Spaghetti Sauce
Published July 23, 2024
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 40 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- ¼cup olive oil
- 1medium yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)
- Salt and pepper
- 6garlic cloves, minced
- ½teaspoon fennel seeds
- Crushed red pepper
- ½cup cabernet sauvignon or other dry red wine
- 1pound ground beef
- 1(28-ounce) can tomato purée
- 1tablespoon dried basil
- 2tablespoons dried oregano
- 1tablespoon dried parsley
- 2teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1pound cooked spaghetti, for serving
- Chopped fresh basil leaves, for serving
- Freshly grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese, for serving
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a large skillet or medium pot, heat olive oil over medium. Add onion with a pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in garlic, fennel seeds and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Cook until aromatic, 1 to 2 minutes. Add red wine and cook down by about half, about 2 minutes.
- Step 2
Adjust heat to medium-high and add ground beef in large chunks, then season with 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Cook beef, stirring occasionally and breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until lightly browned and almost cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes. Use a spoon to skim off and discard any excess beef fat that has risen to the surface, as desired.
- Step 3
Stir in the tomato purée, the dried basil, oregano and parsley and the granulated sugar. Bring to a boil, adjust heat to low and simmer 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
- Step 4
Serve warm over spaghetti with fresh basil and grated Parmesan, or let cool and store in the refrigerator up to 5 days or freezer up to 6 months.
Private Notes
Comments
Instead of sugar I add finely chopped carrots - adds sweetness. Also, after the ground beef browns, I sprinkle in a bit of flour to absorb residual fat, which also produces a thicker sauce. Kinda like a roux of sorts...
Some sliced mushrooms added when the simmering starts add umami. We’ve done something similar for a long time with the addition of the mushrooms, a pound of Italian sausage sliced and browned (cooks out fat) and the addition of a large can of crushed tomatoes as well as the purée. This recipe dates back to when my parents were doctor and RN in the Greenpoint Hospital ER and invitations to family dinners were a way of thanking them. It was Little Italy in those days before WW2.
Pretty good, but 2 tbs of oregano is WAY too much. When I do this next time I’ll use a lot less (on the order of 2 tsp). BTW - I was confused about tomato puree from another recipe a while back. Found out that it’s basically tomato sauce, but without the added sugar. For anyone who can’t find puree, in addition to all the other great ideas here in the notes, consider using tomato sauce, but skipping the additional sugar. Also, in a pinch I’ve used canned diced tomatoes, whirled in the blender.
I don’t know why people are raving about this recipe it has no tomato flavor, and tastes kinda gross on top of that. Tastes like sausage made into a sauce, not pasta sauce.
Everyone loved this. I cooked the beef first, then set aside, draining some fat. Added the beef back in at step 2. Another commenter mentioned that draining fat after it's been seasoned didn't make sense. Switching it up worked well. Made with homemade orecchiette and we loved that combo.
This was excellent. The next time I make it I will cut back a tad on the ground black pepper, a teaspoon of pepper is a lot. With the crushed red pepper it was just a bit too "peppery" for our tastes.
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