Easy Bolognese Sauce with Tomato Paste

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Gather all the ingredients for the Bolognese sauce. You can grind the meat yourself or use store-bought. This recipe uses ground pork. You can mix two or three kinds of meat to make the sauce richer and more flavorful.

2. Step 2:

   

   Peel the onion and garlic. Rinse them along with the herbs and bay leaf under running water. Finely chop the onion.

3. Step 3:

   

   Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet and sauté the onion for a while. How far you take it is up to you — you can cook it just until slightly translucent, or leave it a bit longer until golden.

4. Step 4:

   

   Add the ground meat to the onion, stirring constantly and breaking up any large clumps with a wooden or plastic spatula. The finer the meat, the more appetizing and delicious the sauce will be. Fry the meat this way for about five minutes over high heat.

5. Step 5:

   

   Press the garlic through a garlic press or mince it by hand (whichever you prefer) and add it to the meat.

6. Step 6:

   

   Next, add the tomatoes in their own juice and the tomato paste. At this point you can swap in fresh ripe tomatoes and tomato sauce instead. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and add a pinch of dried basil, oregano, or other favorite spices if you like.

7. Step 7:

   

   Stir everything well and check that the sauce isn't too thick. If it needs more liquid, add a little water (about 3 tablespoons). If you're using fresh tomatoes, they'll release enough juice as they cook. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer the meat and tomatoes, covered, for 10 minutes.

8. Step 8:

   

   Next, add the cream and bay leaf to the pan, stir, and leave on the stove for another five minutes.

9. Step 9:

   

   Taste the sauce for salt and add more if needed. Stir in the finely chopped herbs and remove the pan from the heat.

10. Step 10:

    

    The sauce is ready!