Spaghetti Bolognese with Meatballs and Bacon, or Hamill Italiano
- Preparation and cooking time
- Prep:
- Cook:
- Prep time assumes the use of tinned bolognese sauce and pre-made meatballs, if you make your own you will need to factor this into the prep time.
- More effort
- Serves 4
Ingredients
- 500g beef mince
- 750ml bolognese sauce
- 4 rashers of bacon
- 300-400g worth of meatballs
- 1 Oxo cube
- 1-2 tablespoons of worcestershire sauce
- Assorted herbs and spices (cook's preference)
- Grated cheese to garnish
- 1/2 onion (optional, cook's preference)
- 300-500g dry spaghetti (cook's preference)
Method
- STEP 1Preheat the oven to 200°C (Gas Mark 6) for the meatballs.
- STEP 2While the oven heats up, slice the bacon into small pieces. Also, if you are using one, dice the onion.
- STEP 3Place the meatballs on a baking tray and place in the oven. In order to save on washing up, you can cover the baking tray with tin foil to catch the fat the meatballs will produce.
- STEP 4While the meatballs cook in the oven, brown the mince in a large saucepan with the chopped onion, and shallow fry the bacon with a small amount of oil.
- STEP 5Once the mince has fully browned, the bacon cooked to satisfaction, and the meatballs are cooked through (check with a knife), strain off any excess fat from the mince and/or bacon and remove the meatballs from the oven.
- STEP 6Add the bacon and meatballs to the mince and mix together.
- STEP 7Place the spaghetti into a saucepan to cook and soften (pre-boiling the water in a kettle will speed up this process).
- STEP 8While the spaghetti cooks, add the bolognese sauce to the mixture of meat and mix it all together.
- STEP 9Add the worcestershire sauce, crushed OXO cube and your choice of herbs and spices to the mixture. I use garlic granules, an italian herbs mix, salt and pepper, but it is up to you if you want to add your own or use less.
- STEP 10Heat the mixture on a low-medium heat and allow it to simmer for around 10 minutes or until the spaghetti is cooked 'al dente'.
- STEP 11Strain the water from the spaghetti and then serve, if you want you can add grated cheese to the top.
- STEP 12Extra: If you want to be a bit more adventurous, you can forgo the spaghetti and use the mixture as the filling for a calzone.