THE PERFECT SPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE

What is the perfect ragu alla bolognese? According to Wikipedia, the traditional recipe was registered in 1982 by the Bolognese delegation of Accademia Italiana della Cucina - and you have to embrace any country that establishes an academy to celebrate food. The registered recipe lists the ingredients as beef, pancetta, onions, carrot, celery, tomato paste, meat broth (or stock), white wine and milk or cream. That is the official line. The unofficial line is that even in Bologna, there is often chopped pork or pork sausage, sometimes chicken or rabbit. And you are also likely to find chicken or goose liver. Prosciutto and mushrooms are included in some recipes. Some people whip up a bolognese sauce in half an hour, but according to Marcella Hazan in "The Classic Italian Cookbook", the longer ragù alla bolognese cooks the better. A 5- or 6-hour simmer is not unusual. What is a cook to make of all this? Basically, the only things that the meat sauces in the Bologna style have in common is chopped (or minced) meats, white wine, onions and carrots. So, the question remains - what to include and what to leave out? For what it is worth, here is my recipe for a bolognese sauce. Is it perfect? You be the judge.

BOLOGNESE SAUCE

50 mls olive oil
350 gms finely diced brown onion
115 gms finely diced carrot
115 gms finely diced celery
1 teaspoon ground pepper
2 teaspoons salt
500gms coarsely minced (or finely chopped) pork
500gms coarsely minced (or finely chopped) veal
250gms coarsely chopped chicken livers
450 mls tomato sauce
400 mls beef or veal stock
225 mls white wine

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large saucepan. When rippling, add onions and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until light gold - about 15 to 20 minutes. Uncover and allow the onions to caramelise, which should take another 15 minutes. Add the other vegetables, pepper and salt and cook another 5 minutes. Add pork and veal. Break up with a fork or spoon and cook until it has changed colour. Add the livers and cook another 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce, about half the stock and the white wine. Stir it a few times and turn down to a gentle simmer. Cook it, uncovered, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Add the rest of the stock and cook another 1 1/2 hours at least. The sauce should be reasonably thick and dry by this stage. If you like, you could add a little grated nutmeg at the end - but not essential. This will make enough sauce for 8 or 10 servings. It can be divided into 300-325 gm portions and frozen.

THE PERFECT SPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE