Recipe № 014 · Italian · Pasta

Sunday Bolognese

A slow-simmered ragù — the kind that fills the house with the smell of Sunday. Make a double batch; it freezes beautifully.

Forked from Sarah's Weeknight Bolognese · by Sarah Park

Rating
4.7
3 cooks · last May 14
Time & yield
Serves 6 Scales 1–24
Prep 20min Mise & chop
Cook 3hr Mostly hands-off
Total 3:20 Plus pasta
Pasta Weeknight Freezer-friendly Sunday Crowd + Tag

Ingredients

14 items · Scale servings
  • 1 lbground beef (80/20)
  • ½ lbground pork
  • 1medium onion, finely diced
  • 2carrots, finely diced
  • 2ribs celery, finely diced
  • 4cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cupwhole milk
  • 1 cupdry white wine
  • 28 ozcrushed tomatoes
  • 2 tbsptomato paste
  • 1bay leaf
  • to tastesalt, pepper, nutmeg
  • 1 lbtagliatelle or pappardelle
  • Parmigiano-Reggiano, to serve

Method

8 steps
  1. Sweat the onion, carrot, and celery in olive oil over medium-low heat until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.

  2. Raise heat to medium-high and add the beef and pork. Break up with a wooden spoon and brown thoroughly — don't rush this; you want real color.

  3. Pour in the milk and simmer until almost fully absorbed, about 10 minutes. Season with a few rasps of nutmeg.

  4. Add the wine and simmer until reduced by half.

  5. Stir in the crushed tomatoes and tomato paste, drop in the bay leaf, and bring to a bare simmer.

  6. Partially cover and cook at the lowest possible simmer for 2½–3 hours, stirring every 30 minutes. Add a splash of water if it looks dry.

  7. Cook pasta to al dente, reserve a cup of pasta water, then toss with the sauce in a wide pan, adding pasta water as needed to loosen.

  8. Serve with a generous shower of Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Cook log

3 entries · avg 4.7
  • May 14, 2026 ★★★★★

    Doubled the bay leaf this time — exactly right. Reduced the wine longer than the recipe says.

    Edit
  • Apr 28, 2026 ★★★★☆

    A little too thin — needed longer on the simmer next time.

    Edit
  • Apr 7, 2026 ★★★★★

    First time — kids ate seconds. Keeper.

    Edit