What is a Bolognese pizza?

Bolognese pizza is just what it sounds, it’s pizza with Bolognese sauce on it! And yes, it is absolutely delicious. Well, I think so anyway.

Generally, I’m not one for straying away from the traditional pizza toppings. However, I have to say that I think this one works great. I love making (and eating, no, devouring) Bolognese pizza.

Keep readng to find out more about Bolognese pizza or click here to skip to the recipe.

Why put Bolognese sauce on pizza?

Well, why not?! I especially like making Bolognese pizza in the winter as it makes for a very hearty meal. It’s real comfort food!

The good news is that a batch of Bolognese sauce goes a long way. It’s a great sauce to make if you’re doing a pizza party as one batch will make a lot of pizzas. Also, most people probably won’t have tried Bolognese pizza before so chances are they’ll be excited to try it.

If you really want the brownie points, you can make incredible poolish pizza dough or arguably the ultimate dough, sourdough. Top it off with some bolognese sauce and you’ll almost certainly have your guests drooling at the mooth! Or, just make it for yourself, and have more pizza to enjoy!

As a bonus, leftover sauce can be stored in the fridge and used another day for pasta. Alternatively, you could always make Bolognese pizza again!

Is Bolognese sauce the same as pizza sauce?

Pizza sauce is usually just crushed tomatoes that have been seasoned. Whereas a Bolognese sauce is a meat sauce that typically contains only a small amount of tomato.

Traditionally, Bolognese sauce is served with pasta. It is the sauce that is used in Lasagne, for example.

Regular pizza sauce is typically just blended tomatoes that have been seasoned. Check out my article on preparing pizza toppings here to see how I make my tomato sauce, as well as how I get everything else ready too. The details really do matter when it comes to making amazing pizza.

One change to Bolognese sauce I typically make for pizza is that I chop the vegetables more finely so that the sauce spreads better on the pizza. Additionally, I tend to use a bit more tomato in the sauce to further help with the spreadability (must be a word).

Where did Bolognese pizza come from?

Bolognese pizza can be considerd as a type of fusion food. It is essentially a combination of pizza and pasta sauce. Although both the sauce and the pizza are of Italian origin, it’s unlikely that the combination of the two was as well.

Topping pizza with Bolognese sauce is a pretty modern thing, as far as I know. As you’re probably well aware, it’s fairly common for people to experiment with unusual pizza toppings. Some work and some don’t.

Personally, I’m a bit of a traditionalist and I really enjoy Neapolitan pizza for it’s simplicity. Juicy plum tomatoes, rich and creamy mozzarella cheese, fragrant fresh basil, and a drizzle of luxurious extra virgin olive oil – what’s not to love about the classic Margherita?!

Having said that, I have to say that I think Bolognese sauce on pizza works really well. It brings something different to the table (quite literally) without going too far, at least in my opinion.

What I love the most about Bolognese pizza is how hearty it is. It’s a meat lover’s paradise and it’s particularly delicious in the winter, it’s a heart warming treat!

Also, the fact that Bolognese sauce is as Italian as the pizza itself, means that the purist in me doesn’t feel too offended. But maybe that’s just me.

Bolognese pizza ingredients

For Bolognese pizza, the ingredients are mostly the same as those used for regular pizza, with the addition of the Bolognese sauce of course!

Neapolitan pizza dough consists of just flour, water, salt and yeast. Once the pizza has been shaped, it’s then topped with the Bolognese sauce and usually followed by cheese. Mozzarella or parmesan can be used, or both together, before being topped off with some fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil.

The list of ingredients is as follows:

• Flour (usually 00)
• Water
• Salt
• Yeast
• Bolognese Sauce
• Mozzarella (optional)
• Parmesan (optional)
• Basil (optional)
• Olive Oil – Extra Virgin (optional)

Personally, I would always recommend using some sort of cheese. Either mozzarella or parmesan work great, or both together. A thin layer of cheese helps to protect the Bolognese sauce from burning, as well as providing some rich flavour (and creamy texture in the case of mozzarella).

The Bolognese pizza sauce

I recommend a traditional Bolognese sauce for pizza, with a couple of small tweaks. The main differences are that I tend to chop the vegetables more finely as well as adding a bit more tomato than usual. I find that these precautions help the sauce to spread better on the pizza.

As is traditional for Bolognese, I don’t add any spices or herbs to the sauce. However, I do like adding some fresh basil to the pizza. Of course, you can take my sauce as a starting point and experiment as you wish.

For me, the key to the Bolognese pizza sauce is getting the consistency right. Ideally, the sauce should be around the same thickness as passata, or a regular tomato pizza sauce.

I find that it’s better for the sauce to be too thick rather than too thin. This ensures that the pizza doesn’t become too runny or soggy.

As with any meat sauce, the longer it cooks the more tender it becomes. I like to cook the sauce for around 2 or 3 hours, being sure to stir the sauce every now and then. Although, cooking for 1 hour should also be fine, especially since the sauce will cook somewhat on top of the pizza anyway.

However, cooking for longer will improve the consistency of the sauce and the meat cooks down. It also gives more time for the flavours to develop.

When you’ve nearly finished cooking the sauce, you can check the consistency. If the sauce is too runny, you can cook it a bit longer with the lid off, this will help to evapourate some of the water off, thickening the sauce.

If the sauce is too thick, you can always add a dash of water. Just be careful not too add too much as we want the sauce to be fairly thick anyway.

Bolognese pizza calories

The total amount of calories for a 10 inch Bolognese pizza is around 975kcal. That’s assuming that you put mozzarella cheese on too, but if you skip that you could bring the calories down quite a bit. The Bolognese sauce doesn’t actually contribute that many calories to the pizza since only a relatively small amount is used.

Here is the calorie breakdown for Bolognese pizza:

• 525Kcal – Dough (250g)
• 50kcal – Bolognese Sauce (50g)
• 300kcal – Mozzarella Cheese (100g)
• 0kcal – Basil
• 100kcal – Olive Oil

If you wanted to reduce the calories a bit, one option would be to swap the mozzarella for some grated parmesan. Also, you could go easier on the olive oil but I would struggle with that personally. I love a generous drizzle of exra virgin olive oil on the cooked pizza.

How to make Bolognese pizza

Now let’s get into how to make Bolognese pizza. It’s really easy, it just takes a bit of time to cook the sauce. The good news is that a little goes a long way so you might get a couple of meals out of it, unless you’re making a lot pizzas.

As a side note, I would recommend that you’re confident making a Margherita first before moving onto this. Feel free to check out my Authentic Neapolitan pizza reipe here if you haven’t already, before trying Bolognese pizza.

Also, just bear in mind that the key to this pizza is the consistency of the sauce. If anything, it’s easier if the sauce is too thick. With a thin sauce, the pizza may become soggy. And if you make a pizza and decide the sauce is a bit too thick, you can always mix in a dash of water for the next one.

With that being said, let’s get into the recipe below.