Bolognese
Next up on this alphabetical pasta journey is, of course, B. There are quite a few options for this secondary letter, but I’m going to go with a classic dish that many of us are familiar with but few in America have tried the original version of, Spaghetti Bolognese.
American readers are likely familiar with the beef and tomato sauce that often comes straight from a jar, but what you might not have tasted or even heard of is the original recipe from Bologna that Italian grandmothers are still making to this day, a recipe first recorded by cookbook author Pelligrino Artusi.
What makes this recipe different from what American cooks likely know is that the dish is often made with ground veal instead of beef and contains no tomatoes, rather has the meat simmer in beef stock to develop flavor.
The tomatoey version Americans know today likely came about as a combination of this recipe and a classic Italian Ragu, made by braising tough cuts of beef in a tomato based sauce.
While there’s nothing wrong with this version, I think that tasting the original recipe can help you to better understand life in the mountains of Bologna even better.
Serves 4
3 tbsp unsalted butter
2 medium onions, finely chopped
2 medium sized carrots, finely chopped
2 large stalks of celery, finely chopped
1 cup diced pancetta
2 cups (1 pound) ground veal or beef
Salt and pepper
4 tbsp flour
2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
2 tsp finely chopped rosemary leaves
3 cups low sodium beef broth, divided
1 pound Bucatini or spaghetti
Fresh basil leaves, for garnish
Grated Parmigiano Reggiano, for garnish
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Melt the butter in a wide frying pan over medium heat, then add the chopped onions, carrots, celery, pancetta, and veal/beef. Season with salt and pepper, then cook for about 8-10 minutes, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until the veggies have softened and the meat is no longer pink in the center.
Sprinkle the flour over everything, then cook for another minute to cook out the raw flour taste, then stir in the nutmeg and rosemary leaves.
Add 3/4 cup of the chicken stock, scrape up the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon, then bring that to a simmer and let it cook for about 3 minutes, or until the liquid has almost fully evaporated. Repeat this step 3 more times, then immediately after the fourth addition of stock is added, boil the spaghetti for about 7-9 minutes, or until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water, then drain.
When the sauce has thickened to the point where the liquid coats the meat, stir the pasta into the sauce and, if you need to, add a bit of pasta water to adjust the sauce consistency.
Twirl onto plates, then top with some basil leaves and grated parmesan.
