Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
This Easy Homemade Spaghetti sauce is rich, meaty, and loaded with authentic Italian flavor. Toss it with your favorite cooked pasta for a satisfying meal in about 40 minutes!
Servings: 8
Calories: 152kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 cup diced yellow onion
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 6 ounces tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- ½ teaspoon fennel seed lightly crushed (see recipe note)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes optional
- 28 ounces whole San Marzano tomatoes (see recipe note)
- 2 cups low sodium beef broth
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter optional
- Pasta of your choice cooked according to package directions
- Parmesan cheese for topping optional
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a non-reactive pot or Dutch oven (see recipe note) and place it over MEDIUM heat. Add the ground beef, onion and garlic and cook, stirring to break up the beef, until crumbly and browned with no pink remaining. Drain off the excess grease and return the pot to the heat. Stir the tomato paste into the mixture and cook for a minute or two and then add the basil, oregano, thyme, salt, pepper, fennel seed and red pepper flakes (if using). Cook, stirring, until well combined. Add the whole tomatoes and all the liquid from the can, breaking up the tomatoes a bit by pressing them against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. Add the beef broth and sugar and stir to combine.
- Increase the heat to MEDIUM-HIGH and bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce the heat to LOW and simmer, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes while you cook your pasta or for up to 2 hours to deepen the flavors. Stir occasionally throughout the cooking time and use the spoon to mash the tomato down to the desired consistency.
- Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, only if needed. If the sauce is too acidic for your taste, add the optional butter and allow it to melt into the sauce. Let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving to allow the sauce to mellow. If you've used San Marzano tomatoes, it is unlikely you'll feel the need to add the butter but it is an excellent way to balance the flavors even further if you'd like.
- Serve over cooked pasta topped with Parmesan cheese.
Video
Notes
Tomatoes: Canned whole San Marzano tomatoes are an excellent choice for sauce making. The plum style tomato is highly flavorful, sweet, and naturally less acidic than many other varieties. Authentic San Marzanos are grown in Italy and the cans will be marked as such but the seeds are available and grown worldwide. I've had good luck with the less expensive US grown and canned "San Marzano Style" tomatoes and will generally use what I find at a good price at my local store.
The right pan: It's vital to use a non-reactive pan when cooking with very acidic or alkaline foods like tomatoes. Reactive pans, including unlined aluminum, cast iron, and copper, can cause the food to pick up a metallic flavor. Instead, opt for a non-reactive pan with a stainless steel or enameled cast iron cooking surface. My favorites include my Le Creuset enameled cast iron Dutch oven and a less expensive but still very high quality stainless steel pan from Calphalon.
Stir and mash: Don't be concerned about smashing the whole tomatoes immediately after adding them to the pot. As the sauce cooks the tomatoes will soften and become easy to crush, especially if you've used high quality San Marzano tomatoes. Use the spoon to smash the tomatoes against the side of the pot throughout the cooking time until you've reached the desired consistency.
Crushed fennel seed: Before adding the fennel seed to the sauce, place it on a cutting board and use the bottom of a spoon or the bottom of a jar to lightly crush the seeds to release more fragrance and flavor. Or, just crushing them with your fingers will help bring more flavor out of them.
Adding sugar: I add just enough sugar in this recipe to balance the acid in the tomatoes but not enough to make it a sweet sauce. If you prefer a sweeter flavor, feel free to increase the amount of sugar.
Adding butter: If the sauce is still too acidic for your taste, adding a little butter at the end of the cooking time can help balance the flavors. Let the butter melt into the finished sauce then let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving. If you've used San Marzano tomatoes, it is unlikely you'll feel the need to add the butter but it is an excellent way to reduce the acid and mellow the sauce if neeeded.
Salt carefully: Salt is vital but don't forget that canned tomato products have plenty of sodium so it's best to go light on the salt in the beginning. I find the ½ teaspoon I add at the beginning is enough for our taste. Always taste your sauce before serving and add additional seasoning only if you think it needs it.
Nutrition
Calories: 152kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 321mg | Potassium: 351mg | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 120IU | Vitamin C: 2.1mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 1.8mg