Homemade Spaghetti Meat Sauce

Ditch the canned spaghetti sauce for this flavorful, beefy, homemade spaghetti meat sauce. Only takes a few minutes  to prepare and then let it simmer for amazing flavor. Serve over pasta noodles with some garlic bread for a delicious dinner that will please everyone.

post updated & republished June 2018

I originally shared this dinner recipe for homemade spaghetti meat sauce when I first started blogging. Almost 3 years ago! When I first started my blog I thought was doing really good, haha 🙂

If you’re a fellow blogger than you probably know what I am talking about. A lot of recipes can accumulate on the blog after 3 years and I’ll be honest, there are lots of recipes that probably never get made again.

This homemade spaghetti meat sauce is one of the recipes that gets made over and over again. It is by far my family’s most loved recipe. It’s one of the recipes that I want my kids to remember me for. Like every time they come back home they ask mom to make her spaghetti meat sauce.

This homemade  spaghetti meat sauce make me so happy. It’s an easy recipe that literally tastes as if you have been slaving over a hot stove all day. And it looks pretty too. My food looking pretty is a big deal for me. 

I love the convenience of a canned product as much as anyone, but sometimes you want a homemade dinner that is made from scratch. Even better, sometimes you want a homemade dinner that is actually quick & easy to make, and it’s still made from scratch!

I am always amazed by this spaghetti meat sauce because it uses no canned spaghetti sauce which is a pretty normal thing to use when you’re making a quick & easy meat sauce. Besides some simmering time on the stove top it comes together rather quickly. 

How to make Homemade Spaghetti Meat Sauce

• Brown some ground beef with a diced onion, crushed garlic, and salt. Be sure and crumble it into small pieces while it cooks.
• Add the usual pasta sauce suspects : tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and crushed tomatoes along with some seasonings.
• Let it come to a low boil and then let it simmer for at least 15 minutes. While it’s simmering, prepare your pasta noodles so they’re ready to go.

 My kids LOVE this stuff. And anything that they will eat willingly, without whining, I will gladly make it every day if I have to!

I serve this with some shredded or grated parmesan cheese and chopped parsley if I have it. I won’t buy it just for this recipe but if it’s in the fridge then I’ll use it. It adds a great fresh herby flavor. 

I also serve it alongside these Parmesan Breadsticks I posted yesterday; these breadsticks were life changing. In all the right ways.

Tips for making Homemade Spaghetti Meat Sauce

• You can use ground beef or even ground turkey for this recipe. I have used both with great results. 
• The key to a really well developed spaghetti sauce is to let it simmer. Follow the recipe and make sure that you let the sauce simmer for at least 15 minutes. I always do more because I love the flavor. 
• Use any type of garlic you want. Fresh cloves that you mince or press into a garlic press, you can use the garlic paste from the tube, or even the jarred minced garlic. Anything will work!
• Don’t skip the granulated sugar. It is not a huge amount but the it does wonders for a very acidic tomato based pasta sauce.
• Not only will the simmer time let the flavors develop, but it also helps to slightly thicken the pasta sauce as well.  

Be sure to try these other family favorite pasta & Italian dinners

• baked spaghetti casserole 
• cheesy taco spaghetti casserole
• crispy baked chicken parmesan 
• baked creamy garlic parmesan chicken
• creamy garlic pasta

Print

Homemade Spaghetti Meat Sauce

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

25 mins

Total Time

30 mins

 

Ditch the canned spaghetti sauce for this flavorful, beefy, homemade spaghetti meat sauce. Only takes a few minutes to prepare and then let it simmer for amazing flavor. Serve over pasta noodles with some garlic bread for a delicious dinner that will please everyone. 

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: homemade, meat sauce, spaghetti

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 183 kcal

Author: Jessica - Together as Family

Ingredients

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 sweet onion, finely diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 can (15 oz) crushed tomatoes
• 1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
• 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes w/ garlic, oregano, basil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Instructions

1. Cook ground beef, onion, garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon salt over medium-high heat until the meat is no longer pink. Crumble as you cook it. Drain the meat to avoid a greasy pasta sauce. 

2. Add in the remaining ingredients and stir to combine. 

3. Bring to a low boil and then turn heat down to medium low and let it simmer for at least 15 minutes, longer if you can. If it starts to boil and spit sauce, just turn the heat down.

4. Serve over hot cooked pasta and garnish with chopped parsley and shredded parmesan cheese if wanted. 

Recipe Notes

The key to this pasta sauce is the simmer time. Let it simmer at least 15 minutes, longer if you can. 

 

While the sauce is simmering prepare the pasta so it's ready to go when the sauce is done. 

 

The 183 calories is for 1 serving of the meat sauce. It does not include pasta noodles. To reduce calories, use cauli-rice or zucchini noodles. 

Save this recipe for later and PIN IT to PINTEREST