Homemade Meat Sauce

An easy homemade pasta sauce made with five simple ingredients. This recipe has been in my family for over a century and is a go-to for pasta dishes and lasagna or over vegetables or eggs.

Is homemade spaghetti sauce something that you make in your house, or do you rely on something you buy, fresh or jarred, from the store?

There is no wrong answer, because goodness knows I am no stranger to pre-made sauce (see my tortilla pizza, zucchini ravioli, and baked ziti). But sometimes this authentic Italian meat sauce recipe (yes, authentic– we’ll get there) is just what my belly needs.

And since it’s a pretty simple recipe, I don’t feel like I have to begin making my sauce with a big sigh. It’s quick and easy and worth the time, as little as that time may actually be!

Yes, this is my 100% Italian family’s easy meat sauce recipe, which has been in existence for over a century.

This homemade meat sauce recipe is very very simple (five ingredients). And I am going to be very very snobby-ish about why (so that Nonna and Nonno DeAngelis don’t haunt me for obliterating their recipe).

Like I mentioned, we only need five (yes, only FIVE) things:
1) meat
2) garlic
3) onion
4) crushed tomatoes (more on these in a bit*)
5) tomato paste

THAT’S. IT.

You also don’t need a ton of time– just a bit more than “wham, bam, thank you ma’am.”

This is a fairly quick meat sauce recipe, so when I say you only need about 2 hours from start to finish, know that about 1 and ½ of those hours are used for simmering.

While my family has typically always turned to ground pork for this homemade meat sauce, you can certainly use ground beef, ground turkey, ground chicken, or even Italian sausage.

If you choose to go with poultry or a lean ground beef, you may want to use a little extra olive oil while cooking your onions and garlic so everything doesn’t dry out.

Now, before I go any further, let me go on the record right now and say that in our family’s opinion, sugar absolutely does not belong in pasta sauce. If you’re looking for subtle sweetness, that’s where a sweet onion comes in.

My dad has always used a white onion, but I find that I really enjoy the natural sweetness of tomatoes + a sweet onion. It’s absolutely perfect against all that savory meat flavor. Use whatever you prefer.

In fact, when he emailed me the recipe, he said, in his typical silly humor “during this entire process, ensure that your sugar container remains in your cupboard.”

Yes, sir, dad!

Moving right along…

Once your meat of choice is browned and your onion and garlic have thoroughly seasoned it up, it’s time for the tomato components.

The crushed tomatoes + tomato paste make the perfect simple base for this meaty spaghetti sauce without drowning out the flavors of the meat or making the sauce too runny.

If you like a hardy, thick sauce, cook it for a longer time than you might if you prefer a thinner one. The good news is if you cook it down too far, you can always add back in some water or continue to cook it if you feel it isn’t quite thick enough.

That’s the beauty of a simple recipe for spaghetti sauce: you don’t have to try to find more wine or more jarred sauce because you’re working with nothing but meat and tomatoes (that’s like “meat and potatoes” but the Italian version).

I will be forever grateful to my grandparents and great grandparents for passing down recipes and skills/lessons to me that I can pass on to my children, grandchildren, and readers.

My mission at Fresh April Flours has always been to help you get back into the kitchen and down to basics while living in a fast-paced, instant gratification world.

This recipe is a great reminder to slow down and I think it will serve all of us to sit back and remember that sometimes we have to work with less than what we’re used to.

So why not do it with a big plate of spaghetti with meat sauce, completely homemade from what we’ve recently acquired at our latest grocery haul?

Stay safe, well, and happy, my friends.