Slow cooked bolognese

I've called this a bolognese but it's basically a one-size-fits-all mince - it can easily be a bolognese sauce for pasta, add some chillies and kidney beans for a chilli, or even layer up with aubergine for a beefy version of moussaka. I cook this a lot in very large batches and make it up into any number of dishes. You'll see a very similar variation on the mince sauce for my take on 'lasagne' in an earlier post. As you'll see this time I decided to get the slow cooker out to make super slow cook version of my favourite mince - I've also included a couple of examples of how I've used it this time.

A note on slow cookers - my grandma passed one of her slow cookers on to me (she had about 10 but that's another story!) with some strict instructions on using it successfully:
1. You must heat the slow cooker before adding your ingredients to it.
2. You must fry / brown off your ingredients before adding them to a slow cooker.
3. Add much less liquid than you think you'll need.

I questioned her and she was a little evasive around the specifics but logically I would guess that you need to treat the slow cooker as if it's the moment you put your dish in the oven. You would never expect to be able to throw a load of raw ingredients into a casserole dish, cook at 60 degrees for 8 hours and it taste as good as if you've taken the time to brown your meat first. To be honest the results of taking the time to follow the above three steps speak for themselves.

Slow cooked bolognese

2 x 400g packs minced British beef (I normally use around 10% fat but use whatever you have)

1 x 400g pack minced free range pork

2 large onions, diced

4-5 large cloves garlic, crushed of finely chopped

3 red peppers, diced

1 pack chestnut mushrooms, quartered or halved depending on size

2 tins of tomatoes

Tomato puree - approximately a tbsp

Large glass of red wine

Lots of dried oregano, basil, salt and pepper (esp. the dried herbs)

Coconut oil or meat fat - I happened to have a bit of coconut oil with chicken fat from previous frying off some chicken thighs but obviously use whatever you have - also if the idea of using meat fat freaks you out then steer well clear! :)

Turn the slow cooker on to low so it gets warm, at the same time heat the oil/fat in a pan on the stove.

Fry off the onion and garlic in the oil, when slightly softened add the meat and brown.

Once brown, add the meat to the slow cooker (you might need to do this in batches depending on how much space there is in the pan).

Once you've browned all the meat chuck the rest of the veg into the pan and cook off - it doesn't need to be soft in any way just start the frying process.

Use the wine to get any meat residue off the bottom of your pan, scrape the pan with a wooden spoon while you're stirring the veg in the red wine.

Add the tomatoes, puree, herbs, salt and pepper.

Bring to boiling point then add all the rest of the ingredients to the slow cooker - you might want to use a bit of water to rinse out the pan into the slow cooker but don't go overboard as slow cookers retain most of their moisture.

Put the lid on and keep the slow cooker on low while you are out for the day (so you get a delicious meal for when you come home from work!) - alternatively you can leave it to cook overnight.

Serve the mince in whatever way you see fit - below I've included a healthier option paired with cauliflower rice (left) or cheat meal style scattered along with jalapeños and olives on a pizza (right).