Easy Beef Bolognese Sauce
A hearty and easy to make beef bolognese sauce for a nutritious and flavorful meal ready in about 30 minutes! Dairy free + gluten free!
This easy beef bolognese sauce is a total comfort in a bowl. Made with pantry staples, this easy dinner is one the whole family will love.
Free from: Wheat, gluten, dairy (optional), casein (optional), eggs, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, coconut, fish, shellfish, crustaceans, mollusks, celery, corn, sesame, mustard, lupin, sulfites (optional), and more
Traditional bolognese sauce is an Italian classic filled with meat, herbs, tomatoes, and a touch of balsamic.
This sauce is filled with hearty, simple ingredients you can find in just about any grocery store. It makes a large pot of sauce to feed everyone for a few meals. Enjoy with a slice of gluten free focaccia bread or a classic green goddess salad and you have one delicious meal!
Want a bolognese made with lentils in place of meat? Check out this plant based bolognese recipe here!
Why You’ll Love this Beef Bolognese
- Hearty, pure comfort food
- Healthy with vegetables
- Uses pantry staples
- Get dinner on the table quickly!
- Naturally gluten free and options for dairy free
Ingredients
- Beef: I use an 80/20 ground beef.
- Tomato paste + Diced Tomatoes: These form the foundation of the sauce. Use a can of tomato paste and a 15 oz can of diced tomatoes.
- Herbs, Salt, Black Pepper, Olive Oil: Staples for an Italian recipe. Add fresh parsley or fresh basil if you have it, otherwise you can use all dried herbs with no worries.
- Carrots: A sneaky veggie that adds some sweetness to the bolognese.
- Pasta: For this recipe, I used spaghetti to make American style bolognese. Traditional Italian style is with a wider noodle. You could even use rigatoni!
- Beef or Vegetable Stock
- Balsamic Vinegar: Added at the end to give a huge flavor boost. See below if avoiding sulfites.
Allergy Substitutions
If you are avoiding sulfites, you can omit the balsamic vinegar. Replace it with 1 teaspoon of sugar (brown, coconut, or date) along with 1 teaspoon of soy sauce or tamari. Start with 1 teaspoon of each and add more to taste.
If you are avoiding eggs, make sure your paste is egg free.
Avoiding gluten? Make this with your favorite gluten free pasta noodle.
Instructions
For the full instructions, complete with recipe measurements, please see the recipe card below!
First, start by cooking the beef in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the diced onions to cook alongside the beef.
When the beef is browned, add the carrots and garlic along with the herbs, salt, pepper, and tomato paste. Cook for about 2 minutes so the tomato paste can develop some color.
Next, add the diced tomatoes and stock. Bring to a gentle simmer and let it go while you cook the noodles in a separate pot. If needed, you can add a ladleful of pasta water to the sauce to help with the thickness.
In a separate large pot, bring water and a generous amount of salt to a boil. Add the noodles and cook according to directions. Drain, but do not rinse the noodles.
Finally, check the sauce for taste and add any more salt, pepper, or seasonings if you need. Finish with the balsamic vinegar and add in the hot pasta. Stir to combine and enjoy!
Variations
If you want, you can deglaze the pan after cooking the beef and onions with a little bit of red wine. This will add a great depth of flavor to teh sauce. Don’t add this if you are allergic to sulfites as wine contains them.
Want to make it cheesy? If you are allergic to dairy, you can add a sprinkle of nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan cheese on top after cooking. If you are not avoiding dairy, add a bit of parmesan cheese to the sauce when stirring in the noodles.
Want to make it spicy? Add some red pepper flakes to taste to either individual bowls or the entire sauce!
FAQs
Yes! You can blend beef and pork, try this with ground chicken, or try this with ground turkey.
Traditionally, a thick and flat noodle like tagliatelle is used. Pappardelle and fettuccine also work. Use rigatoni or penne for places teh sauce can sneak inside. For these photos, I used plain spaghetti for American style bolognese. Basically, any noodle you like works!
So many things! Try this sauce over vegetable noodles like zoodles or sweet potato noodles. This makes for an amazing topper for baked potatoes, especially baked sweet potatoes!
How to Store
This keeps best in an airtight container in the fridge. I suggest that you store the bolognese separately from the pasta, which will then keep for about 5 days. If you mix the pasta in with the sauce, the pasta soaks up the sauce over a few days.
You can store the bolognese sauce without pasta in the freezer in freezer safe containers or freezer bags. The sauce will keep for 2 to 3 months.
How to Reheat Bolognese Sauce
You can heat any leftover sauce in a saucepan on teh stove over medium heat until it is warmed through. A little bit of water or vegetable broth can be added if the sauce is thick.
Alternatively, you can reheat the sauce in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second intervals, giving a stir after each round.
If reheating from frozen, add the sauce to a saucepan along with a few tablespoons of water. Cover with a lid and bring to a simmer. Let simmer for about 15 minutes or until it reaches a temperature of at least 165F.
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Equipment
- cooking pots
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons
- mixing spoon
- knife
- cutting board
Ingredients
- 1 lbs ground beef
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup onion diced, about 1 medium onion
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup carrot diced, about 4 carrots
- ½ cup tomato paste
- 2 cups tomatoes diced
- 1 cup vegetable stock or beef stock
- 1 teaspoon oregano dried (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
- 1 teaspoon thyme dried (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
- 1 teaspoon basil dried (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
- 1 teaspoon parsley dried (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup parmesan cheese optional
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the beef and onion. In a large skillet or large pot over medium heat, warm the olive oil and add the ground beef and onions. Cook until the beef is browned and the onions are translucent. Then, add the garlic, salt, pepper, herbs, and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and let cook for an additional 2 minutes or until the tomato paste has darkened in color, slightly.
- Add remaining ingredients. Now, add the diced tomatoes and stock. Bring this to a simmer and turn the heat to low-medium, letting it cook for about 15 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.
- Cook the pasta. While the beef and onions are cooking, bring a large pot of water to a boil adn salt generously. Cook the pasta according to package directions, making sure to save a little bit of pasta water if needed. Drain the pasta but do not rinse.
- Finish the bolognese. Give the sauce a little taste and adjust for salt and seasoning if needed. Stir in the balsamic vinegar. Finally, add the hot noodles to the sauce and stir until all the noodles are well coated. Garnish with more fresh herbs and enjoy!
Notes
- Variations
- If you want, you can deglaze the pan after cooking the beef and onions with a little bit of red wine. This will add a great depth of flavor to the sauce. Don’t add this if you are allergic to sulfites as wine contains them.
- Want to make it cheesy? If you are allergic to dairy, you can add a sprinkle of nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan cheese on top after cooking. If you are not avoiding dairy, add a bit of parmesan cheese to the sauce when stirring in the noodles.
- Want to make it spicy? Add some red pepper flakes to taste to either individual bowls or the entire sauce!
- Allergy Substitutions
- If you are avoiding sulfites, you can omit the balsamic vinegar. Replace it with 1 teaspoon of sugar (brown, coconut, or date) along with 1 teaspoon of soy sauce or tamari. Start with 1 teaspoon of each and add more to taste.
- If you are avoiding eggs, make sure your paste is egg free.
- Avoiding gluten? Make this with your favorite gluten free pasta noodle.
- How to Store
- This keeps best in an airtight container in the fridge. I suggest that you store the bolognese separately from the pasta, which will then keep for about 5 days. If you mix the pasta in with the sauce, the pasta soaks up the sauce over a few days.
- You can store the bolognese sauce without pasta in the freezer in freezer safe containers or freezer bags. The sauce will keep for 2 to 3 months.
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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