1960年，当我从意大利以年轻新娘的身份从意大利到达纽约时，我煮的第一批菜就是Tagliatelleragùalla bolognese，the celebrated pasta and meat sauce of my native Bologna. At that time, my cooking skills were limited, but once I began preparing the sauce, my taste buds and memory came to the rescue. I knew how soft the vegetables were supposed to be, and I recalled the light color of the meat after it was properly cooked. I also remembered the thick consistency of the sauce at the end of its long cooking. So I chopped, minced, and measured, and let my palate take over.

然后，我坐下来等待最终判决。当我丈夫走过​​门时，他直奔厨房，看着酱汁，品尝了酱，微笑着说：“很棒！水中的意大利面吗？”

慢慢煮并加入牛奶以增强酱汁

Ragù alla Bolognese probably originated in the peasant kitchens of Bologna over a century ago. According to L’Accademia Italiana della Cucina, an organization devoted to the study of Italian gastronomy, it was first made with cuts of inexpensive beef and an array of basic vegetables. The ragù was cooked slowly with the addition of broth and milk for several hours in order to extract as much flavor as possible from the meat and vegetables. The milk tenderized the meat, while the slow cooking reduced the sauce and concentrated its flavor.

In spite of the Accademia’s explanation of what constitutes the most typical ragù alla Bolognese, each cook in Bologna believes that he or she is the true interpreter of the ragù. Everyone, however, can agree on some basic steps.

Ragù isn’t the heavy tomato and meat sauce to which you might be accustomed.相反，它是肉，蔬菜，葡萄酒，牛奶和西红柿的美味。这个ragù没有大蒜。像博洛尼亚的大部分美食一样，这种酱汁依赖于微妙的口味。切碎的洋葱，胡萝卜和芹菜的底部总是相同的，但是肉类和液体的类型会根据面积和厨师而变化。猪肉，牛肉，小牛肉，鸡肝，偶尔是单独或组合的香肠，是首选的肉。除牛奶，牛肉或鸡肉以及当地的白葡萄酒外，还有主要烹饪液体。

Make the ragù once, and then improvise like my mother did

我的母亲在农场上出生并长大，在她的拉古拉（Ragù）中喜欢地面猪肉或小牛肉。然而，她做的酱料通常是由食材的可用性及其费用确定的。betway电子竞技俱乐部在第二次世界大战期间和之后，当很难获得订书钉时，她用她能找到的任何肉制作了ragù。在这样的艰难时期，她用更多的蔬菜拉伸酱汁。为了最大化它们的味道，她会在水中添加几汤匙番茄酱，然后将混合物煮近三个小时。

In affluent times and generally on Sunday (the traditional day for making the ragù), my mother added prosciutto or pancetta and a few chicken livers to the sauce. I remember waking up on Sunday mornings to the familiar, lingering aroma of the slow, simmering sauce. Later, the ragù would be tossed with tagliatelle, the long egg noodles of Bologna, or with potato gnocchi. During holidays, we would spread the sauce on wide sheets of spinach pasta and layer it with béchamel sauce and Parmigiano Reggiano for a divine lasagne alla Bolognese.

Today, I make ragù often, using a recipe similar to my mother’s. I keep it simple and use ground pork and prosciutto. If I have time, I prepare it with fresh pasta, but it also goes wonderfully with dried pastas like tagliatelle or garganelli (ridged quill-like macaroni). I’ve also made sure to pass my mother’s recipe along to my children. Through them, her traditions continue on.

Pair the ragù with fresh or dried pasta

Biba Caggiano和大多数意大利厨师我们已经交谈过同意，新鲜的意大利面提供了自己的独特优势。新鲜的意大利面，无论是在一家优质的意大利特色店购买的，还是在一家好的意大利特色店购买的，具有令人眼花sight乱的质量，可与浓郁的蔬菜或肉酱合作。意大利人称为Al Dente的坚固，露牙的质地，使准备工作更坚固，丰盛。自制或干意大利面比超市货架上的工厂制造的“新鲜”面食更可取。烹饪后切勿冲洗干燥或新鲜的意大利面，因为这可以去除其表面淀粉，从而为成品盘增添质地并帮助酱汁紧贴面食。- 编辑

Fresh pasta
Tagliatelle是博洛尼亚的传统长面条（约1/4英寸宽和1/16英寸厚），非常适合旋转肉质ragù。Like all fresh pastas, tagliatelle only needs to be cooked for a short time in well-salted boiling water, until the noodles are soft and tender (anywhere from 30 seconds to 3 or 4 minutes, depending on their thickness and how long they’ve been drying). Boil the pasta just before serving, as it will quickly lose its delicate texture.

Dried pasta
Short, ridged dried pastas like rigatoni and penne are also fine accompaniments for Ragù alla Bolognese. The ridges of these dried pastas catch the sauce, and the pastas’ compact shapes match the sauce’s meaty, rich texture. Another option is the nests of imported dried tagliatelle or pappardelle (now more available in U.S. supermarkets), which cook longer than their fresh counterparts (about 6 minutes), but have a wonderful texture.