How to Make Beef Bolognese Pasta

Everyone needs a great everyday Spaghetti Bolognese recipe, and this is mine! The Bolognese Sauce is rich, thick and has beautiful depth of flavour. It's perfect for a quick midweek meal though if you have the time to simmer this Meat Sauce for a couple of hours, you'll take it from seriously delish to OMG this is amazing!!

Serve it over pasta, stuff into jacket potatoes, make an epic Lasagna or Baked Spaghetti Pie!

Spaghetti Bolognese

We Aussies have a thing about shortening words. Good dayis g'day. Pavlova is Pav, afternoon is arvo, mosquitos are mozzies. Sharon isShazz, Nagisa is Nagi (that's yours truly).

So it is thoroughly Aussie to shorten Spaghetti Bolognese to Spag Bol!

And here she is – my Spag Bol. Rich, thick, incredible flavour in the sauce even if you only have time for a quick 20 minute simmer. Though if you can slow cook for a couple of hours, it really takes it to another level!

What goes in Spaghetti Bolognese

I've been loyal to this Meat Sauce recipe since I first learned to cook when I was a teenager. There are 3 little things in this recipe that might be a bit different to Bolognese recipes you've seen around:

1. Worcestershire sauce: it just adds that little extra something-something. I get antsy if I get caught in a situation where I have to do without;

2. Beef bouillon cubes (beef stock cubes) for extra depth of flavour in the sauce, to compensate for this being an everyday midweek version rather than a traditional slow cooked Bolognese Ragu which starts with asoffrito (onion, celery, carrot slowly sautéed) as well as pancetta.

3. Sugar, if needed: just a little bit goes a long way to transform the sauce if you happen not to be using high quality, sweet Italian canned tomatoes. Supermarket canned tomatoes here in Australia are notoriously sour. Especially the Australian ones – it pains me so much to say that, but it's true.

How to make Bolognese Sauce

The making part is straightforward and quite quick too:

• Saute garlic and onion – about 3 minutes;

• Brown the beef – about 2 minutes;

• Add everything else, give it a good stir then simmer for 20 minutes minimum (midweek), up to 3 hours (weekend indulgence!). Slow cooking makes the beef incredibly tender and the sauce develops extra flavour.

Difference between Bolognese and Meat Sauce?

Different name for the same thing! You'll find Bolognese made all sorts of ways all across Italy and all around the world, but essentially mince meat (usually beef, sometimes combined with pork or veal) in a tomato based sauce flavoured with herbs.

The "proper" way to serve pasta: toss with the sauce

As with all my pasta recipes, I include a step to toss the pasta IN the sauce, rather than just placing pasta in bowls and spooning over sauce.

This makes the Bolognese sauce emulsify, so it thickens, becomes glossy and clings to the spaghetti. No more watery sauce at the bottom of your pasta bowl! This is how chefs and Italians make pasta. Try it once, you will be converted!

But it is an optional step . Sometimes, you just don't have the energy to clean yet another pan. I hear ya. 🙂

What to serve with Spaghetti Bolognese

For a classic Italian feast, serve this with:

• Garlic Bread – or even more indulgent, with Cheesy Garlic Bread (or go over-the-top with Crack Bread). Or, for a more traditional start, real-deal Italian Focaccia.

• Garden Salad with Italian Dressing (hit of crisp fresh salad essential!)

• Tiramisu to finish with an Espresso Martini on the side

For a super quick side salad option, make this Rocket Parmesan Salad with Balsamic Dressing. Probably my most made side salad because it's literally a 2 minute effortless-no-chop salad!

This recipe is the way I have been making Spaghetti Bolognese for decades (gosh it's scary saying that!!). I really love it, and I think the sauce is rich and loaded with flavour, especially for a 30 minute Bolognese recipe.

Though if you have the time, slow cook it for a couple of hours. The flavour develops and the meat becomes so luxuriously tender.

Either way, I hope you love it as much as I do! – Nagi xx

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Watch how to make it

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Servings 5

Tap or hover to scale

Recipe video above. My everyday Bolognese recipe I make over and over again. This Meat Sauce has terrific depth of flavour for such a quick recipe – though if you have the time, it's stellar cooked slowly for a couple of hours. My 3 "secret" tips are: Worcestershire Sauce, Beef Bouillon Cubes and a touch of sugar.

• ▢ 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• ▢ 2 garlic cloves , minced
• ▢ 1 onion , finely chopped (brown, yellow or white)
• ▢ 1 lb / 500g beef mince (ground beef) OR half pork, half beef (Note 1)
• ▢ 1/2 cup (125 ml) dry red wine (sub water or beef broth/stock)
• ▢ 2 beef bouillon cubes , crumbled OR granulated beef bouillon (Note 2)
• ▢ 800g / 28 oz can crushed tomato (or tomato passata)
• ▢ 2 tbsp tomato paste
• ▢ 2 tsp white sugar , if needed (Note 3)
• ▢ 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• ▢ 2 dried bay leaves
• ▢ 2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried thyme or oregano)
• ▢ Salt and pepper

To Serve

• ▢ 400 g / 13 oz spaghetti , dried
• ▢ Parmesan cheese and finely chopped parsley (optional)

• Heat oil in a large pot or deep skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic, cook for 3 minutes or until light golden and softened.

• Turn heat up to high and add beef. Cook, breaking it up as your go, until browned.

• Add red wine. Bring to simmer and cook for 1 minute, scraping the bottom of the pot, until the alcohol smell is gone.

• Add remaining ingredients except salt and pepper. Stir, bring to a simmer then turn down to medium so it bubbles gently. Cook for 20 – 30 minutes (no lid), adding water if the sauce gets too thick for your taste. Stir occasionally.

• Slow simmer option: really takes this to another level, if you have the time! Add 3/4 cup of water, cover with lid and simmer on very low for 2 – 2.5 hours, stirring every 30 minutes or so. (Note 5) Uncover, simmer 20 minutes to thicken sauce. (Note 6 for slow cooker)

• Adjust salt and pepper to taste right at the end. Serve over spaghetti – though if you have the time, I recommend tossing the sauce and pasta per steps below.

Tossing Sauce and Spaghetti (optional, Note 4)

• Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta and cook per packet directions MINUS 1 minute.

• Scoop out a mug of pasta cooking water and set aside, then drain the pasta.

• Add pasta into the bolognese sauce with about 1/2 cup (125 ml) of reserved pasta water over medium heat. Toss gently for 1 1/2 – 2 minutes, or until the spaghetti turns red and the sauce thickens.

• Divide between bowls. Garnish with parmesan and parsley if desired.

1. Meat – Some traditional slow cooked Bolognese Sauce are made with a mixture of beef and pork mince. Beef for flavour, pork for juiciness. I typically do not use this for midweek.

2. Beef stock cubes – I use Oxo Beef Cubes (Woolies & Coles). Use any beef bouillon / stock cube or in powder form (called "granulated beef bouillon" in some countries).

If using a powder, use 2 tsp (ie 1 tsp per 1 cube).

3. Canned tomato – Mid range canned tomato can be notoriously sour. A touch of sugar makes an incredible difference. The amount required will depend on how sweet / sour the tomatoes and tomato paste is – go by taste. Typically, the better the quality, the less sour they are so the less sugar you will need.

4. Tossing pasta sauce – See commentary in post about emulsifying the pasta sauce. This is the "proper" Italian way to cook pastas, and the way pasta is served in restaurants.

5. Slow simmer option – this is how you take a great bolognese to an incredible one that would make your Italian Nonna proud. The key here is ultra low heat – after bringing to simmer, lower heat so the surface is just gently rippling, with a few bubbles here and there. Once the lid has been on for a while, take a peek to check – because it gets hotter with the lid on. I use my smallest burner on the lowest setting.

6. Other notes:
* Scaling recipe up (use auto recipe scaler) – If you double the recipe (or more!), then brown the beef in batches. If you try to cook it in one batch, you will end up stewing it rather than browning!
* Slow cooker: This is really fantastic made in a slow cooker! The meat becomes so tender and the sauce has incredible flavour. At step 3, cook until the wine liquid disappears completely, then transfer it into the slow cooker at step 4 and cook for low for 6 hours.
* Variations: Here are some ideas for ways to take this up a notch, if you are so inclined!
– Finely chop 1 carrot + celery and saute that with the onion to make a softrito. Cook on medium low heat for 10 minutes for extra amazingness!
– Add finely chopped bacon (smokey is the ultimate!) or pancetta, cook with the onion
– 1 tbsp soy sauce (my mother did this, I sometimes do! I've seen it in some chef recipes)
– Fresh or dried red chilli
– Bolognese gets better the longer it is cooked, and it's even better the next day!

7. Nutrition per serving, assuming 5 servings, including pasta.

Serving: 396 g Calories: 510 cal (26%) Carbohydrates: 53.2 g (18%) Protein: 40.9 g (82%) Fat: 12.6 g (19%) Saturated Fat: 3.3 g (21%) Cholesterol: 143 mg (48%) Sodium: 368 mg (16%) Potassium: 1046 mg (30%) Fiber: 2.7 g (11%) Sugar: 8.4 g (9%) Vitamin A: 1450 IU (29%) Vitamin C: 34.7 mg (42%) Calcium: 40 mg (4%) Iron: 22.1 mg (123%)

Keywords: Bolognese Sauce, Meat sauce, Spagetti Bolognese

Originally published August 2016. Updated with new commentary, new photos and most importantly, recipe video! No change to recipe – I wouldn't dare! Too many readers love it as it is. 🙂

More family favourites we'll love forever

• Beef Stroganoff

• Meatloaf – so much more than just a hunk of meat in loaf form!

• Beef Pot Roast

• Beef Stew

• Roast Chicken

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