Macaroni bechamel (baked penne with spiced mince, tomato sauce and bay-infused bechamel)
Middle Eats · ♥ 3.6K likes · 88.6K views · 9 min video
Read about ground beef in the BrightCulinary Book
Timestamp
Ingredients
Method
Techniques
- 1 tbsp butter
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a pot over medium heat and saute the onions about 5 minutes until soft and translucent, without browning.
- crushed tomatoes or tomato passata
Add the crushed tomatoes or passata (or a can of chopped tomatoes blended smooth with 100 ml water) and mix.
- 100 ml water
- 1½ tsp salt
- ¾ tsp black pepper
Raise to medium-high, add 1.5 teaspoons salt and three quarters of a teaspoon black pepper, and bring to a light boil.
- 1 tbsp butter
- 400 g mince beef
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a non-stick pan over medium-high; add 400 g beef mince and press it flat, about 1 cm thick.
Juicy mince: press, flip, break up
As soon as it is pressed, flip it in large chunks, then break it into the smallest pieces and cook, stirring, until coloured and releasing liquid.
- 1 whole chopped onion
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 0.0625 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
Add a small-diced onion, 1 teaspoon salt, half a teaspoon black pepper and a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg; saute until the onions are soft and no liquid but fat remains. Set aside.
- 2 whole bay leaves
Put 500 ml milk and two bay leaves in a cold pot, bring to the lightest simmer on low and bubble gently about 20 minutes; chill in the fridge until cold, about 40 minutes.
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 200 g all-purpose flour
Melt 200 g unsalted butter in a large pot over medium, add 200 g all-purpose flour and cook, stirring, about 4 minutes until the butter seeps out.
- 1¼ l milk
On low, add the milk 100 to 200 ml at a time, mixing until absorbed each time, switching to a whisk, until all 1.25 litres are in and smooth, 4 to 5 minutes.
- 2½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp white pepper
- nutmeg
Season with 2.5 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon white pepper and a pinch of nutmeg; bubble on medium about a minute, then take off the heat.
- 1 whole beef stock cube
- 400 g penne pasta
Dissolve a beef stock cube in boiling water, add 400 g penne and cook 2 minutes less than the packet minimum; drain.
Mix the meat with a measuring cup of tomato sauce, keeping another cup aside. Set aside half the bechamel and coat the pasta in the rest.
Assembling the layers
In a deep baking dish, lay half the pasta flat, then the meat, then the rest of the pasta, then the reserved cup of tomato sauce.
Microwave the remaining bechamel to soften and spread it edge to edge to seal everything in.
Sealing with bechamel and egg wash
- 1 whole egg
Bake in an oven preheated to 180C about 45 minutes, with the grill or broiler on for the last 5, on an oven tray to catch spills.