Meat Sauce (Liguria)

Appetizers

Ingredients

Beef suet finely chopped - 3 tbsps

Butter - 4 tbsps

Lean beef, chopped - 1 pound

Onion, sliced - 1/4

Garlic - 1/4 clove

Celery, finely chopped - 1 stalk

Carrot, sliced - 1

Rosemary - pinch

Dried mushrooms, soaked - 1 oz

Red wine - 1 cup

Ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped - 3 large

Salt and pepper

Meat stock - 1 1/4 cups

Gently heat the suet and butter together in a large pan. When completely melted and hot, add the meat and brown it lightly all over. Add the onion, garlic, celery, carrot and rosemary.

Add the wine, stir well and cook over a moderate heat for about 15 minutes to reduce the wine a little. Add the tomatoes. Lower the heat, season to taste with salt and pepper, and cook slowly, covered for about 4 hours. Add the stock in small quantities from time to time and let the meat cook to a pulp. Rub the meat and its sauce through a fine sieve.

This sauce is used with noodles and is sufficient for 1 1/2 pounds noodles, or for 6 people.