Ragù alla Bolognese

Excellent sauce, but I definitely omitted the butter and cut the olive oil in half! Otherwise you're looking at one greasy sauce.... I minced the carrot, celery and onion by giving it a whirl in a mini food processor and then sauteeing it all in the olive oil along with some minced garlic. I sauteed the beef, pork, veal (1 lb. each) and pancetta separately draining the grease. I then added that to the veggies. I then added 1 & 1/2 cups of beef broth, 1/2 cup of red wine, and a few splashes of balsamic and let that reduce (it takes a while). Plus, if you want it to look like the picture, I had to add a cup of half and half along with 2 & 1/2 cups of "personally prepared" tomato sauce and 6 oz. of tomato paste. You may also want to add some spices if you're using plain tomato sauce. I was liberal with the garlic and also added some salt and a bit of sugar to cut the acidity of the tomatoes. You really have to play with this a bit to get the desired flavor you want and it definitely needs to simmer for at lest 3 hours. But, when it's done - it's fabulous! We served it over penne pasta with a side of garlic bread and had plenty of leftovers!  -  08 Nov 2010  (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)

While I agree with most everything in this recipe, if you are going to take this much time (as you should) to make a good ragu, you should reduce the meat several times with infusions of broth, balsamic vinegar, wine. Otherwise, he is right, real deal.  -  20 May 2002  (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)

I would've given it a 5 because it was great. But only after my changes. How can there not be any seasonings added. Is this a given? I'm glad I tasted it before I let it simmer for 2.5 hrs. Taste it before you simmer it. I added 4 cloves of garlic (next time I will add it with the onion). I also added salt and pepper to taste. Each time I stirred it it started tasting a little better, so I kept adding seasonings. I also added 2 bay leaves when I added the milk. I'm not a big pork person, so I bought whole pieces instead of ground. I cut it up into little pieces. (obviously next time I will buy ground!). I also cut the butter and oil in half, as other people suggested. The meat has it's own oil. But it turned out really tasty. Even better after I let it simmer. Take my advice and taste it, that way you can add the seasonings before you let it simmer. If you add it after, it won't be as good.  -  13 Dec 2010  (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)