Bison Bolognese Meat Sauce

5 from 1 vote

Lean ground bison updates this classic, long-simmered sauce with rich flavor. Serve over your choice of pasta, zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash for a low carb dinner. Extra freezes great, so if you have time, double the batch. You can substitute ground beef for the bison. Got time? Simmer up to 2 hours.

Prep Time15

Cook Time1

Total Time1 15

Course: Sauce

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: to 8

Calories: 361kcal

Author: Sally Cameron

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion ½ of a large
1 cup finely chopped celery 3 ribs
1 cup finely chopped carrot 2-3
2-3 large cloves garlic finely chopped
2 teaspoons dried Italian herb blend or use basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary
1 pound ground bison 10% fat
¾ cup dry white wine optional
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 28 ounce can whole or crushed tomatoes see note below for fresh tomatoes
1 15 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 6 ounce can tomato paste
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg or more
1 large bay leaf
1 cup half and half or canned coconut milk
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (pizza pepper)

Instructions

Cook the Vegetables

To a large heavy pot (5 quart) over medium heat, add olive oil. When oil is hot add the onion, celery and carrot. Turn heat down to medium low and cook the vegetables slowly until soft, about 3-5 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add the garlic and dried Italian herbs and cook 1 minute longer.

Add Meat and Continue

Add the ground bison and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Cook until it is no longer pink, about 5-7 minutes. Add the wine and cook until wine is reduced, 3-4 minutes. Add salt and pepper, then stir in the tomato paste and your tomatoes. Add nutmeg, bay leaf and milk. Turn the heat up and bring sauce almost to a boil, then turn down to low and cover.

Simmer for Flavor

Simmer sauce 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until thick and rich. Serve over pasta or noodles of choice. Extra sauce freezes well.

Notes

For Fresh Tomatoes

To substitute fresh tomatoes for canned, start by peeling the tomatoes. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Set up an ice bath by filling a large bowl with half ice and cold water. Slice a small X into the bottom of the tomato (to make peeling easier). When water is boiling, place a few tomatoes at a time into the water for 1 minute, then plunge immediately into the ice bath. Tomato skins should peel right off.

With a sharp paring knife, cut out the core. When all tomatoes are peeled, pulse in a food processor or blender to break them up into a sauce. You should get approximately 4 cups of total diced tomatoes.

Nutrition