Topic: Spag Bol recipe anyone?

[lightboy]

This is my own creation homed to perfection over many years , i dont claim it to be authentic just that it tastes delightful....

Ingredients.

1 pack(500g)of beef mince
2 rashers bacon (pref streaky)
2-3 large onions
6 cloves garlic
1 yellow pepper
1 red pepper
button mushrooms (a good handful)
2 tins chopped tomatoes
1/2 a jar of sundried tomato paste (sacla is best)
good handful of fresh basil leaves
1 large glass of red wine (shiraz or similar)
1 good glug of worcester sauce
1 glug of balsamic vinegar
pinch of oregano
seasoning to taste (plenty in my case)
a good piece of parmegano reggiano

Method.

chop all veg
put a good load of oil in a big pot (i usually use a big wok but whatever)
when oil is hot put in all veg except for the garlic then fry quickly until reduced half size then turn down the heat and add the garlic further reduce down until all veg is soft and about 1/3rd of original volume.
whilst this is doing .. in frying pan fry the bacon until reasonable crispy
take out then seal meat for a few secs on high heat..
then add meat and the bacon(finely chopped)
stir well in, add the seasoning and the tomatoes, paste ,herbs,wine,worcester and balsamic..
let that cook on medium heat for about 15 mins stirring once in a while ..
add some water then leave on very low light or in oven on low
return to skim off the scum on top evey 30 mins or so and top up water, if needed..
for best results cook for as long as possible (at least 3 or 4 hours)

grate over parmesan to taste and serve with pasta of your choice ( i dont like spaghetti with mine its too much hassle to eat .. lol)
and just to make the whole thing complete serve with garlic ciabatta bread
trust me its a winner !

[Bobby Bhuna]

That sounds lovely. I may just have to try this!

[JerryM]

lightboy,

many thanks for sharing.

it's very similar to our much worked interpretation. for info we add brandy, marjoram (instead of oregano) and HP sauce.

the addition of balsamic vinegar in your version is a nice touch and will give it a go.

[spicymatt]

You might find this interesting  http://fxcuisine.com/default.asp?Display=150&resolution=high.
Plenty of good stuff there mostly Italian but everything from Tandoori to deep fried Mars bars and Glasgow salad (chips) and some serious food pornography, oops sorry, photography, to tickle the taste buds.
Hope I'm not upsetting anyone recommending other sites but it really is worth a look for those odd occasions when you fancy a change from curry.
Matt

[downeykaz]

Your recipe sounds fab can I suggest chucking in a few chicken livers also that may make a diff.

[lightboy]

Just a quick update its better if use some beef stock instead of some of the water

[Yousef]

Can i recomment using Spag Bol as a topping on Pizza bases, trust me it works.

S

[Bobby Bhuna]

Has anyone tried this yet?

[JerryM]

Can i recommend using Spag Bol as a topping on Pizza bases, trust me it works.

it certainly does. i make pizza all the time and "spag bol" topping is in the top 3.

i change the recipe quite a bit though from the tomato version that goes with pasta.

pizza spag bol: beef mince, fine chopped green pepper, big slug HP sauce, big slug worcester sauce, fresh ground black pepper. simmer lid on 40 mins on low then lid off until it starts sticking to bottom of pan.

[Unclebuck]

This recipe is great!! this is now my starderd Spag Bol, Thanks light boy.