The beloved winter warmer hailing from Bologna, Italy is a surprisingly controversial dish.
Though many chefs will agree that every Bolognese sauce begins with a combination of chopped celery, carrots and onion – mirepoix, as it’s known in French, or sofrito, as it’s referred to in Italian – there’s a lot more that goes into the traditional tomatoey beef ragu, and slight variations are common even amongst native Italians.
A true Bolognese sauce may take time and patience, but it’s a surprisingly limited-ingredient recipe when cooked in the true Italian way. We’re going to list a selection of broadly agreed-upon components, as recorded by La Camera di Commercio di Bologna and the Accademia Italiana della Cucina in 1982 in an attempt to preserve the culinary history of Italy. Please don’t shout at us.
Traditional Ragù alla Bolognese consists of plate-cut beef (cartella di manzo), unsmoked pancetta (pancetta di maiale distesa), sofrito, passata or tomato purée, meat stock, dry white wine, salt, pepper – plus an often forgotten key ingredient: milk.
Nevertheless, despite the supposedly official recipe and the many well-meaning arguments amongst traditional Italian chefs over the proper way to make Bolognese, it’s paradoxically agreed upon that there is no definitive recipe for a true Ragù alla Bolognese, and this is truly what makes the dish so unique and special.
Families cling to their own historical recipes scrawled on age-old notepads that look like Egyptian relics, and variations of the recipe differ from region to region in Italy – despite originating in Bologna. Though we playfully argue about the real way to make the iconic ragu, variations are part of the tradition of the sauce.
Modern evolutions of Bolognese often include, for instance, garlic and herbs de Provence. Others include a pinch of nutmeg or even tins of fresh chopped tomatoes instead of puree or passata. You might even come across a chef who uses passata, purée and chopped tomatoes – making the vegetable the main event of the dish rather than an auxiliary component. Wild, we know.
While nothing quite beats a homemade Bolognese that has been slowly cooking all day long, after a long day of work in the office, we can’t be relied upon to craft the ragu from scratch. For those days when we don’t quite have the time, we’ve rounded up the third best thing (after grandma’s frozen leftovers) – supermarket alternatives. Keep scrolling for a round-up of the best jars of Bolognese sauce to shop in the UK.
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Garofalo Beef Bolognese Pasta Sauce
The Garofalo Beef Bolognese sauce contains all the main, traditional elements of a Bolognese sauce that you can fit into a small supermarket jar. Made with 61 per cent tomato (which is 100 per cent Italian), 12 per cent beef, 6 per cent pork, additional tomato paste for a stronger flavour, sofrito mix, skim milk, extra virgin olive oil and various additional herbs and spices – this delicious pre-made ragu is simply as good as it gets.
Buy now £3.60, Ocado
Barilla Meat Bolognese Pasta Sauce
Fantastically affordable, the Barilla Meat Bolognese Sauce is a go-to in our kitchens. Rich without being overpowering, and subtly spiced without being bland, we tend to sprinkle a little bit of extra salt and pepper atop our Barilla for the perfect quick and easy spag bol. For just £2.95, you’ll get a hearty jar of sauce made with tomatoes, sofrito, beef, pork and various herbs and spices. Delish.
Buy now £2.95, Ocado
Viani Alimentari Bolognese Sauce
As simple and delightfully Italian as it gets, we recommend splurging on a jar of Viani Alimentari Bolognese sauce for those winter evenings where you really need a warming pick-me-up that doesn’t feel processed. This delicious sauce has been cooked using beef, a little bit of pork, diced tomatoes and a classic sofrito. It is, however, lactose-free – which means it doesn’t contain the beloved secret ingredient (hint: it’s milk, and you can probably add a drop yourself if you so desire).
Buy now £10.30, Piccantino
Dolmio Bolognese Original Pasta Sauce
Made with a whopping 95 per cent vegetables, it’s hard to imagine the pasta sauce of our childhood could actually be healthier than most supermarket alternatives. Now, we’re not saying that Dolmio Bolognese doesn’t have added sugar (in fact, we’d add sugar to our own homemade Bolognese sauce), but it does serve as one of your five a day. Our only qualm is that it doesn’t come with meat – you’ll have to fry some mince separately before pouring the ready-made sauce over the top.
Buy now £2.50, Ocado
M&S Beef Bolognese
Though we’re far more accustomed to purchasing pre-made pasta sauces that are housed in jars, this tinned option from M&S is a beloved family favourite. It’s far less watered-down than the other M&S-own option, which is available in a jar, and contains more meat. A simple, flavourful slow-cooked option made using Italian-style mince beef, red wine and a hearty sprinkle of oregano – you can’t go wrong with adding this option to your weekly shop.
Buy now £4.25, Ocado
Heinz Bolognese Pasta Sauce
New to the scene is Heinz’s range of pasta sauces. With expertise in all things ketchup, it indeed makes sense that the brand would branch out into tomato-based pasta sauces. The tomato sauce has been developed so that you can just pour it over cooked mincemeat, or meatballs if you fancy them. Though currently on offer for £1.50, you’ll have to do the rest of the Bolognese prep work on your own.
Despite the reputation that Heinz ketchup has for being a glorified sweetener, this pasta sauce contains no added sugar and is surprisingly malty. A palatable budget option.
Buy now £1.50, Ocado
Verdict
The Garofalo Beef Bolognese Pasta Sauce is the best, readily available pre-made Bolognese sauce that actually contains beef. The only worthy competitor to take the runner-up position is brilliant, budget-friendly Barilla Meat Bolognese Pasta Sauce. If you’re in the market to treat yourself, we highly recommend splurging on the Viani Alimentari Bolognese Sauce.
