This great make-ahead sauce that gets caught in all the nooks and crannies of each pasta noodle makes this rigatoni bolognese an excellent dish for a midweek meal but also for a dinner party. Although the cooking time may seem long, most of it is hands-off, with the ground beef lightly simmering in the background in its rich tomato sauce. Don't forget to sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese on top before serving. It's a must at an Italian table. Buon appetito!
Although every Italian speaks about their nonna cooking [so have I], for me, as I have been living abroad for well over a decade, it's my mom's cooking I miss the most.
Her bolognese sauce is made of dreams!
Growing up, both my parents worked, so a couple of evenings per week we had pasta, be it with tuna, arrabbiata, amatriciana, puttanesca, carbonara, you name it, we had it. My favorite pasta dish [at home] always was rigatoni bolognese.
So, here's how to make Bolognese sauce the tastiest way without needing a million ingredients.
Jump to:
💎 Why This Recipe Works
- This beef rigatoni recipe requires very simple staple ingredients.
- Most of the time is hands-off cooking.
- It is easy to store. Great make-ahead meal for lunchboxes or get-togethers!
- A traditional Italian recipe with step-by-step instructions and pictures.
- Tried and tested by multiple generations - these meat rigatoni are the best!
🛒 Ingredients
- Ground Beef: This is the main ingredient for this meat sauce. Mix it with ground pork or ground Italian sausage for extra flavor. Some butchers prepare packs of mixed ground meat ready to sell, often half ground beef and half pork. Personally, I am not a fan of ground turkey or ground chicken for this recipe, although they seem to be popular lower-calorie alternatives.
- Pasta: Tubular shapes like rigatoni hold onto the sauce; however, other shapes, like penne, fusilli, or ziti, and long pasta, like tagliatelle, pappardelle, or linguine, work wonders. The brands I tend to prefer are Voiello or Rummo.
- Olive Oil: Use extra virgin olive oil if you have it. This is needed only to cook the sauce, as you should never add oil to the water for the pasta. TOP TIP: Adding oil to pasta water makes the pasta slippery, making it hard for the Bolognese sauce to grip it.
- Tomato Sauce: Good quality canned tomato sauce is essential for Bolognese! I like to use Cirio Passata Rustica, however, plain passata or canned diced tomatoes will work too. Avoid pre-flavored sauces like marinara sauce or spaghetti sauce. These are packed with sugars and flavors that take away the control you have over what you put in your dish. You can use freshly crushed tomatoes too, with San Marzano tomatoes being the greatest of all choices.
- Garlic, Onion, Carrot, and Celery: Minced garlic plus the holy trinity of Italian cooking [the soffritto, which is made of finely chopped onion, celery, and carrots], give flavor and body to this Italian meat sauce.
🔔 Be sure to check out the recipe card for all the ingredients and instructions you'll need to make this dish. Don't miss out on any of the details!
🎯 Substitutions and Variations
- Herbs and Spices: This is up to you and what you like! Dry or fresh herbs in bolognese work well, and my favorite options are [dry or fresh] chopped parsley, fresh basil, or a few sprigs of rosemary. To add heat, opt for a little red pepper flakes or paprika. Many recipes call for Italian seasoning, which, in Italy, we don't have. However, bear in mind, that those pre-mixed seasonings tend to have added salt, so adjust that if using this.
- Broth: Although I add plain water in this recipe to let it simmer down, my mother would use some broth when available, and I would suggest using some, too, if you have it! The best options are Beef broth or vegetable broth. You can use chicken broth if the other two aren't available. You may need less salt if using broth or stock.
- Milk: Pellegrino Artusi wrote a recipe book in 1891 and in his Bolognese recipe he adds some cream to the sauce before serving. Back then this was needed to mellow down the 'wild' taste of meat, and break down the fat. Now, if following my recipe, you can add half a cup of whole milk 15 minutes before the ragu Bolognese has finished cooking; add it a bit at a time, incorporating it well before adding more.
- Wine: In my bolognese sauce recipe you can find how and when to add wine to the recipe. Although I occasionally like to add red wine [great options are Sangiovese, Chianti, Lambrusco, Cabernet Sauvignon, Barolo, and Shiraz], you can also use a little white wine or beer [lager] for a different twist. White wine and beer are great additions especially if mixing the beef with pork.
- Grated Cheese: Sprinkle a little cheese on top of your rigatoni bolognese before serving! Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, Pecorino Romano, and Grana Padano are the best for the job! There's no better garnish than cheese!
👩🏻🍳 How to Make Cake (step-by-step)
- Heat up the olive oil in a large saucepan with a heavy bottom or large Dutch oven over low to medium heat.
- Once warm, add the chopped garlic, onion, carrot, and celery and season with a little salt and pepper. [Picture 1] Mix well and allow to cook until the vegetables are soft and the onion transparent.
- Next, add the ground beef [or ground meat of choice] and increase the flame to medium-high heat. [Picture 2]
- Using a wooden spoon, break down the meat and mix it until all of its sides change color [start to cook], and all the ingredients are well mixed together. This step will take approximately 5 minutes.
- OPTIONAL: Should you decide to use wine, add it at this stage and allow it to simmer away until it fully evaporates. You won't need much wine. Less than a glass will suffice.
- OPTIONAL: At this stage, add your herbs of choice, and mix them well with the meat.
- Once ready, add the tomato passata [Picture 3] and the same amount of water.
- Mix well the meat sauce and allow it to come to a light simmer. [Picture 4]
- OPTIONAL: If using broth or stock instead of water, ensure you use less salt while seasoning.
- Cover the saucepan with a lid and reduce the flame to low.
- The sauce will need to simmer lightly for a minimum of an hour. However, ideally, two and a half hours would be best. The longer you cook it, the more the flavor will blend together, and the meat pieces will break down to create a thick and meaty texture. Bolognese sauce is ready once the fats can be seen gathering at the sides of the pan, and you can see little crates form in the center of the sauce.
- OPTIONAL: If adding milk, 15 minutes before the sauce is ready, add a little milk at a time, incorporating it well into the sauce before adding more.
- Once the sauce is ready, taste for seasoning. [Picture 5]
- Before serving, in a large pan of boiling salted water, cook the rigatoni pasta according to package directions. Before draining the pasta, save a cup of cooking water on the side.
- Heat up the portion of bolognese sauce in a large skillet. Once warm, add the al dente pasta to the sauce and a couple of spoons of the cooking water. Stit well and add more pasta cooking water if necessary.
- Serve the rigatoni and meat sauce with some grated parmesan cheese and a nice slice of bread [or warm garlic bread for a little extra on the side!]
🙋 People Also Ask [FAQs]
What pasta is best for Bolognese?
Many shapes of pasta work well with Bolognese sauce. Short shapes most commonly used are rigatoni, penne, tortiglioni, fusilli, and route. Long shapes such as tagliatelle, pappardelle, spaghetti, fettuccine, and linguine are great choices.
Bolognese VS Ragu
Ragu is the generic name for a meat sauce that uses vegetables as a base [onion, carrots, celery], meat, wine, and tomato sauce. Bolognese is a type of ragu that comes from Bologna, a city in Emilia Romagna, a region in central Italy. It is a regional variation and it is in fact often called ragu Bolognese.
How to pronounce Bolognese?
In English speaking countries most people pronounce the word Bolognese as bow-luh-nayz, however, in Italy we say Boh [like the last syllable in turbo], Lo [as you would say it in love], gn [pronounced the say way as in lasaGNa], eh-se.
💡 Expert Tips and Tricks
- Pasta al dente: As you will cook the pasta for a few minutes with the delicious meat sauce, it is important it is not overcooked in the first place, but it still has a little bite to it.
- Tomato: If the tomatoes you use are too watery, add some tomato paste to the Bolognese to give it that missing richness. Add one tablespoon once the meat has browned [mix it well and fry the paste for a minute before continuing with the next step].
- Food Processor: For ease and speed, wash and cut the vegetables into chunks. Add them to the food processor to blitz until the right size is achieved.
- Pasta Pasticciata a.k.a. Rigatoni Bolognese Bake: You can turn this easy rigatoni bolognese recipe into a pasta bake by adding chopped mozzarella to it and mixing well. Add the cheesy rigatoni with meat sauce to a casserole dish and flatten it without pressing too hard. Finally, sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese and a few small dollops of unsalted butter, then bake until the mozzarella melts and the top turns golden brown.
🥡 Storing & Reheating
- In the fridge: Store Bolognese sauce on its own in the fridge for up to four days. I would not recommend storing ready-cooked pasta, however, leftovers can be stored in the fridge overnight. Thoroughly reheat your rigatoni alla bolognese in the microwave or in a saucepan with a little added water. Once reheated, the consistency of the pasta will not be the same as freshly cooked rigatoni pasta.
- In the freezer: The homemade bolognese sauce can be frozen for up to three months on its own. If freezing the meat sauce with the cooked pasta, thaw overnight in the fridge. When reheating, it is best to turn it into a baked dish by adding some mozzarella cheese on top and baking until thoroughly hot.
🍴 More Delicious Pasta Recipes to Try
👋 Have you given this recipe a try? We'd love to hear your thoughts! Please leave us a ⭐ review below, and don't forget to tag us @spiceandlife_com on Instagram and Pinterest. Your feedback means the world to us, and we really appreciate it. For more recipes, follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Thank you! 🙏
🍽️ Recipe
Best Italian Rigatoni Bolognese Recipe
The traditional Italian meat sauce made with simple ingredients with a full hearty flavor.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Medium Onion Finely Chopped Any Color
- 1 Medium Carrot Peeled and Chopped
- 1 Celery Stick Washed and Chopped
- 2 Cloves of Garlic Peeled and Minced
- 450-500 g Ground Beef
- 700 ml Passata Smooth or Chunky
- Salt and Pepper to Taste
- 450 g Rigatoni
Instructions
- Heat up the olive oil in a large saucepan with a heavy bottom [or a large dutch oven] over low to medium heat.
- Once warm, add the chopped garlic, onion, carrot, and celery and season with a little salt and pepper. Mix well and allow to cook until the vegetables are soft and the onion transparent. This will take about 5 minutes.
- Next, add the ground beef [or ground meat of choice] and increase the flame to medium high heat. Using a wooden spoon, break down the meat and mix it until all of its sides change color [start to cook] and all the ingredients are well mixed together. This step will take approximately 5 minutes.
- OPTIONAL: Should you decide to use wine, add it at this stage and allow it to simmer away until it fully evaporates. You won't need much wine, less than a glass will suffice.
- OPTIONAL: At this stage add your herbs of choice, and mix them well to the meat. Should the tomatoes you choose to use watery, add also a tablespoon of tomato paste at this stage and allow it to fry for a minute.
- Once ready, add the tomato passata and the same amount of water. Mix well the meat sauce and allow it to come to a light simmer.
- OPTIONAL: If using broth or stock instead of water, ensure you use less salt while seasoning.
- Cover the saucepan with a lid and reduce the flame to low. The sauce will need to simmer lightly for a minimum of an hour, however, ideally two and a half hours would be best, as the longer this is cooked for the more the flavor will blend together and the meat pieces break down to create a thick and meaty texture. Bolognese sauce is ready once the fats can be seen gathering at the sides of the pan and you can see little crates form in the centre of the Bolognese. Remember to keep on stirring occasionally.
- OPTIONAL: If adding milk, 15 minutes before the Bolognese is ready, start adding a little milk at a time, incorporating it well to the sauce before adding more.
- Once ready, taste for seasoning.
- Before serving, in a large pan of boiling salted water, cook the rigatoni pasta according to package directions. Before driving the pasta, save a cup of cooking water on the side.
- Heat up the bolognese sauce in a large skillet and, once warm, add the al dente pasta to the Bolognese and a couple of spoons of the cooking water. Add more pasta cooking water if necessary.
- Serve the pasta with some grated parmesan cheese and a nice slice of bread [or warm garlic bread for a little extra on the side!]
Notes
Optional Ingredients
- Herbs and Spices: Dry or fresh herbs work well, good options are dry or fresh chopped parsley, fresh basil, or a few sprigs of rosemary. To add heat, opt for a little red pepper flakes or paprika.
- Broth: Beef, Chicken, or Vegetable Broths or Stock all work well. Make sure to reduce the salt used for seasoning if using this instead of water.
- Milk: If following this recipe, you can add half a cup of whole milk 15 minutes before the sauce has finished cooking; add it a bit at a time, incorporating it well to the sauce before adding more.
- Wine: In my bolognese sauce recipe you can find how and when to add wine to the recipe.
- Grated Cheese: Grated Parmesan cheese, Pecorino Romano, and Grana Padano are the best for the job!
- Tomato Sauce: Should the tomatoes you use be too watery, add some tomato paste to the Bolognese to give it that missing richness. Add one tablespoon once the meat has browned [mix it well and fry the paste for a minute before continuing with the next step].
- In the fridge: Bolognese sauce on its own can be stored in the fridge for up to four days. I would not recommend storing ready-cooked pasta, however, leftovers can be stored in the fridge overnight and thoroughly reheated in the microwave or in a saucepan with a little added water, although the consistency of the pasta will not be the same as freshly cooked rigatoni pasta.
- In the freezer: The homemade bolognese sauce can be frozen for up to three months on its own. If freezing the pasta sauce with the cooked pasta in it, when reheating it is best to turn it into a baked dish by adding some mozzarella cheese on top and baking until thoroughly hot.
Nutrition
Calories: 532kcalCarbohydrates: 70gProtein: 27gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0.5gCholesterol: 49mgSodium: 97mgPotassium: 1014mgFiber: 5gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 2331IUVitamin C: 15mgCalcium: 57mgIron: 5mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Leave a Comment