In his quest for the perfect spaghetti bolognese, Heston travels to the city for which the dish is named, Bologna, Italy. He quickly learns that spaghetti bolognese as most non-Italians know it as is bastardized from what Bolognian's actually eat, but there are chefs in the region pushing the boundaries of that tradition. In preparing his ragu, Heston tries not to stray too far from the traditional, but to add his own touches to boost the flavor even more. For the better part of the cooking time, the meat and flavoring components are cooked separately from the tomato compote. For the pasta, Heston provides his views on what makes a good pasta for the ragu, which does not include the traditional debate between fresh and dried.