Ten-Minute Bolognese
(featured in The Oregonian, December 14, 2003)
Thirty years ago, every university student had a version of this sauce. This is Sheryl Julian and Julie Riven’s ten-minute streamlined recipe. It’s a light, fresh-tasting sauce. Make it in quantity and freeze it in plastic zipper bags. Dip the bag into a bowl of cold water, and the sauce should defrost in a few minutes.
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, or to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
1 can (28 ounces) whole tomatoes, with their juices
1 cup water
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Pinch of freshly gated nutmeg
3 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
2 tablespoons heavy cream (optional)
Brown the beef in a large dry skillet over medium-high heat with the salt and pepper, stirring, for 3 to 4 minutes.
Meanwhile, tip the tomatoes and their juices into a bowl. Using kitchen shears, snip the tomatoes into small pieces. Add the water to the tomato can. Set both aside.
Tip the skillet of meat and use a spoon to move the meat to the high end. Remove and discard all of the excess liquid in the pan.
Add the garlic and tomato paste, the tomatoes and their liquid, the water in the can, the sugar, red pepper, and nutmeg. Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Add the oregano and cream, if using. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper, if you like. Heat until hot and serve over pasta.
Variation: Ten-Minute Meatless Tomato Sauce
Omit the meat. Begin by cooking the garlic in 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Then add the tomato paste, tomatoes and their liquid, and the remaining ingredients, including the salt and pepper.
Taken directly from “The Way We Cook,” (Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003, $27), Sheryl Julian and Julie Riven.
This recipe is recommended for the beginning cook.