Your Bolognese Sauce Will Be Even Better With Sun-Dried Tomatoes

We already know that milk can boost the texture and depth of your Bolognese, but the addition of sun-dried tomatoes is what makes the flavor truly shine. Add just a few to your next simmering sauce, and you'll transform a classic Bolognese in no time.

This transformation occurs because sun-dried tomatoes add complexity, brightness, and balance to a standard sauce. If you've ever had sun-dried tomatoes, either in a dish or on their own, you already know how much flavor comes from just one small ingredient. Such complexity lends itself to a dish that's already tomato-based, as the sun-dried version is a more concentrated iteration of the produce. As an ingredient that comes sweet, tart, and flavored by oil, sun-dried tomatoes are both nuanced and powerful in your sauce.

Given their complexity, they can also expedite the cooking time of your sauce. Normally, you want to simmer a Bolognese for quite some time — think, hours — to give the ingredients time to meld. With sun-dried tomatoes, however, you get complexity from the start. You'll quickly maximize flavor, so the most impatient of sauce-makers can eat all the sooner. To incorporate the tomatoes into your next sauce, simply follow your favorite recipe and add them right at the beginning.

Save the Parmesan for your plating, and skip straight to the tomatoes when cooking. While sun-dried tomatoes surely make for a delicious topping, you should incorporate some into your Bolognese from the get-go. Add them to your stovetop pot right alongside other Bolognese staples, like garlic and onions, and your sauce will come together in no time.

Before you start cooking, though, you'll want to grab a knife to chop those tomatoes to your desired consistency. Sun-dried tomatoes come large and flat, so if you'd rather have bite-sized chunks, cut them accordingly. You'll also want to drain the jar ahead of time; sun-dried tomatoes typically sit in jars of oil for preservation purposes, but that oil is unnecessary for your sauce. Toss about ½ cup of chopped sun-dried tomatoes into your sauce and bring the mixture to a simmer. Those tomatoes will melt right into your other ingredients, resulting in a harmonious blend of flavors. Boil some pasta, toast some bread, and grate some cheese. No matter what you pair with your sauce, the sun-dried tomatoes in it will not disappoint.