This New York Times' 5-Star Bolognese Is Ready In Just 30 Minutes

Earning thousands of five-star reviews from home cooks, Genevieve Ko's Weeknight Bolognese is one of The New York Times' top 10 recipes of 2025—and for good reason. It tastes like one of those old-world pasta recipes that calls for an ancient seasoning blend passed along by grandmas through centuries in unmarked vessels.

Which, in a way, is kind of true. The little bit of Thai red curry paste that takes this pasta sauce from good to "Ermahgerd!" has its roots in nam prik pastes of 13th-century Thailand.

This is technically a "faux-lognese," since classic bolognese sauce requires a much longer cooking time. Genevieve's brilliant use of Thai red curry paste, added to just a handful of familiar ingredients, creates an ultra-luxe sauce with the depth of an all-day simmer—in just 30 minutes.

I know what you’re thinking, and no, it doesn’t taste like curry. Instead, the Thai red curry paste basically tags in where tomato paste might go, adding a zhuzhy je ne sais quoi that had me silently wondering whether I had just become a Thai Italian grandma who can suddenly do Thai Italian grandma stuff, like nailing a comforting bolognese on a weeknight.

You’ll smell the magic the minute the curry paste hits the heat, so grab your favorite pasta and get ready to create a new, well-loved hand-me-down recipe.

How To Make Genevieve Ko's Weeknight Bolognese

In addition to cooking staples like salt, black pepper, and olive oil, you'll need:

• 1 pound ground beef (at least 20 percent fat)
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, finely chopped
• 2 to 3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
• 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 pound short, curled dry pasta
• 1 cup heavy cream

I like to start with the sauce. Heat a large, heavy pot over medium heat. Drizzle in a little olive oil, then add the beef. Break it apart and spread it out evenly in the pan, season with salt and pepper, and let it brown all the way through until you get those crispy bits.

Move the beef to one side of the pan, tip the fat over to the other side, and add the chopped onions and carrots directly to the fat. Season the veggies with salt and pepper, then stir them into the beef and cook for about five minutes, or until the onions are soft and translucent.

Add the curry paste to the beef mixture (I used three tablespoons for maximum spice), and allow it to deepen in color for a few minutes. Add the can of tomato sauce, then fill the same can about one-third of the way with water to rinse it out. Add that to the pan. Stir everything together, then bring to a low boil, lower the heat, and let the sauce simmer while the pasta cooks.

Boil the pasta in generously salted water until one minute shy of the package instructions. Then, reserving half cup of pasta water, drain the pasta and add it to the sauce. Turn off the heat, stir in the cream, and season to taste.

If you’d like a thinner sauce, stirring in a little reserved pasta water does the trick.

Short, curly pastas work best for clinging to this hearty sauce. I love the rough texture of bronze-cut pasta, which soaks up sauce like a sponge. I’ve seen people use long pastas like spaghetti with zero complaints, too.

From here, you will no longer remember the before-pasta times; you will only know the red curry paste pasta times. But, judging by its warm reception, maybe this is the secret ingredient we needed to truly spice up family pasta night.