Beefy Bolognese Sauce

If you want a really quick yet hearty meal, this meaty Bolognese Sauce is about as quick as you can get.  All it takes is the time to cook the pasta and heat the sauce in a pan. Toss it in a bowl, add a little parmesan, a bagged salad and a slice of garlic toast and it’s a full scale meal in 15 minutes or less.  If you have the time, you can check out my daughter’s recipe using home canned tomatoes in the recipe section on the website. It slow cooks for 2 or 3 hours to blend all the flavours.  In the canned version, that is already done so open a jar and enjoy!

Do not attempt to adjust this recipe as it has been specifically designed and tested for pressure canning

Meaty Bolognese Sauce

The All New Ball Book of Canning and Preserving 2016
Yields 6 500mL or 3 1 Litre jars

Ingredients

5 lbs lean ground beef
3 cups diced onions
1 cup diced carrot
1 cup diced celery
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp dried basil
6 thinly sliced garlic cloves
1 ½ cups home canned tomato paste 
1 cup dry red wine
¼ cup balsamic vinegar (6% acidity)
3 quarts home canned tomatoes (diced)

Directions

1. Fill pressure canner with 2 or 3 inches of water.  Heat to a simmer. 

2. Place 7 clean, warm 500 mL mason jars on a rack in pressure canner.  Cover with simmering water. Place SNAP LIDS® in a bowl full of warm water.  Keep both jars and lids warm until ready to use. 

3. Brown the ground beef in a 6 quart heavy saucepan at medium-high heat, stirring until meat crumbles and is no longer pink.  Drain the beef and set it aside.

4. Add diced onion and the next 5 ingredients to a stainless steel or enamel large pot.  Cook over medium heat about until tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in tomato paste; continue to cook as the paste reduces and begins to turn brown.  Add wine and vinegar, stirring to loosen browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

5. Add the beef back into the pan and stir in tomatoes.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes to thicken, stirring occasionally.

6. Lock pressure canner lid in place. Vent steam for 10 minutes. Place the counterweight or weighted gauge on vent, bring pressure to 10 pounds (adjusting for altitude) 

7. Process for 60 minutes for pints and 75 minutes in a dial gauge pressure canner at 11 pounds pressure (adjusting for altitude) or in a weighted gauge pressure canner at 10 pounds pressure (adjusting for altitude). Turn off heat.  Wait for the pressure to drop to zero on a dial gauge or when no steam escapes when weight on weighted gauge canner is nudged, before removing the cover. Always tilt the cover away from your face when removing the cover from the canner.  Remove jars with a jar lifter, without tilting, to a protected countertop.

8. Cool upright for 24 hours.  After cool, check that the jars are sealed.  Sealed jar lids curve downward. Clean, dry and label with contents and date. Store in a cool, dark place.  

Tip: Never use aluminum, copper, brass, galvanized or iron equipment for canning.  The acids that occur naturally in foods can react to produce undesirable flavours and cloudy off-colour juices.

Tip: Add 1 or 2 tablespoons vinegar to canning water to prevent calcium build up on jars. 

Tip: Blend tomatoes into a purèe before adding if you prefer a smooth tomato base instead of chunky tomato bits in your sauce.

*Altitude adjustment for pressure canner