Creamy Bolognese

Creamy Bolognese is a high-protein pasta recipe ready in 45 min. It makes 4 servings, each 870 kcal with 44 g protein. Beginner level, 12 ingredients.

Adapted from a home cook's recipe and measured by Cookpath.

  • 45 mintotal
  • Beginnerlevel
  • 870kcal a serving
  • 44 gprotein
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Creamy Bolognese

What is Creamy Bolognese

Tagliatelle in a slow-simmered beef mince sauce with onion, carrot, celery, tomato, red wine and cream, topped with parmesan.

More:High-protein beef recipesBeef recipes

How to make Creamy Bolognese

Tips from the cook

  • Dice the onion, carrot and celery very fine, so they melt into the sauce.
  • Do not stir the mince right away, so it browns and crackles instead of steaming grey.
  • Cook the tomato paste for a minute before adding the wine, to take away its raw taste.
  • Add the cream at the end and do not boil it hard, so the sauce stays smooth.
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Goes well with

Sides from Cookpath that balance this dish, the same picks the app suggests.

Shopska Salad15 min · 420 kcalGarlic Confit Bruschetta1 h 45 min · 190 kcal

Meal prep and storage

Keeps 3 days in the fridge, and the sauce freezes well for up to 3 months without the pasta.

Prep a few days

See this week’s meal prep plan on the blog, or plan your own week in the app.

Creamy Bolognese substitutions

Out of something, or cooking around an allergy. Each swap was checked against a source.

Onion2 options
  • Leek, white and light-green part 1:1 by volume

    Still an allium; raw dishes.

  • Fennel bulb, finely diced 1:1 by volume

    Sweet aniseed note; raw dishes.

Celery stick2 options
  • Fennel bulb, sliced 1:1 by volume

    Slight aniseed taste.

  • Carrot or parsnip 1:1 by volume

    Sweeter.

Red wine1 option
  • Beef stock + 1 tsp red wine vinegar per 100 ml 1:1 by volume

    Less depth; stock may contain celery.

    Still contains celery.

Beef stock3 options
  • Vegetable stock (check the label for celery) 1:1 by volume

    Less meaty; vegetable stock typically includes celery.

    Still contains celery.

  • Mushroom broth (a handful of dried or fresh shiitake simmered in plain water 20-30 min) 1:1 by volume

    Earthy rather than beefy.

  • Miso in hot water (1-2 tsp white or yellow miso per 1 cup water) 1:1 by volume

    Added late, do not boil hard; miso may also carry gluten (not confirmed).

    Still contains soy.

Cream2 options
  • Oat cooking cream (gluten-free labelled) or soy cream 1:1

    Curdles if boiled hard.

    Still contains soy.

  • Coconut cream (thick top of a can) 1:1

    Coconut flavour.

Tagliatelle1 option
  • Gluten-free pasta (corn/rice or corn-rice blend) 1:1 by weight; cook per packet, slightly al dente

    Soups (goes soft fast) and long simmers.

Parmesan2 options
  • Vegetarian hard Italian-style cheese (made with microbial rennet) 1:1 by weight

    Grana Padano is not suitable for egg-free (lysozyme from egg).

    Still contains dairy.

  • Nutritional yeast (fortified flakes) 1:1 by volume, less salty so add pinch of salt

    Does not melt; less sharp.

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