Traditional Ragù (Bolognese sauce)

Ragù is the most important ingredient to prepare the best Lasagne! This is one of many recipes that come from Bologna, close to where I'm originally from, which is the city where ragù was first invented!

Ingredients

Mince beef (10/15% fat) 500g

Mince pork (8% fat) OR sausages 250g

Tomato passata 400g

Tomato puree 1 spoon

Red wine 200ml

Soffritto mix 1 carrot, 1 celery, ½ onion

Extra virgin olive oil 5 spoons

Salt A generous sprinkle

Pepper A generous sprinkle

Water About 5 glasses

Method

1. Chop the carrot, celery and onion in small pieces to make the mix for the soffritto. This is the base of the ragù.

2. Put the oil in a pan and add the chopped vegetables. Make sure the hob is at a medium flame and let them cook for about 10 minutes.

3. Afterwards, break the mince meats and/or sausages into the pan and let them cook for about 10 minutes while you keep stirring.

4. Add the red wine and turn the flame higher. Cook until the wine has evaporated, which takes about 15 minutes.

5. When most of the wine has evaporated, add the tomato passata and puree and stir everything.

6. Lower the flame to the minimum (or perhaps even transfer the pan to a smaller hob) and cover.

7. Every 30/40 minutes stir the ragù and add a glass of water if needed, to avoid it getting dry too early.

8. Cook for about 3 hours until the sauce has almost dried up completely. Toward the end, add a generous amount of salt and pepper and try the sauce to see if you prefer a more or less intense taste.