Decadent and flavorful, this Bolognese Pizza is made with a delicious bolognese sauce that is seasoned with dried herbs, red wine and ground sausage. Spread the ragu onto pizza dough and finish with a healthy grating of Parmesan cheese and fresh basil, for a truly delicious take on pizza.
This bolognese pizza is the perfect use for leftover bolognese sauce. Because I know, whenever I make a batch of this delicious sauce, it’s never a small batch.
The thick sauce is a nice upgrade from a more traditional marinara sauce and because there is so much deep flavor in the bolognese, there’s not much more you need to add to the pizza.
A healthy sprinkle of shredded mozzarella and freshly grated Parmesan cheese is all you need to finish the pizza!
Bolognese Sauce
A traditional bolognese sauce is a robust and flavorful tomato based meat sauce and has a few key elements that make it a true bolognese.
The mirepoix, including carrots, celery and onion are finely chopped and sauteed to sweeten and thicken the sauce. And a splash of milk gives the sauce a slight creaminess.
The ground meats can vary from ground beef to ground pork or sausage as well as using a combination for more flavor.
And for a spicier and slightly different take on bolognese, check out this chorizo bolognese.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Perfect use for leftover bolognese sauce.
- The bolognese sauce is incredibly flavorful, thanks to the seasoned ground sausage, dried herbs and reduced red wine.
- The thicker sauce gives the pizza a richer flavor without being too heavy.
- Uses easily available ingredients, such as dried herbs, milk and ground sausage.
Ingredients
- Vegetables: A mirepoix is a mix of carrots, onion and celery that are finely diced and give the sauce structure and a slight sweetness. Make sure the vegetables are finely diced or use a food processor to chop finely.
- Tomato Paste: This gives the sauce a touch of sweetness. Saute the tomato paste into the oil to really open up the flavors.
- Dried Oregano: Substitute 3-4 sprigs of fresh oregano if dried isn’t available. Remove from the stems and chop the leaves.
- Italian Sausage: I like using a spicy Italian sausage but if you don’t like spice, use a sweet mild Italian sausage.
- Ground Beef: 80/20 is the prefered ratio and cooks down with the seasoned ground sausage.
- Red Wine: Use a drier red wine such as Cabernet or Chianti.
- Milk: This is what gives the bolognese sauce a fantastic creaminess. The milk is added after the wine and reduces, making the sauce incredibly creamy.
- Canned Tomatoes: Canned diced tomatoes are used in this recipe but crushed or pureed would work great as well.
- Pizza Dough: Leave the pizza dough at room temperature for at least 30 minutes so it’s easier to roll out.
- Cheeses: Shredded mozzarella and grated Parmesan cheese. Other cheeses suggestions are fontina cheese and Pecorino.
Make the Sauce and Pizza
The recipe is making the sauce. Once you have the sauce done, the rest of the pizza assembly is a breeze. This is a great pizza recipe to make when you have leftover bolognese sauce from the day before.
Bolognese Sauce
- Drizzle a Dutch oven or pot with olive oil and bring up to medium heat and add the chopped carrots, celery and onion and sauté until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Then add the garlic and sauté for another minute until fragrant.
- Stir the tomato paste in and dried oregano and saute for another minute.
- Add the ground sausage and ground beef and use a sturdy spatula to break up the meat and continue cooking until caramelized.
- Pour the red wine in and use a sturdy spatula to scrape any meaty bite from the bottom and allow the wine to reduce for 1-2 minutes.
- Once the wine is reduced, pour the milk in and let reduce for another 1-2 minutes.
- Add the diced tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Give the sauce a good stir and let simmer for 20-30 minutes until thickened.
Bolognese Pizza
- Preheat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit and roll out each of the pizza doughs to a 10-12 inch circle.
- Once the sauce has thickened, spread ½- 3/4 cup worth of sauce onto the dough and top with shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Place the pizza onto a pizza stone or baking sheet and cook the pizza until the crust is perfectly golden brown and cheese has melted, about 7-8. Minutes.
- Once done, remove from the oven and finish with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
Bolognese sauce is a thicker and creamier tomato based sauce with the addition of milk and finely chopped vegetables. Meat sauce, on the other hand is a tomato based sauce with ground beef.
Bolognese sauce is even better when made ahead and can be made up to 3 days ahead. As the sauce sits, it takes on even more flavors.
More Pizza Recipes To Try
Bolognese Pizza
Equipment
Ingredients
Bolognese Sauce
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium sized carrots peeled and diced
- 1 small white onion diced
- 2 stalks of celery diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ pound Italian sausage
- ½ pound ground beef
- ¾ cup red wine
- ½ cup whole milk
- 2 14 ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Pizza
- 1 pound pizza dough cut in half
- 8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
- Fresh basil for garnish
- Grated Parmesan cheese for garnish
Instructions
Bolognese Sauce
- Drizzle a Dutch oven or pot with olive oil and bring up to medium heat.
- Add chopped carrots, celery and onion and sauté until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Then add the garlic and sauté for another minute until fragrant.
- Stir the tomato paste in and dried oregano and saute for another minute.
- Add the ground sausage and ground beef and use a sturdy spatula to break up the meat and continue cooking until caramelized.
- Pour the red wine in and use a sturdy spatula to scrape any meaty bite from the bottom and allow the wine to reduce for 1-2 minutes.
- Once the wine is reduced, pour the milk in and let reduce for another 1-2 minutes.
- Add the diced tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Give the sauce a good stir and let simmer for 20-30 minutes until thickened.
Bolognese Pizza
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit and roll out each of the pizza doughs to a 10-12 inch circle.
- Once the sauce has thickened, spread ½-3/4 cup worth of sauce onto the dough and top with shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Place the pizza onto a pizza stone or baking sheet and cook the pizza until the crust is perfectly golden brown and cheese has melted, about 7-8. Minutes.
- Once done, remove from the oven and finish with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
Leave a Reply