| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 3 hr |
| Active: | 40 min |
| Yield: | 6 to 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving
- 1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 stalk celery, finely chopped
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- Kosher salt
- 12 ounces ground beef chuck
- 12 ounces ground lamb
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon Calabrian chili paste
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1 cup dry red wine, such as Chianti
- 1 bay leaf
- One 3-inch Parmesan rind plus 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
- One 28-ounce can whole San Marzano tomatoes, crushed by hand
- Creamy Polenta with Spinach, recipe follows, for serving
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
- 3/4 cup quick-cook polenta
- Kosher salt
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
- 1/2 cup (4 ounces) mascarpone cheese
- 1/2 cup freshly grated pecorino cheese
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 5 ounces baby spinach, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Heat a medium Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the butter and oil and warm until the butter is melted. Add the carrots, celery, onions and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are soft but have no color, about 6 minutes. Add the beef and lamb and cook, breaking apart the meat with a wooden spoon, until the meat is cooked through and no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Stir the tomato paste, chili paste, red pepper flakes and garlic into the meat mixture. Cook the tomato paste, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Add the milk. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the milk is almost entirely evaporated, about 20 minutes.
- Add the wine, bay leaf, Parmesan rind, tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to low to just maintain a gentle simmer. Simmer the sauce, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Skim the oil from the surface.
- Spoon the sauce over the Creamy Polenta with Spinach, reserving any extra to serve on the side. Serve with the Parmesan sprinkled over the top and a drizzle of olive oil.
- In a Dutch oven, bring the chicken broth, oil, garlic and 1 1/2 cups water to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium low and whisk in the polenta. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan, mascarpone, pecorino and butter. Cook, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Fold in the spinach and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes longer. Add 1/4 cup water if the mixture gets too thick.
- Pour the polenta onto a large board or platter. Serve with grated Parmesan over the top.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 8 servings |
| Calories | 629 |
| Total Fat | 42 g |
| Saturated Fat | 20 g |
| Carbohydrates | 25 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Sugar | 7 g |
| Protein | 35 g |
| Cholesterol | 122 mg |
| Sodium | 991 mg |
Reviews
Loved this dish . I definitely cooked off the milk completely. This is my second time making this dish using Mafalda pasta with the sauce . So delish!
Fantastic!!!
This dish was delicious! My family enjoyed the entire meal. I found the instructions and directions for cooking easy to follow.
Absolutely delicious!!!
This was an amazing recipe! I couldn’t find ground lamb, so I used cubed lamb. It turned out very tender and it was so delicious! I will make this again! Thanks Giada!
Planning on making it for a second time today! Absolutely a perfect fall dish, the flavors meld well together and the depth of flavor is perfect!
We made this the other night and it was amazing. Everyone like it and we will for sure make this again.
My husband made this during quarantine. This was the best Italian bolognese we have ever tasted. I wish I could send the video clip I recorded of him as the Italian chef. He is Italian (ancestors from Napoli) but family has been in America since the 1940’s
What an awesome recipe!!!!! Thank you
I made this for Easter using all the ingredients except for one bay leaf. It was restaurant quality and we finished the whole thing even leftover next day just yummy. I also used twice as much chili and I had the palm rind. Complex flavors. Highly recommend. William Sonoma sells the Calabrian chili in a jar and you can get by mail order and is one of my favorites
I have tried every local and online market and no one lists Calabrian Chili Paste. Any idea where to get it? I guess I’ll substitute Amore Chili Pepper Paste. Love my bologonaise recipe but this has a couple changes that sound great.