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You are here: Home / Recipes / Simple Bolognese Sauce

Simple Bolognese Sauce

Published: May 31, 2022 by Chef Grey

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What do you do when you make a recipe—like our Danish Meatballs—that calls for a half pound each of ground pork and ground veal? You find another recipe that uses those other half pounds! This quick and easy Bolognese sauce does the job!

Bolognese Sauce
Jump to:
  • About Bolognese Sauce
  • Ingredients You'll Need
  • Change It Up!
  • Here's How to Make This Recipe
  • Eat, Comment, Share, and Follow!
  • 📖 Recipe Card
  • 💬 Comments

About Bolognese Sauce

Bolognese Sauce (pronounced bow-luh-NAYZ) is a type of ragu (meat sauce) that originated in the Italian city of Bologna. Yes, the same city that Bologna sausage came from! Like many other regional foods, there are probably as many recipes for Bolognese Sauce as there are cooks! Some recipes can have 25 or more ingredients. Some use a lot of tomatoes, some use very little and include cream. Some have a lot of chopped vegetables, and others are all about the meat.

My version is pretty simple. Ground pork and veal, crushed tomatoes and tomato paste, and a few seasonings. And Parmesan cheese, of course! You can have this tasty sauce on the table in under an hour.

Ingredients You'll Need

  • spaghetti
  • olive oil
  • onion
  • garlic,
  • ground pork
  • ground veal
  • crushed tomatoes
  • tomato paste
  • dried oregano
  • dried basil
  • salt and black pepper
  • Parmesan cheese

Change It Up!

There are a lot of ways to adjust this recipe to your taste. Here are just a few.

  • Add a teaspoon (or more!) of red pepper flakes to give it some heat.
  • Use different meats. If you don't have ground veal, substitute ground beef.
  • Or replace the beef and veal with ground chicken or turkey.
  • Add some chopped vegetables, like carrots and celery.
  • Replace the Parmesan cheese with Romano, or use a mix of both.
  • Use chopped fresh herbs instead of dry. (1 teaspoon dried = 1 tablespoon fresh)
  • Thinly slice some fresh basil and sprinkle it over the sauce when serving.

Shopping Fun! When I went to the store to look for crushed tomatoes, they had four shelves of it... all 28-cans! I flagged someone down and asked why and they said, "We don't sell much of the 14-ounce cans." I said, "You would probably sell more if you had some on the shelf!" I did find some 14-ounce cans in the "authentic Italian" section, at twice the price of the store brand. If this happens to you, just use any other type of canned tomatoes. You can run it through a blender to "crush" it if you like.

Here's How to Make This Recipe

The ingredients: tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, ground pork and veal, onions, grated Parmesan, dried basil and oregano, garlic, and spaghetti.

Bolognese Sauce ingredients

Make the pasta. Cook to al dente according to the package directions. Drain and set aside. I always drizzle a little olive oil over the drained pasta and toss to coat it with oil. This helps prevent the pasta from sticking together.

Mix the ground meats together. You can add a little salt and pepper here if you like.

Bolognese Sauce pork and veal mixed

Heat the oil in a large skillet and sauté the onions and garlic for a few minutes until the onions are translucent.

Bolognese Sauce sauteing onions and garlic

Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, lemon juice, oregano, and basil and stir well.

Bolognese Sauce tomatoes and seasonings added to pan

Bring the sauce to a boil and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.

Bolognese Sauce parmesan cheese added to pan

Serve the sauce over the spaghetti, and sprinkle more Parmesan over it.

Bolognese Sauce on a plate

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Bolognese Sauce

Simple Pork and Veal Bolognese Sauce

Chef Grey
What do you do when you make a recipe—like our Danish Meatballs—that calls for a half pound each of ground pork and ground veal? You find another recipe that uses those other half pounds! This quick and easy Bolognese sauce does the job!
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Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes minutes
Total Time 50 minutes minutes
Course Main Course, Pasta
Cuisine Italian
Method Stovetop
Calories 1216 kcal

Special Equipment Needed

  • 1 Large skillet

Ingredients
 

  • 1 (16-ounce) package spaghetti
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium onion finely chopped
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • ½ pound ground pork
  • ½ pound ground veal
  • 1 (14-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 (8-ounce) can tomato paste
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • Salt and black pepper to taste
  • Additional Parmesan cheese for serving

Instructions
 

  • Cook the pasta according to the package instructions. Drain and set aside.
    1 (16-ounce) package spaghetti
  • Heat the oil in large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes.
    1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 medium onion, 1 clove garlic
  • Mix the ground pork and veal and them to the pan. Sauté until the meat is browned, about 5 minutes
    ½ pound ground pork, ½ pound ground veal
  • Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, water, lemon juice, oregano, and basil and stir well.
    1 (14-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, 1 (8-ounce) can tomato paste, 1 cup water, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • Bring to a boil, then stir in the Parmesan cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
    ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese, Salt and black pepper
  • Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.
  • Serve the sauce over the pasta with additional Parmesan cheese.
    Additional Parmesan cheese

Nutrition Estimate

Calories: 1216kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 92gFat: 85gSaturated Fat: 30gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gMonounsaturated Fat: 39gCholesterol: 371mgSodium: 778mgPotassium: 1666mgFiber: 3gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 294IUVitamin C: 17mgCalcium: 381mgIron: 6mg
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Hi, I'm Grey. My wife Debbie and I love to explore flavors, cuisines, and cooking techniques. We hope we can inspire you to try something new, because Variety is the Spice of Your Life!

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