I have been eating the same spaghetti sauce all of my life. In fact, this is one of my favorite meals to eat and make. When I go to visit my mom, I’m always hoping that she has made a big pot of this sauce. No matter how long I have been making this recipe on my own, it never tastes as good as hers. There is just something about how my mom makes it…maybe her secret ingredient is love.
Slow Cooked Spaghetti Sauce Ingredients:
1 pound of lean ground beef
1 chopped up onion
1 chopped up bell pepper
2 cloves of finely minced garlic
2 tablespoons of olive oil to saute’ vegetables and meat
2 16 oz cans of petite diced tomatoes
2 16 oz cans of tomato sauce
1 8 0z can of tomato paste
4 cups of water
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons dried basil
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary or 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Cooking Instructions:
First thing you need to do is saute’ the onions, peppers, and garlic. Once they have cooked down a bit, add in the pound of ground beef to brown. Be sure you drain the ground beef of its excess fat. Then you will add in all the cans of tomatoes, paste, sauce, and water. Stir up these ingredients until they are well blended. Add in the spices: rosemary, bay leaves, oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Bring the sauce to a boil and then turn it down to low heat to cook for 5 hours or more.
Patience in Waiting:
This is one of those dishes that really does take all day long to cook. I like my spaghetti sauce thick, and to achieve that, I cook it on the stove for at minimum of 5 hours. If you do not give this recipe that long to cook, then it will be very watery. In fact, sometimes, it is still a bit watery even after I have given its full time to cook. Sometimes, I use less water when making the recipe just to be sure it is as thick as I like for it to be. This is not a good recipe for a crockpot, because it needs the ability to evaporate the water and cook down. A crockpot will not allow the water to evaporate out. However, I have successfully left this pot of sauce on my stove while I was away at church or other functions. I realize that some people do not feel safe in leaving food cooking on the stove while they are away. In that case, it is best to only cook this meal when you are home. I actually think that this spaghetti sauce tastes even better on the next day. You could easily make this up ahead of time and serve it when you are ready.
Leave me a message in the comments and tell me about your favorite recipe. I’d love to know what you enjoy cooking.