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Italian

Ragù alla bolognese with tagliatelle

Non-vegetarian

Tagliatelle al ragù alla bolognese

A slow-cooked meat sauce from Bologna — beef and pork simmered with soffritto, wine, a little tomato and milk until rich and tender — served on ribbon pasta rather than spaghetti.

Ragù alla bolognese with tagliatelle is an Italian pasta dish from Italy, ready in about 3 hours and made with ground beef and ground pork. It serves 6 and is rated intermediate to cook.

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Prep
15 min
Cook
2 h 45 min
Total
3 h
Serves
6
Level
Intermediate
Calories
630

Ingredients

6 servings

For the cooking water

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    In a heavy pot, melt the butter (opens in a new tab) with the oil and render the pancetta (opens in a new tab). Add the onion (opens in a new tab), carrot (opens in a new tab) and celery (opens in a new tab) and cook gently until soft and sweet.

    Onions frying golden in a pan
    How it looks · Photo: Magda Ehlers on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Raise the heat, add the beef and pork and cook, breaking it up, until it loses its pink colour and starts to brown.

    • 10 min
    • medium-high heat

  3. Step 3

    Pour in the wine and let it bubble away almost completely. Stir in the tomato paste (opens in a new tab), passata, milk (opens in a new tab), stock, salt, pepper (opens in a new tab) and nutmeg (opens in a new tab).

    • 5 min
    • medium heat

  4. Step 4

    Cover partly and simmer very gently for at least 2 hours, stirring now and then and adding a splash of water if it gets dry. It is ready when thick, glossy and the meat is tender.

    • 130 min
    • low heat

  5. Step 5

    Cook the tagliatelle in salted boiling water, drain and toss with the ragù and a splash of cooking water. Serve with parmesan (opens in a new tab).

    Pasta boiling in a pot of water
    How it looks · Photo: Gianpiero Ferraro on Pexels

About this dish

Origin
Emilia-Romagna (Bologna), Italy · Well documentedAlso popular in United Kingdom, United States, AustraliaMore food from Italy
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Pasta · Sauces · Main courses
Cooking method
Sautéed, Slow-cooked, Simmered, Boiled
Taste
rich, savoury, umami
Diet
No nut ingredients · High-protein
All labelsNon-vegetarian · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · High-protein
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Freezer-friendly · Make-ahead · Batch cooking
Cook more with
Ground beef · Ground pork · Butter · Onion · Carrot · Celery
Techniques
Sautéing · Boiling · Simmering

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom butter, milk, parmesan
  • May contain: Eggsfrom dried pasta
  • Contains: Wheatfrom dried pasta
  • Contains: Glutenfrom dried pasta
  • Contains: Celeryfrom celery, beef stock
  • Contains, can be adapted: Sulphitesfrom dry white wine

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

630 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 340 g · recipe makes 6

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 19%
  • Carbohydrate 39%
  • Fat 42%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy630 kcal185 kcal
Protein28.3 g8.3 g
Carbohydrate59.3 g17.4 g
Net carbohydrate55.5 g16.3 g
Sugars——
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre3.8 g1.1 g
Fat28.7 g8.5 g
Saturated fat10.2 g3 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol77 mg23 mg
Sodium880 mg259 mg
Salt equivalent2.2 g0.6 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
834 mg
Calcium
82 mg
Iron
4.7 mg
Magnesium
75 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
137 µg
Vitamin C
7 mg
Vitamin D
—
Vitamin B12
1.5 µg
Folate (DFE)
280 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: nutmeg, parmesan.
  • Pancetta: Cured (unsmoked) bacon used as a stand-in; pancetta is salt-cured pork belly of similar composition, usually not smoked.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • The milk tenderises the meat and softens the acidity of the tomato.
  • Ragù tastes even better the next day.

Common mistakes

  • Rushing it — a 30-minute ragù is a different, thinner sauce.
  • Too much tomato; this is a meat sauce with tomato, not a tomato sauce with meat.

Serve with

  • Use leftovers for lasagne.

Food safety

  • Brown the minced meat until no pink remains; the long simmer takes it well past 71 °C.
  • Cool the ragù quickly in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours; reheat until bubbling.

Storage

  • Ragù keeps 4 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer.

Reheating

  • Reheat gently with a splash of water.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

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Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

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Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 2, 3, 5

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