Lamb Bolognese is a simple recipe that tastes gourmet. This recipe uses minimal ingredients and cooking time. It makes a great 30-minute weeknight meal and is perfect for a special occasion.

Aussie Lamb Bolognese recipe is all about simple ingredients and NO fancy techniques. It’s such an easy sauce to make but has a depth of flavor in a short amount of time.
Why You’ll Love Aussie Lamb Bolognese
This Lamb Bolognese proves that you don’t need 15 ingredients or hours of cooking time to create a dish that you’d be proud to serve anyone anytime.
Wouldn’t you rather sit and enjoy a glass of wine with the people at your table instead of running around stressing whether a meal is going to finish in time? It took me a while to figure that one out. Difficult and time-consuming dishes don’t necessarily equal better dishes!
Mild and flavorful lamb marries with fresh carrots and onions. Add a swirl of pappardelle pasta and you’ve got a complete meal in no time. Our lamb bolognese recipe is the perfect way to enjoy lamb.
Go open the wine because I’m going to show you how easy it is to make. It will be finished by the time you see the bottom of your glass!
This post is sponsored by True Aussie Lamb but the opinions here, and the love I have for their products, are all my own.

What is Aussie Lamb?
I used to think that True Aussie Lamb was a brand. It’s not. They support all of the lamb producers in Australia.
Why look for Australian Lamb?
- Australian lamb is raised on natural pastures which produces a mild and flavorful lamb.
- Lamb is tender, lean, and healthy!
- As you will see in our recipe, it’s so easy and versatile to use.
- It’s readily available in the United States. Australian lamb is actually the #1 source of lamb in the US and you may have already seen it in your local supermarket.
- You can go to their website to see who carries it in your area and to learn more about True Aussie Lamb.
- Or, just #askforAustralian!
Ingredients for the Lamb Bolognese Recipe

This is a smaller batch recipe perfect for date night. It can be doubled or even tripled.
- Ground Australian Lamb – Mild and flavorful lamb is so lean that it doesn’t need to be drained. Every bit of the flavor stays right where it should, in your recipe.
- Carrots – I chopped up a few carrots to add flavor, texture, and pretty color to our meat sauce.
- Onions – Yellow onions is what I used. You can use what you like to cook with.
- Seasonings – Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper were all this dish needed. If you don’t have Italian seasoning, dried oregano will work too.
- Garlic – Minced fresh garlic is what we prefer. You could definitely use a jar of pre-minced garlic for convenience.
- Tomato paste – A very small amount adds a richness to the bolognese meat sauce.
- Pasta water – Save a little pasta water to thin out your sauce if needed.
- Garnish – I love adding garnishes for color and another opportunity for flavor. A few sprinkles of fresh parsley and some grated Parmesan Reggiano will do.
How To Make Aussie Ground Lamb Bolognese
Since this recipe comes together quickly, I recommend that you pre-chop the carrots and the onion. You could start your pasta water now too. You will not believe how fast you have a delicious sauce with intense flavor.

- Using a medium-sized saucepan, combine the ground lamb, carrots, onion, salt, and pepper. Allow the meat mixture to cook until the meat is no longer pink.
- Add the minced garlic, Italian seasoning, and tomato paste. Stir to combine. If the sauce is really thick, add some pasta water to thin it.
Tips for Amazing Bolgnese
- Chop the carrots and onion into small pieces so that they don’t take as long to cook and are ready when the lamb is cooked through. This is a recipe where great knife skills shine, but don’t be intimidated! Cut these ingredients into similar sizes for best results.
- Use a skillet or braiser with a large bottom so the ingredients are spread out. The ingredients will cook quicker and at the same rate.
- Garlic isn’t added initially because it can burn very easily.
- Garlic only takes a couple of minutes to cook and adds amazing flavor so it’s added towards the end of the recipe.
- This Bolognese recipe doesn’t need much salt.
- We salt the pasta water and the parmesan garnish adds enough salt to this recipe in my opinion.
What to Serve with Lamb Bolognese
I prefer to mix some of the meat sauce into a large bowl holding the cooked pasta and add just enough sauce to coat the noodles.
Once I plate the pasta, I will add more lamb bolognese meat sauce to the top of the pasta and add a fresh parsley garnish. Serve grated Parmesan Reggiano at the table.
A small salad, loaf of Italian Bread, Focaccia Bread, or this quick and delicious Garlic Bread Recipe, and a glass of wine and dinner is done.
Equipment Needed for Ground Lamb Pasta
- Pasta cooker – We like being able to just lift our pasta out of the cooking water when our pasta is done. It’s less likely to overcook the pasta. And, I’m also able to save our pasta water for thinning the sauce when we use a pasta cooker.
- Box Grater – I like seeing the shreds of fresh cheese on our bolognese so using a grater is the way to go for us.
- Braiser Pan – This pan is an enameled cast iron. It has a larger bottom so all of your ingredients cook at the same rate. The clean-up is a breeze too!

How to Store Leftovers
What is the Best Way to Store Lamb Bolognese?
Store the bolognese in a covered dish in the refrigerator. I like to keep the leftover sauce separate from the leftover pasta (which has already been mixed with a little bit of sauce during recipe preparation) so that everyone can reheat exactly the amount of each they like.
You can re-heat the bolognese briefly in the microwave or in a saucepan on the stove. You can add a little water if you need to thin the sauce.
Can I freeze Ground Lamb Bolognese?
This Aussie lamb meat sauce freezes beautifully in an airtight container for 3 to 4 months. And, while pasta freezes too, we recommend cooking it fresh while you thaw and reheat the sauce in a skillet or saucepan.
How Long Will Ground Lamb Pasta last in the refrigerator?
Lamb Bolognese sauce will last for up to three days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Ground Lamb Bolognese FAQ
I generally use pappardelle with bolognese. It does a good job clinging to the meat sauce and these noodles aren’t generally real thick so the lamb bolognese meat sauce shines through.
You use what you like. This recipe is all about enjoying the ease of the meal. You could also use rigatoni.
Ragu is a meat-based sauce that uses lots of tomatoes. Bolognese uses meat too but does not use many tomatoes as such. The primary ingredients of ragu are meat, tomatoes, and red wine. The primary ingredients of this bolognese are meat and chopped veggies.
If you enjoy this recipe, here are a few more I think you’ll like
We love lamb and you can find all of our lamb recipes here!
If you’re still looking for amazing lamb recipes, jump on over to the True Aussie Lamb website.
Pin this amazing Ground Lamb Recipe!

They have some chef creations using all of the lamb cuts available and more tips to cook lamb. There is also an interactive cooking tool that shows you how easy it is to cook lamb and will help you create your own dish.
Judith
Monday 23rd of January 2023
This is excellent! I read the comments first and decided to add a can of fire roasted tomatoes. Superior!! Thanks!
Julie Menghini
Tuesday 24th of January 2023
I'm so glad you enjoyed it Judith! It's a favorite in our household too!
Michele
Wednesday 7th of December 2022
Your recommendation for 1/2 c of water was way off for me, here in MN. There was literally no sauce whatsoever. But since we didn’t eat very much of it I froze it in single serving portions and have since bought some 14oz cans of fire roasted tomatoes which will sauce up 2 portions perfectly.
Julie Menghini
Thursday 8th of December 2022
Liquid isn't a hard fast rule, Michele. I can take the same recipe and depending on how the other ingredients cook up use more or less. I'm glad that you made this work for you.
Allyssa
Friday 30th of April 2021
Thanks a lot for sharing this idea! Will surely make it again!
Julie Menghini
Saturday 1st of May 2021
Thank you, Allyssa!
Katherine
Friday 30th of April 2021
Such a great twist on bolognese by using ground lamb!
Julie Menghini
Saturday 1st of May 2021
Delicious and so easy. Thank you, Katherine!
Helen
Friday 30th of April 2021
I'm sure my family would love this! It looks delicious, and healthy too.
Julie Menghini
Saturday 1st of May 2021
Thank you, Helen! My family sure loves it.