Tagliatelle al ragù
Tagliatelle al ragù alla bolognese
Bologna's own ragù: beef and pancetta slow-cooked with white wine, milk and a little tomato, served on fresh egg tagliatelle. Never spaghetti.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: Tagliatelle al ragù alla bolognese.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 3 hr
- Rest
- None
- Total
- 3 hr 25 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Bologna does not serve its ragù on spaghetti. It goes on fresh egg tagliatelle, wide and rough enough to hold a meat sauce, and the sauce itself is mostly meat with only a little tomato. No garlic, no oregano, no mushrooms, no Worcestershire, no ketchup. Pancetta melts first, then a fine soffritto of carrot, celery and onion, then coarsely minced beef browned until it crackles. White wine goes in and cooks off. Tomato is passata with a spoon of concentrate, not a tin of chopped tomatoes. Milk goes in a little at a time and softens the meat. Then it murmurs for at least two hours, with a ladle of broth whenever it looks dry. Done is a thick, glossy sauce that sits on the pasta rather than pooling under it.
What you'll need
15 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
Ingredients
- Beef, coarsely minced, skirt or flank300 g
- Pancetta, finely chopped150 g
- Carrot, very finely chopped50 g
- Celery, very finely chopped50 g
- Onion, very finely chopped30 g
- Passata300 g
- Tomato purée, triple concentrate (optional)15 ml
- Dry white wine125 ml
- Milk, whole125 ml
- Beef stock, light broth, hot, as needed300 ml
- Olive oil, or butter44 ml
- Tagliatelle, fresh egg tagliatelle400 g
- Parmigiano Reggiano, grated, to serve40 g
- Salt4.9 ml
- Black pepper2½ ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Melt the pancetta in the oil over low heat until the fat runs. Add carrot, celery and onion and cook gently until soft and sweet, without colour.
12 min
Step 2
Add the beef, raise the heat and stir until it has lost its pink and starts to crackle in its own fat.
10 min
Step 3
Pour in the wine and let it bubble until you can no longer smell alcohol. Stir in the passata and concentrate.
5 min
Step 4
Cover, turn the heat right down and simmer at least 2 hours. Add the milk a little at a time over the first hour, and a ladle of hot broth whenever it looks dry. Season with salt and pepper at the end.
150 min
Tip: It should barely move. A rolling boil makes it grainy.
Step 5
Cook the tagliatelle in salted water for 2–3 minutes. Drain, keeping a little water, and toss with the ragù in the pan. Serve with Parmigiano.
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 875 kcal
- Protein
- 44.9 g
- Carbs
- 68.6 g
- Fat
- 46.1 g
- Saturated fat
- 15.4 g
- Fibre
- 4.1 g
- Sugar
- 5.8 g
- Sodium
- 1842 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Wheat
- Eggs
- Milk
- Nut-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 12 November.
Substitutions
Pancetta → Unsmoked streaky bacon
Smoke changes the sauce. Use it only if pancetta is impossible.
Tips
- Make it the day before. It is better, and the fat is easier to judge cold.
- If you can only find dried pasta, dried egg tagliatelle or pappardelle are closer than spaghetti.
History & culture
Ragù is Sunday food in Bologna, made in a big pot and stretched across the week: on tagliatelle, in lasagne, inside tortellini's cousins. Families argue about the cut of beef, the ratio of meat to tomato, whether milk or a spoon of cream finishes it. They do not argue about spaghetti; nobody there serves it that way. The export plate was built abroad by cooks working with dried pasta and cheaper mince, and it took the city's name with it.
Meat ragù in Emilia goes back to the eighteenth century, and Pellegrino Artusi printed a Bolognese version in 1891. Tomato joined later and stayed modest. In 1982 the Bologna delegation of the Accademia Italiana della Cucina registered a reference recipe with the city's chamber of commerce, and updated it in 2023: beef, pancetta, carrot, celery, onion, passata or concentrate, white wine, milk and broth. This recipe follows that list.
Traditional — Follows the Bologna reference recipe. Tagliatelle, not spaghetti. No garlic, herbs or mushrooms.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Tagliatelle al ragù take?
3 hr 25 min all in — 25 min prep, 3 hr cook. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 plates. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Eggs, Milk. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Nut-free.
6 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Dutch oven, Saucepan, Chef's knife.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1 tsp.
What can I use instead?
Pancetta → Unsmoked streaky bacon. Smoke changes the sauce. Use it only if pancetta is impossible.
Any tips from this recipe?
Make it the day before. It is better, and the fat is easier to judge cold. If you can only find dried pasta, dried egg tagliatelle or pappardelle are closer than spaghetti.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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