef/pork/veal in olive oil until very brown and one to saute the chopped onion, celery, (and carrots if you prefer) in olive oil until soft. IF YOU WANT TO ADD MUSHROOMS, saute them at this point and add to the soffrito (veggies). After the beef/pork/veal is thoroughly browned, add the sauteed vegetables to the large heavy pot that contains the beef. Add the (non-cooked) chopped Italian parsley. Mix well. IF YOU WANT TO ADD wine (red or white), this is when you add it. Allow it to boil and cook off the wines liquid. IF YOU WANT TO ADD milk/cream, this is the moment that you add it. Allow the mixture to boil for a few minutes to reduce the milk. Add tomato sauce, paste or fresh/frozen tomatoes. Stir well. Add more to the level of tomato-y-ness that you prefer. Add water to thin down to your desired level of thickness. Place one or two cookie sheets or pizza pans between the bottom of the pot and the heat source TO HELP PREVENT BURNING the sauce. Turn the temperature to the lowest possible and simmer for a minimum of 3 hours. Keep an eye on the sauce, adding water when needed, stirring and checking to see that it is not burning on the bottom of the pan. IF YOU BURN THE SAUCE, you will know it by feeling a crusty build-up on the bottom of the sauce. DO NOT SCRAPE IT IN! Remove the unburned sauce immediately into another clean pot and continue to cook. If you scrape in the burned sauce into the un-burned sauce, it will be completely ruined . . . a sad thing after all of that work! Add salt and pepper to taste throughout.