spaghetti bolognaise

[shivvy]

While on holiday recently in the French/Italian border area I enjoyed spaghetti bolognaise a couple of times. However it was quite different to how I usually see it served (or how I make it). Most recipes that I see for it shows the meat piled high on top of the spaghetti and that the sauce is quite thick.
However the way I saw it served on holidays was as a much 'thinner' sauce. It was no less flavoursome but it mixed with the pasta better and seemed to contain less meat.
Is this a more authentic way of cooking this well known dish? And if so has anyone got a nice recipe for it?
Thanks
PS - I don't eat garlic and was delighted that none of the restaurants used it in their recipe, so garlic-free suggestions would be best for me please.

[lafrancaise]

There are loads of recipes for Spaghetti Bolognaise, just google it. However, the secret is the tomatoes they must be really ripe so they are sweet tasting. Some italians cheat and add a pinch of sugar.

[indianwells]

In a true Ragu garlic is only optional. Antonio Carluccio is one of my idols. He only uses minced pork and beef, butter, onion, white wine, tomato puree, tomatoes, olive oil and salt and pepper. The secret is long, very slow cooking (2 hours or more!). If it looks like drying out add a little water. As the above poster said use the best tomatoes you can find. I use tinned San Marzano tomatoes that I buy online from Valvonna & Crolla. No Italian just dollops the sauce on their pasta, it is dressed lightly and not as much sauce, just enough to coat each strand of spaghetti or whatever pasta you are using.
Here's the recipe, i've tried it loads of times and it's superb!(Although I add garlic)

http://www.rima.org.uk/ragu_bolognese.html

[indianwells]

Forgot to add, I make a huge batch and freeze it into portions of 2 and 4. When you reheat it, if you prefer a looser sauce add a little chicken stock until you get your desired consistency.

[WeAreBongo]

Here is a recipe I've tinkered with for a while now and I think it's pretty damn good. Obviously leave out the garlic if you don't like it. This makes a lot of ragu - ideal for freezing or chilling - tastes even better re-heated the next day!!!

Ingredients
500g good quality minced steak
2 celery sticks, diced
2 carrots, diced
100g mushrooms, diced
2 red onions, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
� bottle full bodied red wine
200ml beef stock
5 good quality ripe �on-the-vine� tomatoes, chopped
1 bottle rustica or passata
1 tsp marmite (trust me)
1 tbsp fresh basil
1 tbsp fresh oregana
� tbsp fresh parsley
1 tbsp olive oil
Few drops of tabasco
1 tbsp capers, finely chopped
Salt & freshly crushed black pepper

Method
1. Gently fry celery, carrots, onions and garlic in olive oil until soft.
2. Add mushrooms and fry for a few minutes.
3. Add minced beef, cook until browned and lumps broken up.
4. Add red wine, simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Add chopped tomatoes, passata, stock, marmite, tabasco, capers and herbs.
6. Season to taste.
7. Cover and simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Add more wine if consistency is a little too dry.
8. Allow to cool, ideally refridgerate overnight.
9. Heat gently in saucepan and serve with spaghetti and parmesan cheese.