On Friday night Mr Smaggle came back from a week away and he requested that I make his favourite dinner – my famous spaghetti bolognese. It’s mainly based upon Mama Smaggle’s bolognese but I’ve adapted it and added to it over the years. I was debating whether or not to share my recipe because How To Make Awesome Spaghetti Bolognese seems like a seriously over populated section of the web but then I thought it would be a rad idea to get everyone to share their spaghetti bolognese recipes. Here’s mine and I hope you’ll share yours with me too!
- 1 kilo beef mince
- 1 brown onion
- 4 cloves of crushed garlic
- 800gm can of crushed tomatoes
- 1 bottle pasta sauce
- 1 bunch basil, finely chopped
- 1 large red chilli, finely chopped
- 1 birdseye chilli, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ beef stock cube
- 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 500gms dry pasta
- Heat oil in a fry pan. Fry onions for a few minutes until soft. Add garlic and chilli and fry until fragrant.
- Add beef and use a wooden spoon to break it up in the pan. Cook until just brown.
- Add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste and pasta sauce. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for at least 20 to 30 minutes.
- NOTE: I tend to cook this over a few hours, sometimes up to 3 hours. It tends to be a bit more flavoursome the longer you cook it but I wouldn't simmer for less than 20 to 30 minutes. I also add water as it simmers so it doesn't get too dry.
- Add ½ cube of beef stock, dried herbs, fresh herbs and salt and pepper to taste.
- NOTE: At this stage you can keep tasting it and add extra herbs, chilli or salt and pepper until it tastes the way you want it to.
- Bring a large pot of water to boil and follow the instructions on the pasta packet. Drain pasta, stir through sauce and serve with parmesan cheese and salt and pepper.
There’s always heaps of left overs when ever I make this and we can usually get around 8 to 10 meals out of it. Sometimes I’ll add some spinach or have it with SlimPasta if I’ve been over indulging a bit too much or I’ll have it on toast if I’m feeling a bit lazy and need an easy dinner.
Now I’d love very much if you would share your spaghetti bolognese recipe with me. There are 2 ways to share – you can simply pop your recipe in the comments below or if you have a blog of your own, you can publish your own spaghetti bolognese recipe and pop the link in the comments. It’s an awesome way to create a solid resource of spaghetti bolognese recipes and also give you a chance to show off your spag bol chops!