Ragu alla Bolognese

By LoriCaputo

Ingredients

• 14 ounces tomatoes and juices
• 1 1/2 - 2 1/2 1 ½ - 2 ½ cups water
• 1 tbs. tomato paste
• 1 tsp. Beef base or 1 beef bouillon cube
• 1 celery rib, roughly chopped
• 1/2 ½ medium onion, roughly chopped
• 1/2 ½ medium carrot, roughly chopped
• 3 tbs. butter
• 2 ounces sweet Italian sausage, removed from casing
• 2 ounces pancetta, finely chopped
• 3/4 ¾ lb. Ground beef
• 3/4 ¾ lb. ground pork
• 1/2 ½ lb. Ground veal
• Salt and pepper
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 1 bay leaf
• 3/4 ¾ cup whole milk

Preparation

Step 1

Puree the tomatoes and juice until smooth; set aside.
Bring 1 ½ cups water to a simmer, whisk in tomato paste and beef base. Remove from heat and set aside. Finely chop together the celery, onion, and carrot.
Heat butter over medium heat until foaming and add the battuto (veggies), sausage and pancetta. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sausage is broken into small bits, then continue cooking, stirring frequently, until vegetables are softened (do not brown), about 25 minutes.
Add the ground meats; increase heat to medium. Cook until the meat is broken into small pieces, then season lightly with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring constantly for 10 minutes, do not brown.
Add wine, bring to a boil and cook until wine juices in pot are mostly evaporated, 3 – 5 minutes. Add reserved pureed tomato, reserved beef base and bay leaf. Cook ragu at the bares simmer, stirring occasionally until meat is very tender and sauce is thick, about 2 ½ hours. Add milk and continue to cook for 30 minutes more. Season to taste.