Brilliant Boerewors Bolognese Recipe (South African Sausage Ragù)

 If you like cooking you may often have seen recipes for Sausage Ragù online or in recipe books and thought 'where can I get some delicious artisanal sausage in this dreadful country where we have nothing like that at all,'. You might never have considered that we have a massive range of excellent homemade sausages right here in RSA that you can get just about anywhere - boerewors. You would be surprised just how good this recipe tastes, the boerewors (sausage) gives the bolognese/ragù a unique yet familiar flavour and if you are a fan of Italian food then this is certainly a recipe worth trying. Just a note, boerewors comes in a wide range of varieties which use different recipes of spices and ratios of meat. For this recipe I used Grabouw Boeroewors from Pick n Pay, which is a pretty standard boerewors and I would recommend using something similar. Anything marked (optional) below doesn't have to be included however will improve the flavour of the sauce.

INGREDIENTS

• 400-600g Boerewors
• Onion(s) (1 large or 2 small)
• Carrot(s) (1 large or 2 small)
• Celery (optional)
• 2-3 Garlic Cloves
• Chillies (2-3 small medium strength) (optional)
• 100-150ml Dry (not sweet) Red Wine (optional)
• 1X Tinned Tomatoes
• Tomato Paste
• Thyme & Parsley (My choice however origanum/oregano, basil, Italian Herbs will also work)
• Oil
• Salt & Pepper
• Parmesan/Pecorino cheese to serve (optional)

Chop the onions, carrots, celery and garlic (crush) as well as the chillies if you are adding. Put this all together in a large pot with a bit of oil. Heat this on the stove on a medium heat until the onions looks translucent. Whilst this is cooking get the boerewors, cut it open and take out the filling. I personally don't throw away the skin, I just add it with the meat however that is your own preference. Anyway, once the meat filling is removed from the skin, spend a minute or two using a chopping knife to break up any chunks that might be too large. Add this to the pot with softening onions, celery and carrots and allow it to brown slightly, stirring occasionally.

When the meat has browned slightly add the red wine if you are using it and allow to simmer for a few minutes stirring. Then add the tin of tomatoes and the tomato paste, salt, pepper and herbs, turn it onto a low heat and allow to cook for 30-45 minutes partially covered or uncovered stirring occasionally.