This recipe comes courtesy of Lipperas’ at The Chatham House.
Ragu Bolognese
This dish is named after the rich cookery style of Bologna, Italy. Bolognese refers to dishes served with a thick, full-bodied meat and vegetable sauce enhanced with wine and cream. Alla Bolognese designates a pasta sauced in this manner. This has proven to be one of our most popular dishes since we reforged our Italian roots.
Ingredients
1 lb. ground chuck
1lb. round pork shoulder
1 lb. ground veal
2 cups of diced Spanish onions
½ cup diced celery
½ cup diced carrots
1 ½ cups chopped garlic
4 bay leaves
¼ cup chopped parsley and stems
¼ cup chopped fresh basil and stems
5 slices of diced bacon
1 ½ quarts mushroom stick: 1 package of dried mushrooms
(reconstituted and simmered in water)
2 cups of good Red Wine
2 #10 cans of plum tomatoes in juice (we use fresh when tomatoes are in season)
Olive oil
Vegetable oil
Salt & pepper
2 Tbsp. tomato puree
Good Parmesan or Romano cheese (We like Santoro from Wisconsin!)
1 Tbsp. butter
Pasta Pappardelle or Fettuccine – This pasta is made in-house from scratch
Heavy cream
1 Tbsp. parsley and basil together
Directions
- Take a heavy gauge pot, place it on medium flame and add a splash of olive and vegetable oils. Heat until oil shimmers. Add the ground beef and season the meat and cook—stirring until meat is just cooked through.
- Remove meat to colander and let drain.
- Repeat the process with the veal and the pork.
- Wipe out pot, put over medium heat, add olive and vegetable oil.
- When it shimmers, add dried bacon and cook until golden brown.
- Next, add the vegetables and cook until tender.
- Add the red wine and bay leaf stems
- Reduce wine by two-thirds.
- Add the three different meats.
- Add the mushroom stock and mushrooms and reduce by two-thirds.
- Add tomatoes, juice and paste.
- Add ½ cup of olive oil and allow it to simmer on a low flame for 3 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent it from burning.
- Remove from heat.
- Add chopped parsley and basil, check salt and pepper amounts—add to your taste.
Tips
For the pasta:
Use a heavy pot and when the water is rapidly boiling add salt and a touch of oil. Add pasta, stir and cook till Al Dente. Homemade pasta requires a much shorter cooking time. Drain in colander.
To complete the dish:
Heat some Bolognese in a pot with the butter and a tbsp. of cheese and 2 tbsp. of heavy cream.
Add the hot pasta, stir and coat completely.
Place in bowl.
Top with more cheese, parsley and basil and serve immediately.
Lipperas’ at The Chatham House • 29 Hudson Avenue, Chatham
392.6600 • www.thechathamhouse.com
