Ragu Ala Bolognese

I’ve never really ordered any pasta with Bolognese sauce. My earliest and probably my only memory of having a plate of Pasta Bolognese was when I was 11-12. I later found out that it was made from ground beef. I never consume beef back then and since then, I rarely order it unless they use chicken or pork instead of beef.

Bolognese is an Italian meat sauce which originates from the region of Bologna, Italy…..hence the name Bolognese. I had wanted some Pasta Bolognese after looking a picture my friend took in Rome, where she claimed she had the best Pasta Bolognese. After seeing that picture, I couldn’t keep my mind of the Bolognese sauce and did some search for recipes and ideas. I soon found out that the famous Bolognese sauce is not just tomato and meat. It has a list of ingredients that give the sauce an extra depth of flavors. Chopped carrots, chopped celery and cream were some of those surprising ingredients.

Most if not all the recipes I’ve seen uses ground beef, ground veal, ground pork and/or sausages. I decided to make my own Pork Bolognese. =) The sauce came up delicious. I paired it with some linguine the first night. The second day, I paired it with some cheese filled raviolis. I must say Linguine Bolognese tasted much better!! Here’s the recipe.

RAGU ALA BOLOGNESE (PORK) RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 3/4 Lb Ground Pork
• 1/4 Cup Finely Diced Carrot (About 1/2 Medium Carrot)
• 1/3 Cup Finely Diced Celery (About 1 Celery Rib)
• 1/2 Cup Finely Chopped Onion (About 1/2 Medium Onion)
• 2 Cloves Garlic, Chopped
• 2 Slices Bacon, Finely Chopped
• 3 Tbsp Tomato Paste
• 2 Cup Crushed Tomato (Canned)
• 1/2 Cup Chicken Stock
• 1/4 Cup + 2 Tbsp Dry White Wine
• 1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar (*Optional)
• 1/4 Cup Heavy Cream
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 1/4 Tsp Parsley Flake
• 1/2 Tsp Dried Oregano
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 Tbsp Butter
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1/4 Grated Parmesan (*Optional)
• 1 Box Pasta (1 lb Box)

Method:

In a pot, heat butter and olive oil over medium high heat. Once the oil mixture is hot, add bay leaf, carrots, celery and onion. Stir fry mixture until onion is soft. Add bacon and stir fry until bacon is slightly browned. Add ground pork and garlic. Break ground pork unto pieces while stir frying it and browning it. The more brown you get on the pork, the more fragrant it is.

Then add white wine into the meat mixture and cook until wine has evaporated. Then add tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, red wine vinegar, chicken stock, sugar, parsley flake and oregano. Stir mixture well. Season with salt and pepper and let mixture simmer for 1hour to 1-1/2 hour over medium low heat. Remember to stir sauce occasionally.

Boil 1 x 1lb box of Spaghetti or your choice of pasta in seasoned water (oil + salt) until al-dente. Scoop some pasta onto a plate and pout sauce over. Sprinkle some grated parmesan cheese over the pasta. Serve immediately. This should serve about 4-5 people.