{"id":7962,"date":"2022-02-11T01:08:53","date_gmt":"2022-02-11T09:08:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/villasentieri.com\/?post_type=recipe&p=7962"},"modified":"2026-09-02T10:58:36","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T17:58:36","slug":"ragu-bolognese-the-official-recipe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/villasentieri.com\/index.php\/2022\/02\/11\/ragu-bolognese-the-official-recipe\/","title":{"rendered":"Rag\u00f9 Bolognese: The Official Recipe"},"content":{"rendered":"

February 11, 2022<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m a little more than halfway through a week\u2019s visit to Bologna.\u00a0 Bologna is referred to as\u00a0la dotta, la grassa, la rossa: the learned, the fat, the red.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe learned\u201d relates to Bologna as the seat of the oldest university in the western world and the top-rated university in Italy.\u00a0 It has a highly educated population.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe red\u201d refers to the color of the terra cotta tiles on many of the roofs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fat\u201d is well earned based on the food.\u00a0 This is the land of mortadella, rag\u00f9 Bolognese, tagliatelle, tortellini, lasagna al forno (aka lasagna Bolognese), prosciutto, parmigiano reggiano, and balsamic vinegar of Modena among other traditional, and dare I say, famous foods.<\/p>\n

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Let\u2019s not forget gelato.\u00a0 While I don\u2019t think Bologna can claim title to the originator of gelato, they have perfected a style made with eggs that is consummately smooth.\u00a0 A gelateria is often referred to as a cremeria in Bologna.<\/p>\n

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Tagliatelle al Ragu at at Osteria dell’Orsa in Bologna.<\/strong><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My main goal being here is to eat.\u00a0 I want to taste some of the iconic foods of the region in the cathedral to food that is Bologna.\u00a0 To that end, I\u2019ve had dishes with rag\u00f9 Bolognese three times in the last three days.\u00a0 Though there were slight differences, the preparations tasted amazingly similar.\u00a0 That got me to thinking about consistency.<\/p>\n

I know that there\u2019s an official recipe for Pesto alla Genovese which I reference in my post on pesto<\/a>.\u00a0 That got me to thinking about other official recipes.\u00a0 After some internet sleuthing, I discovered that there\u2019s an Italian Academy that, after substantial research, codifies and registers what it considers to be the official recipes for traditional dishes. \u00a0(Of course there is!\u00a0 This is Italy.\u00a0 Food is paramount.) Access to these recipes is quite limited.\u00a0 (Of course it is!\u00a0 This is Italy.\u00a0 Food is rigorously protected.)<\/p>\n

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My primary culinary interest is traditional recipes.\u00a0 Discovering the existence of this academy has been a revelation for me.\u00a0 So much so that I decided to occasionally post their recipes, translated into English with notes on ingredients and techniques as appropriate to enable my readers to recreate the taste of the original.<\/p>\n

So much of what passes for Italian food in the States is far from the original.<\/p>\n

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Lasagna al Forno (aka Lasagna Bolognese) at Trattoria Anna Maria in Bologna.<\/strong><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I\u2019ll be quick to add that credible variations on these official recipes exist but the very existence of the official ones sets a standard of comparison.\u00a0 Several years ago, I posted a recipe for Rag\u00f9 Bolognese<\/a>.\u00a0 You will see the similarity.\u00a0 The main differences in my version are a greater proportion of tomatoes and the absence of dairy.\u00a0 It is a very good rag\u00f9, and one that I continue to make on a regular basis.\u00a0 But today, I\u2019m giving you the official recipe.<\/p>\n

Enjoy!<\/p>\n

(Photo:\u00a0Erikatrioschi, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

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Rag\u00f9 Bolognese: The Official Recipe<\/h2>\n
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Butchering in Italy produces different cuts from butchering in the United States. I\u2019ve noted some US cuts of beef that would be appropriate based on the recommended Italian cuts. For those of you who want to try your hand at this, the original cuts of meat listed are cartella, panica, fesone di spalla, and fusillo. Broth in Italy is light. It is not an intensely flavored stock as might be common in much of French cooking.<\/div>\n
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Prep Time <\/span>15 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Cook Time <\/span>2 hours<\/span><\/span> hrs<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Total Time <\/span>2 hours<\/span><\/span> hrs<\/span> 15 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n
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Servings: <\/span>4<\/span> people<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Ingredients
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