“This is that very rich beef sauce that will turn a plate of pasta into a bit of glory!”
I first had this delicious dinner at a villa on a vineyard. The matriarch of the family cooked tirelessly and did this entire dish in one day. She would jump on her four-wheeler and head out to the gardens to pick tomatoes and herbs, charging back with wild abandon.
I would offer to help and she would wipe the sweat from her brow and shoo me and everyone else out of her kitchen to the wine station.
The Italian patriarch was not as kind and forgiving, chastising her in front of a long table of family and friends for things taking so long.
For years I made this recipe out of memory, although I always had a copied (laminated) version of the Fresh Tomato Sauce Sicilian on hand that the recipe uses. Problem was the chef and cookbook wasn’t copied so I couldn’t remember whom to credit or research.
It has been so long since I had this recipe on hand, but I remember the recipe mentioning “this is that very rich beef sauce that will turn a plate of pasta into a bit of glory!” and that is exactly what I wanted for our firemen and their spouses.
Fire House Pot Roast Bolognese (My way)
*I doubled this recipe to make a large batch
2 to 3 pound boneless beef chuck.
3-tablespoon olive oil.
Salt and pepper to taste (I did not use salt but some salt free spices my friend LeAnn Macmillan gifted us with from Penzeys….. I placed plenty of salt on the table)
Season the meat with salt (or salt free product such Mrs. Dash) and pepper to taste. Brown well in a suitable size pot (Dutch oven) in olive oil after browning add the following
1 cup dry red wine (because I doubled I used a bottle that’s just how my math works, apologies to Shawn)
4 to 6 cloves garlic, crushed
1 cup water or beef broth *if needed
Simmer gently, covered, for 2 hours. Turn off heat and let sit for at least two hours. Make sure there is enough liquid to keep the pan from drying out and then keep covered without peeking. Allow the meat to cool in the liquid until its cool enough to handle. Shred the meat and place in a Dutch oven along with its cooking juices.
Note: I like to make the tomato sauce one day, the roast the next and refrigerate it so the next morning I can scoop off all of that fat and shred the roast and let it soak in pan juices which I add to the tomato sauce. Ideally this is a 3 day sauce. Tomato sauce first day, Roast day 2 and marry them both day three… or marry the second day and eat or reheat on the 3rd.
Add to 6 to 8 cups of the Fresh Tomato Sauce Sicilian * I doubled and used almost the entire recipe…remember I had 2 roasts
Chicken stock to taste or thin
Simmer the shredded beef in the tomato sauce and broth for 45 minutes, stirring often. Then add
2/3 cup grated Parmesan
1-cup cream (for heart healthy you can use non fat half and half or 1 percent skim milk.)
Simmer 15 minutes more. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve over pasta. I love Papardelle or Tagliatelle but sometimes it is hard to find but Fettuccine works too.
Grab those you love and serve with hard rolls or fresh bread to lap up the sauce, a nice Salad, and of course a few bottle of Italian wine.
Bon Appetit and Namaste!