Spaghetti Bolonese I Made It

Spaghetti Bolonese

pointsevenout 12 years ago
Recipe by Pleclare: Spaghetti Bolonese
Had to tweak on the recipe destructions.
The vegetable saute didn't caramelize at the low setting. All they did was dry up. Had to increase to the medium setting and re-saute. Left burner at medium when adding ground beef. No pancetta. No wine, used beef bouillon. Used fresh tomatoes; peeled, seeded, then chopped in food processor with small chunks left.
Sauce never did thicken, just reduced all the water out of the tomatoes. Took exactly 40 minutes to reduce. If you want it to thicken then some tomato paste is in order.
My understanding of Bolognese sauce is the meat is supposed to be the star of the show with very little other ingredients to accompany it. In this vein the Bolognese sauce was a success.
I liked the subtle sweetness the carrot gave and the touch of heat after a mouthful is swallowed.
Served over a bed of fettuccine.
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pleclare 12 years ago said:

Not sure whether that was a compliment or not. I have had no problems with the recipe and do think the wine and pancetta added to it.Hard to critique a recipe when you change it so much...

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pointsevenout 12 years ago said:

IMHO I did a fine job on critique. My thrust was not to compliment or insult but to show the difficulty I had with the "low" setting for sauteeing the veggies and beef to caramelization, which is a qualification for bringing out the flavor in a bolognese. "Low" did not produce the desired results for me but "Med" did.
Wish I did have the (optional) pancetta. It would enhance the already good flavor. We don't keep wine in the house. A suitable substitute for deglazing the pan is a bouillon. I chose beef bouillon because of the flavor match with the ground beef. Wine would have brought another dimension in flavor to the already flavorful dish.
Using fresh vs. canned tomatoes is not a change. The can of crushed tomatoes you use has been skinned and seeded and blended already. All I did is opt for fresh instead of canned which also reduces the sodium content.
In simmering down the liquid in the sauce, there was no thickening effect. Just water reduction. Got those little simmer bubbles all the way through the simmer time and not the glop glop glop bubbles of a thickened sauce. Just reporting my results.
So where is the "you changed it so much" you think I did?

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pleclare 12 years ago said:

Whatever Points!!

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