Bolognese

Method

1. Roughly chop onion, celery and carrot.
2. Process above vegetables in a food processor until very finely chopped.
3. If using beef mince combined with pork and veal mince, mix together in a bowl to combine.
4. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat.
5. In at least two batches, shape meat into 4cm-ish long pieces, add to a large pot and season with salt. Fry each side until brown (they don’t need to cook through, just brown on the outside - approx 2 mins per side). Once browned, transfer to a bowl.
6. Remove oil and wipe out residue from the pot using a paper towel or sponge.
7. Add pancetta and cook on medium, stirring often, until fat renders down and pancetta is crispy (5-10 mins).
8. Add onion/celery/carrot mix and cook until beginning to lightly brown (5-10 mins).
9. Add beef and white wine, reduce heat to medium low.
   Hack: If you have a stand mixer, right before this step, you can put the beef in with the whisk attachment and run it on the lowest setting, until the mince has been broken up to your liking.
10. Reduce wine by half, (10-15 mins). Whilst reducing, use a wooden spoon (or a potato masher) to break up the meat until it’s finely ground.
11. Add tomato paste, bay leaves, thyme, and nutmeg and cook, stirring often, until colour deepens (5 mins).
12. Add stock, tomato passata, and Parmesan rind (tip: store Parmesan rinds is in the freezer for use in Bolognese, soups and stews), and a good pinch of salt and pepper.
13. Reduce heat to very low and cook, at barely a simmer, for at least 1½ hours (ideally 2+ hours).
14. Discard bay leaf, Parmesan rind, thyme sprigs.
15. Stir through cream.
16. Meanwhile, cook pasta in salty water.
17. Reserve some of the pasta water in a cup.
18. Strain pasta and add back to pot, spoon in Bolognese and toss through pasta.
19. Serve with a green salad and more Parmesan.