Heat the oil in a saucepan and sauté the finely chopped onion, carrot, celery, parsley and garlic, and the basil leaves ripped up by hand. As soon as the vegetables begin to turn golden-brown (take care: golden-brown, not burnt!), add the minced beef and pork and the chicken liver, which you have cleaned, washed and chopped into small pieces. Mix the meat and vegetables together, stirring frequently; it will be ready when foam begins to appear on the surface. At this point, season with salt and pepper and pour in the wine. Let it evaporate completely, then add the tomatoes, drained and chopped, and a spoonful of tomato paste dissolved in half a ladle of lukewarm water. Allow to boil for an hour over a low heat, stirring from time to time (it needs to be stirred quite frequently to keep it from sticking to the bottom and burning.) If the sauce becomes too dry and thick, add a little broth (even made with a stock cube), if it seems to liquid then let it cook a bit longer. If necessary, season again with salt and pepper to taste and remove from the heat.
This is a rich and appetizing sauce, very suitable for the winter season, with its warm flavours. It is perhaps the most typical sauce in Tuscan cuisine. Together with Pomarola, Ragù (as this sauce is called by many) is one of the sauces most frequently used in Tuscany to dress every type of pasta in every home, restaurant and "trattoria." The most common combination is with pappardelle egg pasta, but it’s also delicious with short pasta shapes, with the "usual" spaghetti, with linguine and with Pici (they seem born for one another).