Quick Bolognese Sauce at Home

This Quick Bolognese Sauce you can make at home is packed with flavor!

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Now, before you lose your mind, I know that “quick” and Italian sauce traditionally do not go hand in hand. Normally I make a HUGE batch of sauce and put it in quart jars and freeze it. That way I always have sauce on hand and it’s one thing less for me to do.

However, sometimes I run out and don’t have a day that I can spend making sauce. Yes, I said a day. It typically simmers for 8 hours. It is amazing! But hey, life happens and sometimes we need a sauce right. now.

You can have flavor, even if you’re short on time.

The most important thing you need to do is make sure you have quality ingredients. That will really bring out the flavor in this bolognese sauce in a shorter amount of time. I use organic spices and high quality meats. Getting locally sourced meat is always best but I know that that can be difficult. Sometimes it’s just not available where you live. Just do the best you can!

Kids love it.

The best part of it is, kids love this sauce! It’s packed with nutrients and even some veggies. They’ll eat it up without even knowing it. I love when I can get extra veggies and protein into a dish. Even better, they always eat it all without me even asking them to take a couple more bites!

Besides pasta, I use this sauce on so many other dishes! Perhaps my favorite is my Chicken Parmesan. This is a great week night meal that you can pull together in a half hour.

History of Bolognese

My moms side of the family is Italian. I grew up eating the most delicious Italian food and I want to pass that tradition on with my kids. Italy use to have dialects with each different region. My family comes from Piemonte, a northern region. When my family came over from Italy the dialects were still in place. It wasn’t until WWII that they started using “universal Italian” I don’t remember what they actually call it. So, I don’t actually call this sauce “Bolognese” I call it Bagna. For the sake of this blog I’m calling it by its popular name though. Otherwise no one will know what I’m talking about.

This sauce originated in the 18th century in Bologna. (Hence the word bolognese) It can also be called ragu ala bolognese. It is traditionally served with the tagliatelle pasta which is a wide egg noodle.

Steps to making Bolognese Sauce:

1. First you will start by browning your meat and sausage, then drain and set aside.
2. Next you will Sauté your veggies and spices together and add in the browned meat.
3. Add in your tomato sauce and let simmer 15-20 minutes (or as long as you like).
4. You will then have a flavorful pasta sauce that is ready for whatever dish you would like to add it to.

Try out my Sourdough Dinner Rolls to complete your meal!