Tagliatelle al Ragù is the Italian Nonna’s answer to comfort food. Slow-cooked, meaty perfection tangled up in silky pasta ribbons. Parmesan on top, and you’re winning dinner.
Category
Dinner
Servings
6
Prep time
2 hours
Cook time
3 hours
Tagliatelle al Ragù is the Italian Nonna’s answer to comfort food. Slow-cooked, meaty perfection tangled up in silky pasta ribbons. Parmesan on top, and you’re winning dinner.
The ragu
The ragù alla Bolognese uses pancetta, a soffritto of carrot, onion, and celery, beef mince browned separately for colour, a long reduction of red wine and tomato passata, and milk added at the very end. Adding milk tempers the acidity of the tomato and adds a subtle creaminess that makes the sauce noticeably smoother. It needs to go in over low heat in the last ten minutes, not boiled through.
The pasta
The tagliatelle is made fresh from a simple ratio of 100g of tipo 00 flour per egg. The dough rests for 30 minutes, then we'll roll it nice and thin, and laminate it by folding into thirds and rolling again to even out the gluten, and cut into strips 6-7mm wide.
The cook
The Ragù alla Bolognese will take about 40 minutes to prep and 3 hours to cook so start that first. Then, your tagliatelle will take about 1.5 hours to prep and only 4 minutes to cook, so you can do that while your ragu is cooking. Alternatively, you can use store bought tagliatelle and cook it to the packet instructions. To finish, the tagliatelle goes straight from the boiling water into the sauce pan with a little of its starchy cooking water, which helps emulsify the sauce around the pasta rather than leaving it sitting separately on the plate.
Ingredient Notes
Type 00 flour: Finely milled Italian pasta flour with a higher protein content than plain flour. The fine grind gives fresh pasta its characteristic silky texture and smooth surface. It’s widely available in supermarkets. If you can’t find it, regular plain flour will work but the pasta will be slightly less silky.
Pancetta: Unsmoked Italian cured pork belly that renders its fat early in the cook and builds the base flavour of the ragù. If you can get it as a whole piece rather than pre-sliced, dice it yourself for better texture. Smoked bacon is a workable substitute if pancetta isn’t available.
Milk: Stirred through the ragù in the last 10 minutes of cooking. It’s not a cream substitute; it tempers the acidity of the tomato and adds a subtle richness that rounds out the sauce. Don’t let it boil once it’s in, just stir it through on low heat and let it warm into the sauce.
Equipment
- Chopping board
- Chef’s knife
- Large saucepan or Dutch oven (for ragù)
- Large frying pan (for browning beef)
- Wooden spoon or flat spatula
- Large pot (for boiling pasta)
- Rolling pin (or long wooden dowel)
- Bench scraper
- Large frying pan (for finishing pasta in sauce)
- Grater or Microplane
- Ladle
Ingredients
- 1 carrot, finely diced
- 1 brown onion, finely diced
- 2 sticks of celery, diced
- 160g (5.6 oz) pancetta, diced
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 500g (1.1 lbs) beef mince
- 120ml (4 fl oz) red wine
- 600g (21 oz) tomato passata
- 220ml (7.4 fl oz) milk
-
200g (7 oz) Parmesan, grated
- fresh basil leaves, to serve
-
pinch of salt
- 600g (4¾ cups) Type 00 flour, plus extra for dusting
- 6 extra-large eggs
- pinch of salt
Ragù alla Bolognese
Tagliatelle
Directions
Ragù alla Bolognese
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
- Add the diced pancetta and cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring often, until the fat starts to render.
- Add the carrots, onion, celery, and a pinch of salt. Cook gently for 4–5 minutes until softened.
- In a separate pan over high heat, add a little olive oil and brown the beef mince in batches. Avoid overcrowding the pan.
- Transfer the browned mince to the saucepan with the pancetta and vegetables. Mix well, ensuring the meat breaks up evenly.
Pour in the red wine and let it reduce by two thirds.
- Add the passata to the pot. Fill the passata jar halfway with water, shake it, and pour it in to ensure no sauce is wasted.
- Cook over medium-low heat, stirring every 15–20 minutes, for at least 2 hours (or up to 4 hours for deeper flavour). Add water as needed to prevent the sauce from drying out or sticking.
- Just before serving, stir the milk into the ragù over low heat. Be careful not to let it split.
- In a separate pan, add 2–3 ladles of ragù and the cooked tagliatelle (recipe below). Toss together with a generous pinch of Parmesan and a few torn basil leaves.
- Serve immediately, topped with extra Parmesan and fresh basil.
Tagliatelle
Reserve 10% of your flour (about 60g / ½ cup) to use during mixing and rolling.
- Weigh out the remaining flour and pour it onto a clean work surface.
- Use a bowl to create a well in the centre of the flour.
- Crack the 6 eggs into the well and add a pinch of salt.
- Use a fork to break the yolks and whisk the eggs, gradually incorporating the flour from the edges of the well to avoid lumps.
- Once the mixture thickens and becomes less liquid, use a bench scraper to cut the remaining flour into the dough.
- Continue working the dough until it forms a shaggy mass, then begin kneading by hand.
- Knead the dough for 8–10 minutes until it becomes smooth, tight, and elastic.
- Shape the dough into a ball, cover it with a doubled-over tea towel or an upturned bowl, and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- After resting, divide the dough into 3 equal pieces.
- Dust your work surface with flour and roll out one piece of dough to roughly 30 x 20cm (12 x 8 inches).
- Laminate the dough by folding it lengthways into thirds, like folding a letter.
- Roll the laminated dough out again to an even thickness of about 1mm (as thin as possible).
- Lightly dust the dough with flour, roll it up, and cut into tagliatelle strips 6–7 mm (¼ inch) wide.
- Separate the strips and dust lightly with flour to prevent sticking.
- Cover the cut tagliatelle with a tea towel to keep it from drying out while you repeat the process with the remaining dough.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and season generously with salt.
- Cook the tagliatelle in small batches to avoid overcrowding, boiling for just 2–3 minutes.
Recipe video
Recipe notes
Chef Tips
A good ragu takes time
The minimum is 2 hours on a low simmer, but 4 hours gives you a noticeably deeper, richer sauce. The collagen in the mince and pancetta breaks down over time, the wine integrates fully, and the tomato mellows out. Rushing it to 90 minutes gives you a flat, sharp-tasting result. If the ragù starts to dry out before it’s ready, add water a splash at a time and stir it through.
Brown the beef in a separate pan, in batches
Adding the mince directly to the soffritto pan crowds it, drops the temperature, and steams the meat instead of searing it. Use a separate hot pan and add the beef in small amounts, leaving it undisturbed for a minute or two to develop colour before breaking it up. That caramelised crust on every piece of mince is where the deep flavour of a good ragù comes from. Don’t skip it.
Storage
The ragù keeps well: store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to 3 months. It often tastes better the next day once the flavours have had time to settle. Fresh tagliatelle can be stored in a flour-dusted nest in the fridge for up to 24 hours, or frozen on a tray before transferring to a bag.
FAQs
Do I have to make the tagliatelle fresh? No. Good-quality dried tagliatelle works well with this ragù. Fresh pasta cooks in 2-3 minutes; dried will take 8-10 minutes depending on the brand. Follow the packet instructions and finish the pasta in the sauce pan as described.
Can I use a different cut or type of beef? Yes. Coarsely minced chuck or braising beef gives better texture than fine supermarket mince since it stays more distinct in the sauce. A mix of beef and pork mince is also common in Bologna and adds a little extra richness.
Can I make the ragù ahead? Yes, and I’d encourage it. The ragù is better the next day: the flavours deepen overnight and the sauce tightens up nicely. Make it a day ahead, refrigerate, and reheat slowly on the stovetop over medium-low heat. Make the tagliatelle fresh on the day you’re serving.
