Clay's Kitchen : Ricette Italiane (Italian Recipes)

Ricette Italiane (Italian Recipes)

© Copyright 1995-2023, Clay Irving <clay@panix.com>, Manhattan Beach, CA USA

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Ragù alla Bolognese

Recipe from: Pietro Rizzo

I give you the recipe for the ragù which they make in Bologna, which is the original SIMPLE meat sauce.

minced pork meat, not too lean (the melted fat gives very good flavor)
onion and garlic, finely chopped
half a carrot and a couple celery stalks finely chopped, or even better minced (in the mixer)
whatever you use for your tomato sauce (crushed tomatoes, "passata" which is runny with no chunks)
a glass of red wine
a spoon of sugar
salt to taste

Put some olive oil in a frying pan. when the oil is hot, add onion, garlic, carrot, celery and minced meat and let brown. Add wine and let evaporate. Then add the tomato (crushed, passata, whatever), salt to taste and sugar (I always add sugar whenever I used tomatoes, because as they cook they release the acid taste, so the sugar counteracts it; in Sicily they use cinnamon sticks instead of sugar). Let cook on a low boil for about an hour and a half. Remember the tomato sauce will reduce, so add a little more than you think is enough, or add more if you want the sauce quite runny. When you serve remember to add Parmesan.


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