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–+ servings
A skillet filled with cooked spaghetti mixed with a chunky tomato and ground meat sauce, garnished with chopped parsley, sits on a bright blue tiled surface.
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5 from 4 votes

Delicious Chicken Bolognese

This chicken bolognese is full of flavour and easy to freeze, which makes it the perfect budget-friendly option for weeknight dinners.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time1 hour
Course: Main
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 8
Calories: 551kcal
Author: Mimi Harrison

Ingredients

  • 200 g cooking bacon, chopped into chunks (£1)
  • 2 carrots, peeled & finely diced (£0.20)
  • 3 celery stalks, finely diced (£0.75)
  • 1 onion, finely diced (£0.79)
  • 6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped (£0.50)
  • 250 g mushrooms, finely chopped (£1.50)
  • 1 kg chicken mince (£2.49)
  • 3 cans (400g) of chopped tomatoes (£0.47x3)
  • 150 ml milk (£1.20)

Serve with

  • 280 g spaghetti (£0.28)

Cupboard Essentials

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 2 tbsp Worcester sauce
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
  • 300 ml beef stock
  • Salt
  • Pepper
Metric - US Standard

Instructions

  • Start by adding the olive oil and bacon into a large saucepan over a low/medium heat. Gently fry until the bacon is nice and crispy, for around 8 minutes.
  • After this time, remove the bacon from the pan, leaving oil/rendered fat in the pan. Add the diced carrot, celery, onion and mushrooms. Season with a generous pinch of salt and pepper and fry over a medium heat until all of the moisture has cooked off. This will take about 6 minutes.
  • Next, add the garlic, chicken mince and tomato puree into the pan. Cook for about 3 minutes before adding all of the liquids (the chopped tomatoes, milk and beef stock) and bacon back into the pan.
  • Add the Worcester sauce, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Stir to combine and reduce the heat to low. Leave uncovered for an hour if you have time, but cook for a minimum of 45 mins!
  • After this time, cook your spaghetti according to the packet instructions. Serve a portion of spaghetti with a ladle of rich chicken bolognese. Finish with a crack of black pepper, optional parmesan and dive in! This is a double batch of bolognese so if you're stirring the spaghetti into the pan with the bolognese, remember to remove half of the bolognese before doing so!

Notes

  • Make sure the heat is turned right down to low when it's simmering. If you have time to cook this for two hours, that's even better!
  • Seasoning the vegetables first, and then the whole sauce later.
  • This chicken bolognese makes a double batch that serves 8, which is perfect for meal prepping and is freezer-friendly.
  • If the sauce gets too thick while it’s simmering, just add a small splash of water or a bit more beef stock to loosen it up to your perfect consistency.

Nutrition

Calories: 551kcal | Carbohydrates: 65g | Protein: 42g | Fat: 13g