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Slow-Cooked Bolognese Sauce

Slowly cooked to perfection, this bolognese will have your friends and family coming back for more!
Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time 4 hours
Author Chews and Brews

Ingredients

  • 1 L homemade or store-bought chicken stock
  • 1 28-ounce; 800g can pureed tomatoes, preferably San Marzano
  • 1/2 pound pureed chicken livers
  • 1/4 cup avocado oil
  • 2 pound ground turkey
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 pound finely diced pancetta
  • 1 large onion finely minced
  • 2 large carrots finely chopped
  • 4 ribs celery finely chopped
  • 8 medium cloves garlic minced
  • 1/4 cup minced fresh sage leaves
  • 1/2 cup minced fresh parsley leaves divided
  • 2 cups dry red wine
  • 1 cup skim milk divided
  • 1 cup 33% cream divided
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese divided

To Serve

  • Dried or fresh pasta of your choice

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. In a large, oven safe Dutch oven, heat the oil over high heat and add in the ground turkey, seasoned with salt and pepper, and cook while breaking up with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink. Add in the pureed chicken livers and continue to cook until everything is combined and cooked thoroughly, about 10 - 15 mins. Set aside.
  3. Heat butter in Dutch oven and add in pancetta and cook, stirring frequently until most of the fat from the pancetta has rendered, about 12 - 15 minutes. Add in the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, sage and half the parsley and cook while stirring for about 8 minutes.
  4. Add back the cooked meat mixture to the Dutch oven and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 10 - 15 minutes.
  5. Add in the wine and cook while stirring until mostly evaporated, about 20 - 40 minutes. Add chicken broth, pureed tomatoes, half of the milk and cream, bay leaves and half of the parmesan cheese. Bring sauce to a simmer and then transfer to the preheated oven with no lid.
  6. Cook, stirring and scraping down the sides occasionally (I did this every 30 minutes), until sauce is thick, rich and liquid is almost completely reduced.
  7. Add in remaining parsley, milk, cream and parmesan cheese and stir. Serve slow-cooked bolognese with your favourite pasta!

Recipe Notes

Adapted from The Food Lab