Sunday ragù, and tagliatelle tonight

Makes About 12 cups of ragù, plus dinner for 4 tonight

A double pot of Bolognese-style ragù that cooks itself for three hours. About 12 cups: a quarter goes on tagliatelle tonight, the rest is the week.

4 hr 30 min (1 hr 15 min hands-on) · serves 4

You need

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 4 oz pancetta, finely chopped
• 2 medium yellow onions, finely chopped (about 2 cups)
• 2 carrots, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 3 celery ribs, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 2 lb ground beef (80/20)
• 1 lb ground pork
• 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1½ cups dry white wine
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 cans (28 oz each) whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand, with their juice
• 2 cups chicken or beef stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 parmesan rind (optional)
• ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• Black pepper
• For tonight: 1 lb dried egg tagliatelle, 2 tbsp butter, ½ cup grated parmesan

How to make it

1. Chop the onions, carrots and celery as fine as you have patience for, about ¼ inch. Small pieces melt into the sauce; big ones stay chunky. Chop the pancetta the same size.
2. Heat the oil and butter in your widest heavy pot (at least 7 quarts) over medium heat. When the butter foams, add the pancetta and cook 3 minutes, until the fat starts to run.
3. Add the onions, carrots and celery with a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring every couple of minutes, 12 to 15 minutes, until soft enough to crush against the pot with a spoon and just turning golden at the edges. Don't rush this; it's where the sweetness comes from.
4. Turn the heat to medium-high. Add half the beef and pork, break it up with the spoon, and cook 6 to 7 minutes, until no pink shows and it starts to sizzle instead of steam. Push it to the side, add the rest, and cook the same way. Season with the 2 tsp salt.
5. Pour in the milk and grate in the nutmeg. Simmer, stirring now and then, 8 to 10 minutes, until the milk has disappeared and you see clear fat at the bottom. The milk makes the meat tender.
6. Pour in the wine and simmer 8 to 10 minutes more, until it's gone and the pot smells sweet rather than sharp.
7. Stir in the tomato paste for 1 minute, then the crushed tomatoes and their juice, the stock, the bay leaves and the parmesan rind. Bring to a simmer, then turn the heat down until only a bubble or two breaks the surface at a time.
8. Cook uncovered 2½ to 3 hours, stirring from the bottom every 20 minutes. If it looks dry before it's done, add ½ cup water. It's ready when it's thick enough that a spoon dragged through leaves a trail, it looks glossy, and a thin layer of orange fat sits on top.
9. Take out the bay leaves and the rind. Taste and add salt (usually another 1 to 2 tsp) and plenty of black pepper.
10. Portion the week before you eat: 3 cups for Monday, 2½ cups for Tuesday, 3½ cups for Thursday. Leave the containers open on the counter to cool for up to an hour, then lid them. Monday's and Tuesday's go in the fridge, Thursday's in the freezer.
11. For tonight: boil a big pot of water and salt it well (2 tbsp kosher salt for 5 quarts). Cook the tagliatelle 1 minute less than the package says. Save 1 cup of the water, drain, and toss the pasta in the empty pot over low heat with about 3 cups of ragù, the 2 tbsp butter and a splash of the water for 1 minute, until every strand is coated. Serve with the parmesan.

No pancetta? Use 4 slices of bacon, or leave it out and add 1 more tbsp butter.

Cooked ragù keeps 3 to 4 days in the fridge and 3 months in the freezer, which is why Thursday's goes in the freezer.