Pumpkin beef bolognese. Imagine a hearty meat sauce with meltingly tender pumpkin chunks. Served with pasta and topped with ricotta. You may think that this pumpkin bolognese is a time consuming cooking project, but actually it’s comfort food at its best. It’s wonderfully easy to throw together and you only need one pan.
We begin with a base of finely chopped celery, onion and garlic. Then we add the pumpkin and fennel. If you’ve never added pumpkin to your sauce before, it’s a delightful surprise. It has a mild but slightly sweet flavor and pairs really well with other veggies and meat. Fennel stands in for the more common aromatics, and it brightens the rich beef with a subtle and sophisticated undertone.
When the vegetables are tender, we add the beef and cook until browned. No beef? You can use ground pork or chicken to replace it.
Next we add some beef stock to round out the meat flavor and give the beef something to cook down in without drying out. Beef stock gives the whole dish a richer flavor, but you can use chicken or vegetable stock for a milder taste.
Finally, we add tomato sauce and allow everything to simmer. The only thing left is to stir in cooked pasta, top with ricotta, and enjoy! And if you never tried adding ricotta to your pasta, you should! A creamy blob of ricotta makes everything better. Just whip some whole milk ricotta with grated Parmesan, a drizzle of olive oil and plenty of salt and pepper for an instant dinner upgrade.
Let me guide you through the recipe with this step-by-step VIDEO.
RECIPE NOTES
- This sauce is really delicious, it’s a decadent pleasure served with pasta or as part of a larger recipe like lasagna. I like to make a double batch and freeze half for a later date.
- For best result, use a pumpkin or squash variety with a soft skin like Hokkaido pumpkin or Red Kuri squash.
More delicious pumpkin recipes:
- Roasted Pumpkin and Sour Cream Pasta
- Pearl couscous and roasted pumpkin salad with pomegranate and pecans
- Potato waffles with roasted pumpkin and chanterelles
Cooking Video
Pumpkin Beef Bolognese
Ingredients
- 14 ounces pasta
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 shallots finely chopped
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 celery stalk finely chopped
- 4 cups diced pumpkin with skin, seeded (like hokkaido pumpkin/red kuri squash)
- 1 small or ½ large fennel bulb trimmed and diced
- 1.5 pounds ground beef
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried sage
- 1 tsp dried marjoram
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp chili flakes
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
- 1 ¾ cups beef stock or chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 cups puréed tomatoes
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- fresh thyme for serving
- chili flakes for serving
Whipped ricotta (optional)
- 5 tbsp ricotta
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp grated parmesan
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large heavy-based saucepan or Dutch oven. Add onion, garlic and celery, cook, stirring occasionally, over medium-low heat for 5 minutes.
- Add the pumpkin cubes, cook for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add fennel, cook for 5 minutes more.
- Turn the heat up to high, add ground beef and break it up a little with a wooden spoon. Turn the heat back down to medium and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the meat is cooked through.
- Stir in the spices, season with salt and pepper. Add beef stock and bay leaf, simmer for 10 minutes. Then add the tomato purée and tomato paste. Cover, simmer for 10 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender.
- In the meantime, bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta al dente according to the package directions.
- Serve plates of pasta with the sauce and ricotta spooned over top. Add a sprinkle of chili flakes and thyme. Enjoy!
Nutrition
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Thanks so much for sharing this recipe it was delicious… I substituted 200ml of stock for red wine and it was very tasty. The ricotta mix was a lovely addition. Will definitely make again.
Thank you Fiona! SO glad you enjoyed!