With an ingredients list that includes cream, butter, cheese, and red wine, this Meaty Mushroom Bolognese is worth pulling out a clean tablecloth and lighting some candles.
This is not a simple weeknight pasta. You’re not going to have this dinner on the table in thirty minutes or less. Don’t even think about it on a Tuesday.
Rather, this is a dinner-party-worthy pasta, luxurious and rich. With an ingredients list that includes cream, butter, cheese, and red wine, this Meaty Mushroom Bolognese is worth pulling out a clean tablecloth and lighting some candles.
This dish involves a long simmer, and is even better if you make it the day before. I love it with pappardelle – long, fat, chewy, ribbons of pasta. Opting for fresh pasta, as opposed to dried, will take this dish to the next level.
Serve it for a special occasion, with an arugula salad or sautéed broccoli rabe. Tell your guests to bring the wine. Lots of wine.
Meaty Mushroom Bolognese
For the sauce:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
1 small carrot, trimmed and chopped
1 rib celery, trimmed and chopped
1/2 white onion, trimmed and chopped
3 cups sliced cremini mushrooms
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
1 cup red wine
5 cups strained tomatoes
6 stems thyme, tied with kitchen twine
2 bay leaves
water, as needed
2 tablespoons heavy cream
For the pasta:
1 1/2 pounds pappardelle
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Place a large, heavy-bottomed pot, such as a dutch oven, over medium heat. Place the olive oil into the pot, followed by the ground beef and ground pork. Cook until the meat is cooked through and beginning to brown. Drain any excess fat.
- Add the carrot, celery, onion, and cremini mushrooms to the pot. Sprinkle the kosher salt over the vegetables and increase the heat. Cook until the vegetables have released their liquid and are beginning to brown.
- Stir in the nutmeg and garlic. Continue to cook until the garlic is fragrant, but take care not to let it burn.
- Stir in the red wine and bring to a simmer. Cook until reduced by half.
- Add the tomatoes, thyme, and bay leaves. Bring the sauce to a boil, then lower and simmer. Add water as needed, to keep the sauce from becoming too thick. Simmer for two or three hours, stirring every twenty or thirty minutes.
- Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Cook the pappardelle according to the package instructions, draining it when it is still al dente.
- Turn the Bolognese sauce off, and fish out and discard the thyme and bay leaves. Stir the heavy cream into the sauce. Taste the sauce and add salt if needed.
- Place the drained pasta back in its pot. Add about half the sauce to the pot, along with the butter, parsley, and Parmesan cheese. Toss well.
- Divide the pasta into warmed bowls, topping with additional sauce and more Parmesan cheese.
Pass additional Parmesan cheese at the table. This recipe will yield eight to ten servings.
