Saturday, November 14, 2009

Bolognese Sauce ala Ethan

Here is a recipe that I learned in Turkey and then perfected in Italy. It's a very delicious
Bolognese sauce with some of my own touches. I never work with measuring cups, so you'll have to bear with me on the measurements.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs. ground beef or meat of choice
1 can of broth to match meat
3/4 stick of butter
1/4 cup olive oil
5 cloves garlic
1 red onion and 1 yellow onion (chopped)
1 green pepper and 1/2 green chili pepper (chopped)
6 capers and a splash of caper juice
6-8 vine ripened tomatoes (or equivalent in beefsteak tomatoes)
2 stalks celery
1 carrot
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 cup whole milk
1 handful grated Parmesan cheese
oregano
basil
1/2 bouquet parsley (some dill optional)
allspice
nutmeg
pepper/salt

1) Chop all the vegetables to approximately the same size. Crush the tomatoes after having chopped them.
2) Over medium heat, add butter, oil, onions and garlic and brown for 1-2 minutes.
3) Next, add the peppers, carrots, celery, pepper, salt, a good amount of oregano, and an amount of basil that is less than the oregano you added and let simmer for 6 minutes.
4) One by one, add the red wine and the milk, letting each evaporate off.
5) Add the stock, Parmesan cheese, tomatoes, nutmeg (to taste), allspice (to taste), capers and caper juice, and let simmer over low heat for 1-2 hours. You should not need to add very much nutmeg and allspice (each less than a teaspoon).
6) Add the parsley and dill directly before serving and serve with fresh Parmesan cheese

*For best results, let the sauce sit in the refrigerator for 24 hours. This is pretty much the rule with any Italian sauces you might make. This recipe seems to be a hit everywhere I make it. You know when people go for their third plate.

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