Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
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The secret to the best homemade spaghetti sauce is keeping things simple: Tomatoes simmered with a few pantry staples and ground meat is all you need. Besides being tossed with pasta or layered into a lasagna, the hardworking tomato sauce can easily transform just about any protein or veggie into a satisfying dinner in no time. Pour it over cooked chicken breasts with rounds of fresh mozzarella and add a showering of Parmesan and chopped basil, and suddenly dinner becomes something worth celebrating. Or pair it with spaghetti and meatballs for a classic Italian American dinner that never disappoints.
This recipe is designed specifically to be made ahead of time, primed for stashing in your fridge or freezer. And while many marinara sauces require a laundry list of ingredients and a long cook time to thicken, this version keeps things simple and comes together in less than an hour. Bolstered by tomato paste, the pasta sauce strikes the perfect balance between hearty and saucy, perfectly clinging to cooked noodles without weighing them down. While this recipe calls for ground pork to bulk it up and create a hearty meat sauce, you can swap in plant-based meat or omit it entirely for a vegetarian version that tastes just as good.
Read more: From-Scratch Pasta Sauce Is Good for More Than Just Pasta
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What you’ll need
5.5 Quart Dutch Oven
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Silicone Spatula
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Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
$19 At Amazon
Recipe information
Total Time
1 hour
Yield
Makes about 6 cups
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Heat ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil in a medium Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium. Add 2 large onions, finely chopped, 10 garlic cloves, finely grated, and ½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon or heatproof rubber spatula, until onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add one 6-oz. can tomato paste and cook, stirring often, until onions are evenly coated and paste has darkened slightly, about 5 minutes. Add 1 lb. ground pork and cook, stirring and breaking up into small pieces, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.
Step 2
Add one 28-oz. can crushed tomatoes, 1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. dried oregano, 1 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt, 1 tsp. sugar, and 3 cups water. Bring sauce to a simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, until thickened and flavors have come together, 35–45 minutes. Taste sauce and season with more salt if needed.
Do Ahead: Let cool. Transfer to an airtight container and cover. Refrigerate for up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Recipe notes
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From black bean picadillo skillet to New Jersey crumb cake.From-Scratch Pasta Sauce Is Good for More Than Just Pasta
Put it toward noodles, yes, but also chicken cutlets, roast veggies, and more.
