Pasta bolognese
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Prep time: 
Cook time: 
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Makes: 5 portions
 
Ingredients
  • 500 gr minced beef
  • 50 ml oil
  • 125 gr celery
  • 200 gr carrot
  • 125 gr onion
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 100 gr tomato puree
  • 30 gr pesto
  • 800 gr tomato passata
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 tbspn thyme
  • 2 tbspn oregano
  • 400 gr pasta
Instructions
  1. Stir fry the mince until cooked. Season with salt and pepper.
  2. Chop onion and garlic. Dice the celery and carrot.
  3. Stir fry the vegetables on a high heat for a minute to give them a deep roasting flavour.
  4. Lower the heat and add the tomato puree. Cook for a minute.
  5. Add the pesto, tomato passata, bay leaves, thyme and oregano and bring the sauce to a simmer.
  6. Simmer the sauce on a low heat for 20 min or until the vegetables are soft. Remove the bay leaves.
  7. Taste the sauce for seasoning and add extra salt, pepper or Italian herbs to taste.
  8. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in salted boiling water until cooked. Drain and add to the sauce.
Stuff to know
Add some red wine to the sauce.
If the sauce seems to thick, add some tomato juice, tomato passata or stock. If the sauce is too thin, mix some corn flour with cold water and add that the sauce, which will thicken when boiling again.
For an even more intense tomato flavour, cut real tomatoes in half and sprinkle with salt, pepper, oil and herbs. Roast them in the oven until charred. Pureer and add them to the sauce.
Enrich the sauce with diced bell peppers and courgette.
Recipe by Jeroen Valkenier Recipes at https://jpvalkenier.com/pasta-bolognese-2/