• Contact
  • Conversions
  • Food101
Lubna's Culinary Adventures

Strange and delicious food experiments

  • Contact
  • Conversions
  • Food101
Beef, Recipes  /  August 5, 2019

Pasta with Meat Sauce

by L.E.

Pasta with meat sauce isn’t exactly a very adventurous recipe; after all, almost everybody has had some form of pasta with a tomato and meat sauce; however, this version includes a few interesting ingredients that add a little extra umami to the sauce. It’s probably the world’s number one comfort food!

Pasta with meat sauce
Just looking at this picture of pasta with meat sauce makes me hungry! Photo by L.E.

I won’t call this pasta Bolognese, simply because it isn’t an authentic Bolognese sauce. It is my take on this type of pasta which packs a lot of flavour and has some unusual ingredients. There’s nothing wrong with the authentic Bolognese sauce; it tastes delicious. But, if you’ve been reading my blog, you’ll realise that I’m not much of a stickler for tradition. I like changing things up a bit and adding my own take to create new flavours.

As with traditional Italian ragu, I always like to start with an onion. I sometimes also add celery and carrot, but not always. However, I always do like to add some fresh garlic because garlic is the best thing in this world, of course, even though it isn’t one of the traditional ingredients. Feel free to skip it if you want. And, of course, the most important step is to remove the pasta when it is still partially cooked and let it finish cooking in the sauce. This makes all the difference; when you finish your pasta in the sauce it tastes so much better. The pasta absorbs the sauce and takes on all the glorious flavours you put in it. My “secret” ingredient, of course, is anchovies. Well, it isn’t exactly a secret ingredient and I didn’t actually invent this idea, however, I do find that it isn’t super mainstream and many people turn up their noses at the idea of adding anchovies to their pasta sauce. Trust me on this one, though, if you want an extra-savoury, umami-filled delicious sauce, then don’t skip this step!

Pasta with meat sauce
Another view of this delicious dish! Photo by L.E.

Ingredients

  1. One pound or 450 grams of lean, minced, grass-fed beef (if you can get your hands on it; otherwise any lean minced beef works)
  2. Two cups of crushed canned tomatoes
  3. Two heaped tablespoons tomato paste
  4. One medium onion, chopped
  5. Three cloves of garlic, crushed or chopped (optional)
  6. One cup of red wine (use the cheapest you can get, nobody’s going to notice)
  7. Four or five anchovies stored in oil; or as many as you like. Anchovies add saltiness, umami, savouriness and flavour. (Be careful with the salt if you’re using lots of anchovies.)
  8. Salt (to taste, but be careful, the anchovies are very salty, so don’t add too much!), pepper, Italian herbs such as basil, rosemary, thyme, etc. and a 1/4 teaspoon chilli flakes (optional).
  9. One tablespoon sugar.
  10. Half a package of store-bought dried spaghetti or any other pasta shape you like.
  11. Grated parmesan cheese, to serve.
  12. One tablespoon canola oil

Method

  1. In a medium saucepan, heat the canola oil. Add the chopped onion and sauté until translucent and slightly browned. Season with a little salt and pepper.
  2. Add the garlic for one minute, then add the minced meat. Continue to stir until the meat changes colour.
  3. After the meat has changed colour and browned slightly, add the tomato paste and sugar. Stir until caramelised, then add the anchovies. Stir until the anchovies have disintegrated and become part of the sauce.
  4. Add the tomatoes and wine, and if necessary half a cup of water. Cover and let it simmer for 1-2 hours on low heat, stirring occasionally.
  5. Bring a large pot filled with water to a boil, add about one heaped tablespoon of kosher salt.
  6. Place the pasta in the boiling water and boil until it becomes flexible, but still uncooked on the inside. Drain, reserving about one cup of pasta water.
  7. Add the pasta to the sauce and stir. Cover and let it cook on medium-low heat, stir occasionally. If the pasta absorbs all the liquid, add some of the reserved pasta water.
  8. When the pasta is cooked to your satisfaction, serve on plates. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and enjoy!

What’s your favourite pasta recipe? Let me know in the comments!

For more pasta recipes, check out:

  1. Meat-free Eggplant Pasta
  2. Snail Pasta

© 2019, L.E.. All rights reserved.

Tags

  • Adventurous eating
  • Anchovies
  • Bolognese
  • Easy
  • Italian food
  • Meat sauce
  • Pasta
  • Weeknight dinner

Post navigation

Stuffed Roasted Quail
Danish-style Marzipan Tart

Share your thoughts Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search

Archives

  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019

Recent Posts

  • Pumpkin Rice Pudding
  • Sea Urchin Risotto
  • Tahini Swirl Brownies
  • Caramelised Persimmons with Ricotta
  • Parsnip Garlic Soup with Garlic & Cricket Croutons
  • Broiled Quail with Roasted Vegetables
  • Honey Soy Potatoes
  • Stuffed Artichokes with Bulgur and Sausage
  • Dry brined Roast Turkey
  • Vegan Black Rice Pudding

About This Site

WP AutoTerms Legal Pages

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 14 other subscribers

Tags

  • Adventurous eating
  • Braising meat
  • Breakfast foods
  • Celebration meal
  • Comfort food
  • Crickets
  • Dessert
  • Dried fruit
  • Easy
  • Easy and healthy
  • Egyptian food
  • Fish
  • Food adventure
  • Game meat
  • Healthy Dessert
  • healthy food
  • Keto
  • Lean protein
  • Low-carb
  • Meals for Gatherings
  • Meat-free
  • Middle Eastern
  • Middle Eastern food
  • Nose to tail eating
  • Organ meat
  • Paleo
  • Pan-fried
  • Pasta
  • Plant-based
  • Poultry
  • Quick and easy
  • Rice
  • Roast
  • Roast meat
  • Roast vegetables
  • Seafood
  • Spicy food
  • Steak alternative
  • Stew
  • Sustainable protein
  • Vegan
  • Vegetables
  • Vegetarian
  • Weeknight dinner
  • Zucchini
  • Elara by LyraThemes
  • Made by LyraThemes.com
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

  • Anchovy Fritters (Fried)
  • Baked Eggs and Mushrooms
  • Baked Steelhead Fillets
  • Bison Top Sirloin Roast
  • Braised Elk Shanks
  • Broiled Quail with Roasted Vegetables
  • Camel Kofta (Meatballs) with Tahini Sauce
  • Camel Meat Pasta Bake
  • Camel Tagine With Couscous
  • Caramelised Persimmons with Ricotta
  • Chickpea Flour Fritters
  • Chipotle Candied Almonds
  • Chocolate Salted Caramel Ice-cream
  • Coffee Chocolate Ice-cream
  • Creamy Shiitake Mushroom Soup
  • Cricket Protein Energy Balls
  • Crispy Tofu Zoodles
  • Crocodile Steak
  • Danish-style Chicken Asparagus Tartlets
  • Danish-style Marzipan Tart
  • Eggplant with Egg
  • Egyptian Breakfast Couscous
  • Egyptian Tripe Stew (Kersha)
  • Egyptian Wheat Porridge (Bileela)
  • Elk or Venison Osso Bucco
  • Five Smoothie Recipes
  • Fried Herring and Zucchini
  • Homemade Cricket Granola
  • Instant Pot Lamb Shanks
  • Jerk-marinated Seared Lamb Heart
  • Kangaroo Rump Steak
  • Lamb Tongue Tacos
  • Lentil Soup
  • Lime Mint Ice-Cream
  • Marmite and Cheddar Turnovers
  • Meat-free Eggplant Pasta
  • Modified Egyptian Koshary
  • Nasi Lemak: Malaysian Style Coconut Rice
  • Ostrich Burger
  • Ostrich Steak With Cocoa Rub
  • Oxtail Stew with Spaghetti Squash
  • Pan-fried Quail and Roast Vegetables
  • Pan-Fried Squid Tentacles
  • Pan-grilled Beef Tongue
  • Parsnip Garlic Soup with Garlic & Cricket Croutons
  • Pasta with Meat Sauce
  • Pickled Limes
  • Pistachio Rose Smoothie
  • Pumpkin Rice Pudding
  • Rabbit In Creamy Dried Tomato Sauce
  • Roast Crocodile Tail
  • Roast Duck with Red Currant Glaze
  • Roast Frog Legs
  • Roasted Partridge and Vegetables
  • Easy Roasted Pheasant
  • Roasted Rack of Lamb
  • Roast Stuffed Pigeons
  • Roasted Tomatoes Feta Toast
  • Dry brined Roast Turkey
  • Rose Petal Jam
  • Salmon Fillet with Miso Potatoes
  • Savoury Crispy Crickets
  • Sea Urchin Risotto
  • Snail Pasta (Escargot)
  • Spicy Mussels Zucchini Noodles
  • Strawberry Balsamic Ice-cream
  • Stuffed Artichokes with Bulgur and Sausage
  • Stuffed Roasted Quail
  • Succulent Roast Rabbit Legs
  • Sugar-free Stewed Apples
  • Tahini Swirl Brownies
  • Homemade Oven-dried Tomatoes
  • Vegan Black Rice Pudding
  • Zoodles with Crispy Crocodile
  • Baked Zucchini Fritters
  • About