Truly, The Best-Ever Bolognese Sauce (Slowly Simmered)

Enjoyed by thousands with countless rave reviews, this is truly the Best-Ever Bolognese Sauce recipe! Inspired by my time working at a fine-dining Italian restaurant, this rich and hearty meat sauce slowly simmers ground beef, ground pork, and pancetta with caramelized vegetables, fresh herbs, tomatoes, and red wine, creating incredible depth of flavor. Finish with heavy cream and parmesan, then toss with spaghetti, pappardelle, or rigatoni for a restaurant-worthy pasta bolognese at home!

Recipe by Jess Larson on February 3, 2020

Prep time: PT15M

Cook time: PT2H30M

Total time: PT2H45M

Rating

4.9 stars ( reviews)

Keywords

homemade pasta sauce, italian recipes, homemade italian recipes, date night recipes, dinner party recipes

Ingredients

2 large carrots, roughly chopped
1 stalk celery, roughly chopped
1 large yellow onion, roughly chopped
4 ounces pancetta, roughly chopped (see Recipe Notes)
6 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
one 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 cup medium-bodied red wine, such as Chianti
3-4 sprigs fresh rosemary
10-12 sprigs fresh thyme
2 dried bay leaves
optional: 1 parmesan rind
one 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
up to 2 cups chicken broth or water
kosher salt and ground black pepper, to season
32 ounces pasta of choice, such as spaghetti, bucatini, or rigatoni
½ cup heavy cream
½ cup grated parmesan
for serving, as desired: grated parmesan, finely chopped fresh basil or parsley, crushed red pepper flakes, etc.

Cuisine

American

Steps

Slowly Simmered Bolognese Sauce:
- Prepare the soffritto and pestata
- Render the pestata
- Brown the soffritto
- Brown the meat and tomato paste
- Deglaze the pan
- Build the bolognese sauce
- Slowly simmer the bolognese sauce
- Finish the bolognese sauce
Pasta Bolognese:
- Boil the pasta
- Finish the slowly simmered bolognese sauce
- Pasta bolognese
- Serve

Nutitrion

Calories: 413 calories
Carbohydrates: 17 g
Protein: 27.3 g
Fat: 26.6 g
Saturated Fat: 9.4 g
Trans Fat: 0.3 g
Cholesterol: 87.6 mg
Sodium: 757.3 mg
Sugar: 8.8 g

Reviews

Dominika Ujlaky on 2023-01-09 (5 stars):
I've made bolognese before, but it was never this good. This recipe is absolute perfection. I have a feeling all those browning steps make a huge difference. I only had dried herbs, otherwise followed the recipe exactly. The consistency is truly perfect - thick, luscious, hearty, flavorful. It is definitely restaurant-quality. Thank you!!
Kim Quin on 2023-01-25 (5 stars):
Hands down my favorite sauce recipe and quite possible my favorite thing I've ever cooked. My husband always requests this sauce.. a family favorite! Don't hesitate, JUST MAKE THIS! You won't be sorry!
Kim on 2023-09-01 (5 stars):
Truly the BEST recipe ever. I've made this quite a few times now for family and guests and everyone always raves about it.
Marissa on 2024-01-02 (5 stars):
I've made this recipe a few times and it's been a crowd pleaser every time! I just made this recipe again on New Years Eve and splurged on higher quality tomatoes and wine. OMG was it good.
Georgia on 2024-02-12 (5 stars):
THIS IS MY GO TO! I make this in big batches because it’s so freezer friendly. I actually make it vegetarian by replacing the meat with minced mushrooms (half button/ half brown) and skip the pancetta and it works perfectly every time. This is my first time commenting on a recipe but I’m making it for my partner for Valentine’s Day - hoping this a good way to get him to eat mushrooms 😅
Melly on 2024-11-17 (5 stars):
By far the most delicious sauce that’s come out of my kitchen. Thank you so much! I will make this again and again
Philip on 2024-11-26 (5 stars):
So good. Probably one of the best aroma producing dishes in Jess' recipes. Had to simmer for over 2.5 hours though. I should have taken that "start with one cup of broth" advice more seriously.
James on 2024-12-21 (4 stars):
All good but I wouldn’t use herbs like rosemary and thyme in a bolognese.
Beverly on 2025-01-25 (5 stars):
I am also a Bolognese lover. I've been working to perfect it since living in NYC in the 80's + 90's. My recipe is similar to yours, however, here are the ingredients I include in my sauce: 1. I substitute chicken stock/broth with a few spoonsful of chicken bouillon. 2. I add vodka then heavy cream + reduce (after browning the meat + simmering the soffritto) 3. I add dried oregano, garlic + pepper to the meat as it is browning. 4. In addition to tomato paste I add Pomodora Contadina Tomato sauce from "Emilia Food Love which is shipped from Italy. Best sauce ever made. 5. I then add more basil and then parmigiana, a pinch of red pepper flakes 2 tablespoons of butter and red wine to the sauce, let simmer for at least 1 hour. Enjoy Thanks for a great recipe :)
Mary on 2025-03-10 (5 stars):
Hi Emma, this recipe is so crazy good. I have now made it twice. It isn't just good; it is fabulous and worth the time to make it! I have a quick question. In the video, you use one pkg. (1lb.) of the bucatini pasta. In the recipe it calls for 32 oz. which would be two packages. I used 32 oz. from the stated recipe. Is this accurate or am I using too much?
JULIEWADSWORTH on 2025-04-03 (5 stars):
Oh my goodness this recipe is next level. I consider myself to be a great cook but my bolognese sauce tasted like there was something missing it lacked depth. Not anymore thanks to this recipe. Thank you.
Juliette Gilbert on 2025-05-17 (5 stars):
I made this tonight for 4 people (adjusted recipe for 6) exactly as written except didnt have the parmesan rind. It makes a difference taking your time and it was so flavourful. Will make this again.
Alison Wallace on 2025-06-16 (5 stars):
I agree that this is a fantastic recipe. I thought I was making a very fine bolognese but this one ups the ante by a mile. It makes a delicious meal and the best bolognese I have ever made.
Ed on 2025-08-15 (5 stars):
This hands down is the best bolognese we’ve ever had - home cooked or restaurant. I used wagyu burgers for the beef portion for a little extra somethin’ somethin’- lol. Love the way the recipe builds on the flavor layers. Made the full recipe but only served half with a pound of fresh pasta from our local pasta shop. Also loved all the detail in the recipe steps - made it easy to follow. Cheers!!
Samantha Metters on 2025-10-01 (5 stars):
Just made this tonight.. my husband kept popping his beak in with comments like “ blending the veg ??? ” “Adding cream ?!” Etc .. he ate two huge portions and said it was beautiful .. enough said ! X
DIANNE on 2026-01-27 (5 stars):
This is truly an incredible bolognese! Definitely restaurant worthy!! The only tweek I'd make is use less rosemary. I used 4 twigs and thyme tied together with twine, but many of the rosemary twigs broke off into the sauce giving it a very strong rosemary flavor (something my husband isn't a fan of!). This will be my go to recipe whenever I'm craving bolognese!! Thank you for creating such a wonderful dish!
Catherine on 2026-02-12 (5 stars):
It turned out brilliantly! Nice deep flavour; a new family favourite.
Laura D on 2026-04-27 (5 stars):
You weren’t kidding -- this is truly the best bolognese sauce I’ve ever had. I’ve tried so many recipes that claim to be “the best” -- but this one absolutely lives up to it. Just wow. I do prefer following your video instructions rather than the written version here, as it's much clearer and easier to follow. The written recipe felt a bit wordy in comparison, which could be improved. That said, the result is phenomenal -----genuinely restaurant-quality. Five stars!
Dawn Welch Harbin on 2026-05-05 (5 stars):
Omg this is deeeeelicious... i had a day off work and i made sauce and it was truly a beautiful dinner thank you for sharing