Recipe is excerpted from That Noodle Life © 2022 by Michael and Stephanie Le, photos by Michael Le. Reproduced by permission of Workman Publishing. All rights reserved.
The Ultimate Meat Sauce
Classic Bolognese is made with a mix of ground meats, but we use whole cuts, seared to build flavor, then slow braised to break them down and richly infuse the sauce. The true Bolognese secret ingredient, chicken livers, gives this sauce that extra hint of umami, while soy and fish sauce give it another layer of intensity.
Ingredients:
- 1 pound boneless beef chuck steak
- 1 pound boneless pork shoulder
- 1 pound boneless lamb shoulder
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 ounces guanciale, cubed
- 1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 carrot, finely chopped
- 2 ribs celery, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed or minced
- 1/4 pound chicken livers, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
- 2 1/2 cups sodium-free beef stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
- 24 ounces fresh pappardelle
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 300°F.
- Season the beef, pork, and lamb generously on all sides with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat and sear the meats (in batches if needed to avoid crowding the pot) until deeply brown on all sides, 8 to 10 minutes per batch. Remove to a plate and set aside.
- Reduce the heat to medium and add the guanciale to the pot. Cook until crispy, 4 to 5 minutes, then add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, livers, parsley, and fennel seeds. Cook until onions are soft and translucent, 1 to 2 minutes, then stir in the tomato paste and cook until slightly caramelized, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the wine, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan to release any browned bits, and turn the heat up to high. Simmer until the wine is reduced by half, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, beef stock, bay leaves, and the browned meats. When the mixture returns to a simmer, transfer the pot, uncovered, to the oven and braise until the meats are very fork-tender, 2 hours.
- Remove the pot from the oven. Find and discard the bay leaves. Transfer the meat to a large bowl and shred or roughly chop the meat. Stir the meat back into the sauce along with the cream, Parmigiano, fish sauce, and soy sauce. Adjust the seasoning to taste.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pappardelle and cook until it just starts to float, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Meanwhile, transfer 2 cups of the sauce to a large skillet and bring to a simmer over medium heat, then reduce to medium-low heat. (Store the remaining sauce—see Make It Ahead.) When the pappardelle is done, drain it well, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water, and transfer the pappardelle to the skillet with the sauce. Cook until the pappardelle is coated and the sauce is glossy, about 1 minute, adding the reserved pasta water a tablespoon at a time if it looks dry. Serve immediately.
Make It Ahead:
Make the sauce ahead of time (you can even double it, and sauce your noodles as needed—the sauce will keep in the fridge tightly covered for up to 5 days and up to 1 month in the freezer (divide the sauce into 1/2-cup portions for easily defrosted individual servings). Gently reheat in a saucepan over medium-low heat, loosening with a touch of cream, if needed.