Discussion
From here:
ehyouwhat said:
I certainly bloody do use Ragu sauce: 1 jar of, added to by half a tin of chopped toms, two chopped peppers, a load of chopped mushrooms, and sometimes a handful of frozen peas thrown in for good measure. How should I be making it?
Well, this is my generic pasta sauce (it's a nod to bolognese but it's also other things too. Mrs J doesn't like mushrooms, hence their absence)- Finely chop a small onion and soften along with a handful of pancetta cubetti
- add mince and brown well
- add garlic and diced peppers and cook a bit
- add 2 tsp pesto, 2 tsp tomato puree, 1 tsp paprika, and a good grind of black pepper, cook a bit
- add chopped tomatoes (fresh or tinned, fresh is better) and half a can (to get all that tomatoey goodness rinsed out) of water
- add a good sprinkle of dried oregano
- gently simmer for ages - longer is better
- check for salt required (depends on taste, but usually a pinch of Maldon sea salt suffices)
- add a nice big handful of chopped fresh basil and a glug of extra virgin olive oil, stir in and serve with pasta of your choice
- take the edge off the tomatoes with a teaspoonful of honey
- add a bit more bite with half a teaspoon of dijon mustard
- flat-leaf parsley instead of basil, added before the tomatoes go in
- A single mild green chilli, seeded and finely chopped, adds character. Add when you put the garlic in.
ehyouwhat said:
Sounds nice, but I'm not sure I could deal with the hassle. Having said that, my cooking has come on hugely in the past year or so (before which I relied purely on takeaways) so I'll maybe give a 'proper' sauce a go at some point.
It's no hassle really, obviously a bit more involved than cracking open ragu, but still a very quick dish to prepare. Stu R said:
ehyouwhat said:
Sounds nice, but I'm not sure I could deal with the hassle. Having said that, my cooking has come on hugely in the past year or so (before which I relied purely on takeaways) so I'll maybe give a 'proper' sauce a go at some point.
It's no hassle really, obviously a bit more involved than cracking open ragu, but still a very quick dish to prepare. 
And the taste will be miles ahead. In fact I'm going to try CJ's recipie for dinner tonight
Its pretty much the only thing i cook - but its the worlds greatest Bolognaise sauce;
1 very large onion chopped.
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
Stick of celery diced
Handful Fresh Basil
Pancetta.
Chicken livers.
Mushrooms
One litre Passata
2 tins chopped tomatoes
Good extra virgin olive oil
Bottle of good, full bodied red wine
50ml Noily Prat/dry vermouth
1 Kg of good minced beef.
Add a good slug of olive oil to a very large heavy bottomed pan.
Quickly fry the pancetta for 60 seconds to release the fat - drain and put to one side.
Add onion,garlic and celery and slowly soften.
Add Noily prat and reduce - leave to one side - combine with pancetta.
Brown mince in saucepan
Add chopped chicken livers
Deglaze pan with half bottle of red wine and reduce by half.
Add onion, garlic, celery and pancetta
Add half the bazil
Add chopped tomatoes, pasatta and rest of wine
Add mushrooms and half cup of water.
The sauce should now resemble quite a water soup - leave to reduce for 45 minutes until the sauce is thick, rich and unctous, the beef should have swelled considerably as it takes up the sauce.
Add the rest of the chopped basil.
Serve with tagliatelle and shaved parmesan.
Ladies and gentlemen - i thank you.
1 very large onion chopped.
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
Stick of celery diced
Handful Fresh Basil
Pancetta.
Chicken livers.
Mushrooms
One litre Passata
2 tins chopped tomatoes
Good extra virgin olive oil
Bottle of good, full bodied red wine
50ml Noily Prat/dry vermouth
1 Kg of good minced beef.
Add a good slug of olive oil to a very large heavy bottomed pan.
Quickly fry the pancetta for 60 seconds to release the fat - drain and put to one side.
Add onion,garlic and celery and slowly soften.
Add Noily prat and reduce - leave to one side - combine with pancetta.
Brown mince in saucepan
Add chopped chicken livers
Deglaze pan with half bottle of red wine and reduce by half.
Add onion, garlic, celery and pancetta
Add half the bazil
Add chopped tomatoes, pasatta and rest of wine
Add mushrooms and half cup of water.
The sauce should now resemble quite a water soup - leave to reduce for 45 minutes until the sauce is thick, rich and unctous, the beef should have swelled considerably as it takes up the sauce.
Add the rest of the chopped basil.
Serve with tagliatelle and shaved parmesan.
Ladies and gentlemen - i thank you.
The Tagliatelle alla bolognese I have had in Bologna were a bit of a revelation compared to a lovely rich tomato, mushroom and red wine heavy "Spag bol".
So delicate and light. No what I was expecting at all. Not saying it was better, just different.
Tend to use the Marcella Hazan version (beef gently cooked in milk, then white wine, few tomatoes, 3-4 hours cooking) if I want the "authentic".
So delicate and light. No what I was expecting at all. Not saying it was better, just different.
Tend to use the Marcella Hazan version (beef gently cooked in milk, then white wine, few tomatoes, 3-4 hours cooking) if I want the "authentic".
Symbolica said:
Stu R said:
ehyouwhat said:
Sounds nice, but I'm not sure I could deal with the hassle. Having said that, my cooking has come on hugely in the past year or so (before which I relied purely on takeaways) so I'll maybe give a 'proper' sauce a go at some point.
It's no hassle really, obviously a bit more involved than cracking open ragu, but still a very quick dish to prepare. And the taste will be miles ahead. In fact I'm going to try CJ's recipie for dinner tonight
CommanderJameson said:
Did you? Was it good?
I certainly did (meant to post here earlier) and it was gorgeous. I had to make two alterations (due to a lack of pancetta and pesto) but apart from that did exactly as you said, I've now got a bowl full saved up for the weekend. You were right about adding the chilli, brings something extra to it.Gassing Station | Food, Drink & Restaurants | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff