Tagliatelle alla Bolognese

From Stanley Tucci's "Searching for Italy

"Why is "SEARCHING FOR ITALY" such a great show?

Well, for starters, Stanley Tucci is great! I've always cooked Bolognese, arguably the most famous of all pasta sauces, for several hours and with a base of tomatoes. Its rich flavor develops slowly over time with the meat and all the flavors marrying together into a rich ragù. Traditionally, carrots, onions, and celery are cooked first before adding beef to the sauce. Once beef is browned, tomatoes are added. The result is simply delicious. We all thought, surely as I did, that this method was genuine and "the" Bolognese recipe.

Stanley Tucci raves about a very different kind of Bolognese on "Searching for Italy: Bologna."

He also claims it only takes 10 minutes to cook.

Is that true? Let's find out.

Pellegrino Artusi’s Recipe For Tagliatelle alla Bolognese

Let's start with the recipe from Pelligrino Artusi (1820-1910). One of the most influential people on Italian cuisine, he published "La Scienza in Cucina eL'artedi Mangiare Bene" (The Science of Cooking and the Art of Eating Well) in 1891.

Although well-traveled through Italy, Artusi's recipes are primarily from Emilia Romagna where he was born, and from Tuscany, where he lived in Florence until his death at the age of 90. However, it is his hometown of Forlimpopoli where you'll find the epicenter of Artusi and the Italian center of gastronomic culture: Casa Artusi, devoted entirely to Italian cuisine and the source of the recipe for “the other” Bolognese.

Mediterranean Gourmet Tips:

• Critical to this recipe, and a perfect Bolognese, is texture. To make the uniform texture required to perfect this recipe, all the primary ingredients should roughly be the same size. This helps evenly distribute flavors and helps the sauce cling to each individual strand of the tagliatelle pasta.

• The pasta is important, as the sauce should 'grip' the pasta as Stanley Tucci described it on the show. Ideally, the recipe should allow for a fair amount of Bolognese sauce on every bit of the pasta. Also, fresh pasta is important. I am lucky to be able to buy mine at Farmer's Market. If you live near an Eataly, you're in luck! Tagliatelle is best, but pappardelle and fettucine are all broad, flat ribbons of pasta that will work and allow coating in the sauce

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Tagliatelle alla Bolognese

Prep Time: 15 mins

Cook Time: 60 mins

Yield: Makes about 4 servings

Ingredients

• 400g/14oz tagliatelle (or pappardelle or fettucine)

• 300g/11oz lean veal (in one piece or ground)

• 50g/4oz pancetta (or pork belly)

• 40g/3oz unsalted butter

• 1/2 onion

• 1medium carrot

• 2 medium celery stalks

• 2 tsp flour

• 500ml/1-pint good beef stock or broth

• Salt and Black pepper to taste

• 1 tsp Nutmeg

• Grated parmigiano reggiano or pecorino cheese, to serve

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil for the pasta.

2. Finely chop the celery, carrot, onion, pancetta, and cut the veal into very small pieces (if not ground)

3. Heat the butter in a pan and add the vegetables, pancetta, and veal all at the same time. Season with black pepper and salt.

4. Brown the veal for about an hour. Add the flour, nutmeg, and a ladle of the stock.

5. After about 40 minutes, bring a large pot of water to boil for the pasta. Add salt and oil.

6. Continue to cook for about 10 more minutes, continuing to add more stock as needed.

7. In the meantime, add the tagliatelle into the boiling water until al dente, about 2-3 minutes.

8. Drain the pasta and toss together with the sauce. Serve with grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino

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Suggested Pairing

Italian reds (such as: Sangiovese, Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera, Lambrusco) are the way to go with this hearty sauce.