My cozy homemade Bolognese Sauce made with tender beef in a rich tomato sauce and served over pappardelle pasta, is the ultimate comfort food. The classic Italian-inspired bolognese recipe simmers over the heat to develop layers of hearty, satisfying flavor.
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Helpful Reader Review
“Tried it, probably the BEST BOLOGNESE I EVER HAD! it was creamy, tender, saucy, might even impress an Italian! Keep up the good recipes! 😃👍” – Collin ★★★★★
Easy Bolognese Sauce Video
My bolognese sauce is perfect for serving guests at a dinner party or simply your hungry family members as a satisfying weeknight meal. Double the recipe to freeze some for a quick pasta dinner anytime.
Easy Bolognese Recipe
I learned how to make bolognese sauce from Chef Lidia Bastianich, and it is spectacular! We’ve tweaked it a little over time to suit our preferences, so this adaptation is officially the gold standard of bolognese sauce in our house.
My rich and flavorful bolognese sauce, tastes sophisticated – like it was cooked for a whole day with fussy ingredients, but it is actually so easy to make. The sauce simmers low and slow to develop the flavors into a spectacular sauce for pasta or between layers of Lasagna.
What Is Bolognese Sauce?
Bolognese, also called Ragù alla Bolognese, is a classic Italian meat-based sauce made from ground meat, and it originated in and was named after the city of Bologna, Italy. It is different from Spaghetti Meat Sauce, in that it usually incorporates vegetables, wine, and milk. While simmering makes it take longer to make, the flavors develop to make a more elevated sauce.
Ingredients for Bolognese Sauce
Pantry staples are all you need for this classic bolognese recipe. I’ve noted a few substitutions you may use in a pinch.
- Olive Oil and Butter – start with good-quality EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) and unsalted butter for extra richness.
- Aromatics – The combination of Onion, Celery, and carrot forms the flavor base for the sauce, also known as Italian sofrito, or mirepoix in French cooking. I also use fresh garlic (avoid pre-minced if possible).
- Ground Beef – I recommend using 80/20 beef, or you can use a half beef and half pork or Italian sausage for a different flavor.
- Wine – dry white wine, like Pinot Grigio, is traditional for bolognese, or you can use a dry red wine like Merlot. The alcohol cooks off, so it’s safe for little eaters, but you can also substitute it with you may swap with chicken stock or beef stock.
- Tomatoes – canned crushed tomatoes and tomato paste. If you’re out, use whole canned tomatoes and crush them yourself.
- Fresh Herbs – finely-chopped fresh parsley or basil for flavor and also garnish
- Milk – The secret to the best bolognese? Whole milk. 2% milk will also work, but whatever you do, don’t skip it. It cuts the acidity and helps to tenderize the meat.
How to Make Bolognese Sauce
This savory bolognese sauce recipe only takes a few minutes of attention before it’s left to simmer for a couple of hours. It’s so easy to make.
- Sauté – First, sauté diced onion in a large pot with olive oil and melted butter. Add the celery and carrot, and then stir in the garlic.
- Add Beef – add the meat and brown.
- Add Wine – The beef will start to release its juices, and at this point, stir in wine. Bring the pot to a boil to cook off the liquid.
- Form the sauce – Next, stir in the tomatoes along with 1-2 cups of hot water, tomato paste, parsley, and milk.
- Cook – Let the sauce come to a boil, then reduce the heat to the lowest simmer, partially cover, and simmer for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally. If needed, add water to keep it from sticking to the bottom. Cook until the meat is tender and the water has evaporated.
How to Serve Bolognese Sauce
In Italy, bolognese sauce is often served on top of pappardelle or tagliatelle pasta, as the broad ribbons hold up well in the thicker sauce. However, you can serve it with your preferred boxed or Homemade Pasta. But, why stop at pasta sauce? Try using bolognese sauce in these other easy recipes:
- Lasagna – filling for Easy Skillet Lasagna or Lasagna Roll Ups.
- Casseroles – Use in Baked Ziti.
- Stuffed Shells – swap marinara for meaty bolognese.
- Sloppy Joes – Fill a Homemade Bun for an easy Sloppy Joe sandwich.
- Topping for Baked Potatoes, Spaghetti Squash, Nachos, or Stuffed Bell Peppers
Make-Ahead and Storage Tips
Bolognese sauce is wonderful to make ahead and refrigerate or freeze for a quick meal!
- To Refrigerate: Once cool, pack into an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. Using glass containers, as the red sauce tends to stain plastic.
- Freezing: Cool and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
- To Reheat: Reheat in a saucepan on the stove or in the microwave until heated through.
My pasta bolognese recipe is one of our favorite family dinners, and I love keeping a jar of it in the freezer for whenever the mood strikes! It’s rich and hearty, but so easy to make! Pair your pasta dinner with a classic Caesar Salad, Homemade Focaccia or Garlic Bread, and Roasted Broccoli for a complete and hearty meal.
Bolognese Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter, plus 2 Tbsp more to toss pasta
- 1 1/2 cups chopped onion, from 1 medium onion
- 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and shredded
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lb ground beef, 20% fat, or use a mixture of beef and pork
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
- 1 cup dry white wine, or red wine
- 28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups hot water, plus more as needed
- 2 Tbsp double-concentrated tomato paste, or 4 Tbsp regular tomato paste
- 1/4 cup parsley, finely chopped (or fresh basil), plus more to serve
- 1/2 cup whole milk
To Serve:
- pappardelle, or tagliatelle pasta, to serve
- Parmesan cheese, to serve
Instructions
- Sauté – In a 6-quart Dutch oven or pot over medium heat, add oil and butter. Add onion and stir until it is softened and translucent, about 3 minutes. Add celery and carrots and stir until golden, another 5 minutes. Add garlic and stir for another 30 seconds.
- Add ground beef, 1/2 tsp fine sea salt, and 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper. Cook the beef, breaking it up with a spatula until it’s browned and begins releasing fat and juices, about 5 minutes.
- Add white wine, turn up the heat, and continue stirring until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 5 minutes.
- Form the sauce – Add crushed tomatoes, 1 1/2 cups hot water, tomato paste, and parsley, and stir to combine. Stir in the milk.
- Cook – Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to the lowest simmer, partially cover, and continue cooking for at least 1 1/2 hours or preferably 2 hours or until the meat is very tender, stirring occasionally. Add more hot water, 1/2 cup at a time, only as needed to keep the sauce from sticking to the bottom of the pot. When the meat is tender and you’ve reached the consistency of sloppy joes, add more salt to taste and serve.
Notes
- Meat – swap with 1/2 ground beef and 1/2 ground pork or Italian Sausage.
- Swap chicken, beef, or vegetable broth for the water, but also reduce the salt.
- Use dry red wine or beef stock instead of white wine
- Crush canned whole tomatoes (peeled) instead of using crushed tomatoes.
- Refrigerate in an air-tight container in the fridge for 3-5 days.
- Freeze in air-tight, freezer-safe containers or zip-top bags for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Reheat in the microwave or on the stove until heated through.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
More Italian Pasta Recipes
If you’re as crazy about this pasta bolognese sauce recipe as our family, try these other delicious pasta recipes:
- Spaghetti and Meatballs
- Penne Alla Vodka
- Cajun Chicken Pasta
- Pasta Primavera
- Shrimp Scampi Pasta
- Chicken Pesto Pasta
- Baked Ziti
I have made this quite a few times and love it. I always add more carrots and celery than the recipe calls for and at least double it as we love freezing some jars and giving to family and friends. When doubling or tripling, the recipe, I find that I don’t need to add proportional tomato paste or crushed tomatoes because the recipe can be too tart. I often do not use San Marzano tomatoes so sometimes the sauce can so tart due to that factor too. To balance out the recipe, I will sometimes puree carrots while the sauce is cooking and fix it to taste. Thanks Natasha for this recipe, I keep coming back to it!
You’re very welcome, Kristin! Thank you for sharing.
My sauce was very tasty but very greasy.
Wondering what might have gone wrong.
Hi Renee! It’s likely from the ground meat that you used. There are different fat percentages. We used 1 lb ground beef, 20% fat. You can use a leaner meat or strain some of the grease after you cook the meat.
Is this safe for kids to consume? The alcohol boils out right?
Hi Evelyn. I feed this to my kids. Most of the alcohol cooks off.
Made this exact to the recipe (except I used ground round 15% fat). It turned out so good! I served it over pappardelle pasta and topped it with some shaved Parmesan.
Oh so yummy! I’m so glad that you loved it!
Delicious! My family and I made it tonight – super easy, we just added a little bit of sugar.
Thank you for trying the recipe!
So tasty! I’ve never made bolognese before and this recipe was so helpful in getting me comfortable with it. Making it for the third time tonight!
Great to hear that you always love this recipe!
Your Bolognese sauce was delicious! I loved the added flavor from the celery and carrots. I will be making it again. I love your recipe!
By: Ahmed
I’m so glad you loved it! Thank you for sharing.
It was so good I used it in a short story. 100% should try it.
Thanks, Tom. We appreciate your great feedback!
I just made this, but saw the ghee out of the corner of my eye and used that instead of the butter. Like every other recipe I’ve tried from this site, it was excellent.
Thanks Natasha!
You’re welcome, Tim! So glad that you loved it.
The last bolognese recipe I followed didn’t taste special so I haven’t tried to make bolognese for years, until today! Wow, it’s so good. Always thought bolognese was tangy but your version has a great balance. I used a little extra milk with some half and half, also subbed oxtail broth for wine and used rigatoni pasta. The meal was perfect! My son, who hates marinara sauce, actually had a second helping. My husband said it was delicious. This will be in our rotation but I will need to double the recipe and freeze for convenience. Thanks Natasha!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Kristen!
Love your recipes !!! I was wondering if I could substitute fresh tomatoes for the crushed tomatoes? I have an overwhelming amount of Amish paste tomatoes ! Thank you !!
Hi Terri, I haven’t tried fresh tomatoes because it would significantly increase the time it takes to cook this sauce to reach the right consistency.
Truly delicious! My husband really liked my homemade meat sauce, but he likes this even better and so do I! Thank you!
Hi Pat! That’s great to hear. I’m so glad you found this recipe. Thank you for the feedback.
Double the recipe and add 1 lb Ground beef and 1 LB sweet Italian sausage.
OMG, this recipe is outstanding! My husband was skeptical, but I won him over when I made it. I’ve made so many of your recipes and I will also order your cookbook so please keep them coming!
Hi Elena! I’m so glad to hear that. Thank you for sharing and I appreciate your love and support.
Can I use almond milk instead of whole milk?
I’m lactose intolerant but I’d like to try the recipe for my family. I’m sure they’ll love it.
Hi Cecilia, The secret to the best bolognese is the milk. Whatever you do, don’t skip it. I haven’t tried this with almond or another milk alternative to advise on the outcome, but if you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
Cecilia, buy the lactose free milk, its great, can not tell the difference from regular milk in taste but your digestive system will thank you
Hi! Can I halve this recipe? If not, can I freeze? Thank you!
Hi Doreen, You sure can! I recommend clicking “Jump to recipe” at the top of the post, it will take you to our printable recipe where you’ll have the option to change the number of servings. Hover over the number of servings highlighted in red and slide it to how many servings you would like to make. I hope that helps!
Great Sauce, but it sweet, I add some pepper flakes, but any ideas what else I could add?
Thank you
Hi Victoria, it shouldn’t really be sweet – did you possibly add sugar instead of salt? There isn’t anything here that would make it sweet except maybe the carrot? Also, it may just need more salt to balance out the natural sweetness of tomato?
This is so delicious that I don’t know if I can go back to jarred sauce ever again!
That’s great, Lee Ann! Thank you for the wonderful feedback. 🙂
Loved this! Our family loves bolognese! I usually alternate between Marcella Hazan’s recipe (which we call “forever bolognese” because it takes at least 6 hours to really be at its best) and a simpler English recipe that’s done in about an hour but just doesn’t have the depth of flavor that Hazan’s recipe has. This recipe is a nice compromise between the two, and I will definitely be making it again! I used beef stock instead of water and threw in about a tsp of Penzey’s Italian Herb Mix as I didn’t have any fresh herbs. Otherwise followed the recipe. It has made a delightfully rich, thick bolognese with wonderful flavor!
Hello Fiona, that’s really beautiful feedback. Thanks a lot for sharing that with us, we’re so glad that you enjoyed our recipe!
Hi Natasha, I made your bolognese meat sauce for dinner last night and it was superb! My husband loved it and said “do not lose this recipe”. The only change, was I used large rigatoni pasta because that’s what I had. I served it with garlic bread, salad and topped the pasta with mixed Italian cheese and it was delicious. Thank you again for another great recipe that I will make over and over again.
You’re so welcome, Patty. Its my pleasure, I’m so glad that it was a hit!
Hi Natasha, I made your bolognese sauce for dinner last night and it was superb. My husband loved it and said “don’t lose this recipe”. The only change was I used rigatoni pasta, as that’s what I had, the meat sauce went inside the pasta which was great. Topped it with some mixed Italian cheese which was delicious. Thanks again for a wonderfully delicious recipe, which I’ll be making over and over.
Wow, that’s lovely! Thanks for sharing that with us, it’s always inspiring to see this type of feedback here.