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Homemade Bolognese with Whole Wheat Spaghetti Recipe

Wednesday, June 08, 2011 | Labels: , , |

I love love pasta, being the self-confessed noodle fiend that I am, I guess that should come as no surprise.  Apart from cooking and eating (of course) I am always interested in the origins of dishes and more often than not, you can find many similarities in cuisine from markedly different cultures.  Many apparently subscribe to the theory that when Marco Polo visited China and saw the variety of noodles in the Middle Kingdom, he introduced pasta to the Italians when he returned.  Now, I am not sure if that is fully accurate but it does sound logical since the Chinese civilization is one of the oldest.  Bolognese in particular has been said to have originated from China's famous zhaziangmian which is a noodle dish served with a meat-based sauce. Nevertheless, origins aside, can I say I love both zhaziangmian and spaghetti bolognese?

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Today's feature is the result of yours truly trying to make bolognese sauce from scratch for the very first time. I used ground pork instead of beef as my mom does not eat beef for religious reasons and pork worked great, better than chicken as the texture of ground chicken is a bit dry (I am not a chicken breast fan) so that may be why.  I added some mushrooms, garlic, rosemary and this may sound blasphemous to you purists out there - I added some ketchup for a bit of refreshing tang .  I prefer my bolognese sauce with more meat and less tomato which is apparently the authentic style, so maybe that may sound a little 'redeeming'.  This was served with my kaffir lime fritto misto for a little Asian twist to an 'Italian' dinner. 

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Since this is such a hearty dish, I used whole wheat spaghetti to lessen the guilt (and carbs) factor.  I am submitting this as an entry to Presto Pasta Nights created by Ruth of Once Upon A Feast and hosted by Kirsten of From Kirsten's Kitchen To Yours this week.



Ingredients:

(Serves 6-8)

For the sauce:

100g tomato paste
4 whole canned plum tomatoes
300g ground pork (use beef or chicken to substitute if you like)
1 red onion, sliced
6 garlic cloves, smashed
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
3 tbsps ketchup (optional)
1 tbsp sugar
3 tbsps freshly grated parmesan (optional)
1 cup sliced button mushrooms
Pinch of salt

1 box whole wheat spaghetti, boil according to package instructions (in some lightly salted water)

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Method:

Saute the garlic and onions until aromatic.  Add in the ground pork and saute until lightly browned but not entirely cooked.  Add in the mushrooms and stir for about 1 minute.  Add in the tomato paste and canned tomatoes, stirring all the while.  Bring to a boil.

Add the sprig of rosemary and ketchup plus sugar and then lower heat to low for simmering.  Simmer covered for about 30-40 minutes.  The sauce should have thickened up considerably by now.  Do a taste test and a pinch of salt if required.  Once you are happy with how thick the sauce is, add in the parmesan cheese and give it a stir right before you want to dish out.

Serve with whole wheat spaghetti.  Leftover sauce can be refrigerated and kept for up to 3 days.

25 comments:

angsarap said...

I love classic recipes like these. Yummy!

angsarap said...

I love classic recipes like these. Yummy!

Patricia Scarpin said...

My hubby would devour this plate in no time. :)

Three-Cookies said...

In Central Asia you can find lagman which originates from Northern China. Its hand-pulled noodles in spicy beef sauce (not ground beef). So its quite conceivable that pasta originated in China. Also tomatoes are not native to Italy

carolynjung said...

Bolognese is addicting stuff. So comforting and so full of complex, developed flavors after all that long-simmering. Definitely worth making again and again.

Mlle Paradis said...

could i use that one too? "noodle head"? so me!

"spag bol" as they call it in england is definitely a number one comfort food. it is never wrong or unwelcome!

Kathryn said...

I also recently made bolognese from scratch for the first time, but it didn't turn out quite how I would have liked.  It was a bit too sweet for my taste.  I'll definitely have to try out this recipe, though!

Nami said...

Hi Jen!  Well I sort of knew you like noodles because you have made so many wonderful noodle recipes since I found your site.  Spaghetti bolognese is one of my favorite pastas (Top 3 pasta) and zhaziangmian is my favorite chinese noodle too!  We are so similar!!!  I have tried and cooked so many bolognaise recipes.  From tedious recipes to easy one.  I can't wait to try yours.  Ketchup and rosemary!  Good idea!

Malli said...

I absolutely love Bolognese sauce on anything..... your version looks delicious!!

Cooking gallery said...

 I always end up making spaghetti bolognese whenever I don't have much time to cook, but I don't mind so much about it because I like it a lot. Yours looks sooo yummy...!

Mlle Paradis said...

could i use that one too? "noodle head"? so me!

"spag bol" as they call it in england is definitely a number one comfort food. it is never wrong or unwelcome!

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

thanks CG! It's so easy to make from scratch too, no more jars for me :)

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

thank you!

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

thanks Nami! haha I do love noodles, I'm a noodle fiend! 

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

thanks Kathryn..did you add a lot of sugar? I'm curious what made it too sweet..

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

I know, it's such a comfort food! is that a new term in England? when I studied in London, I never heard it :)

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

Yes Carolyn, I can't wait to make this again!

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

haha

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

Very interesting!

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

thank you

chopinandmysaucepan said...

Spag bol is one of my fave pasta, especially when it's starting to get into winter here and I'm thinking about a nice hearty recipe!

chopinandmysaucepan said...

Spag bol is one of my fave pasta, especially when it's starting to get into winter here and I'm thinking about a nice hearty recipe!

tika hapsari nilmada said...

Thanks for submitting your photo, Jen. Wishing you good luck 

Tastes of Home (Jen) said...

thanks Tika!

Youngmoneky said...

YUM! Now absolutely vegetarian whole wheat pasta on this amazing teenage blog (lead by a 14 year old). Check it out at http://teenage-baking.blogspot.com/2011/08/whole-wheat-spagetti-with-asparagus.html 

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