Spaghetti Bolognese

Name: Spaghetti Bolognese
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 2 yellow onions, diced; 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 clove garlic, minced; 500 g lean ground beef; 90 g cremini mushrooms, sliced; 1 tsp dried oregano; 400 g can canned crushed tomatoes; 300 ml hot beef stock; 1 tbsp tomato puree; 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce; 350 g spaghetti; 1 topping parmesan, finely grated

From the kitchen of Carly

Slow-simmered tomato and beef sauce that turns weeknight pasta into Sunday-dinner energy. Mushrooms add depth, oregano keeps it Italian, and a half hour on the stove gives you the long-cooked taste without the all-day commitment.

Prep: 10 min
Cook: 35 min
Total: 45 min
Servings: 4
Difficulty: easy

Ingredients

4 servings

2yellow onions, diced
1 tbspolive oil
1 clovegarlic, minced
500 glean ground beef
90 gcremini mushrooms, sliced
1 tspdried oregano
400 g cancanned crushed tomatoes
300 mlhot beef stock
1 tbsptomato puree
1 tbspWorcestershire sauce
350 gspaghetti
1 toppingparmesan, finely grated

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a deep pan over medium-high. Add the onions and cook 3 to 4 minutes until they start to soften and color at the edges.
Add the garlic and ground beef. Break the beef apart with a spoon and cook until no pink remains and you see some browning on the bottom of the pan, about 6 minutes.
Stir in the mushrooms and oregano. Cook 2 minutes more.
Pour in the crushed tomatoes, beef stock, tomato puree, and Worcestershire. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat, cover, and let it bubble gently for 30 minutes, stirring once or twice.
Around the 25-minute mark, cook the spaghetti in a large pot of well-salted boiling water until just shy of al dente, per the package time.
Drain the pasta, reserving a splash of cooking water. Return it to the pot, add the sauce and a tablespoon or two of pasta water, and toss until everything is glossy and clings to the noodles.
Serve in warmed bowls with parmesan grated on top.

Substitutions

lean ground beef to ground turkey or a 50/50 beef-and-lentil mix. Both keep the structure; lentils add fiber without changing the flavor much.
spaghetti to tagliatelle or pappardelle. Wider noodles actually hold this sauce better than spaghetti.
Worcestershire sauce to 1 tsp soy sauce + a few drops of fish sauce. Same umami depth without the bottle.

Pairs well with: Caesar salad or a sharp arugula salad with lemon, Garlic bread or a hunk of crusty sourdough, Chianti, Barbera, or any medium-bodied Italian red

Adapted from TheMealDB.