Step by step instructions for how to cook ground beef for spaghetti sauce. Cooking ground beef is a healthy way to make your spaghetti sauce. A simple skillet, some simmering liquid and time are required to cook ground beef. Cook the ground beef until it is browned on all sides, removing it with a slotted spoon or tongs as you work.
How to Make Beefy Spaghetti Sauce
Prep:10 mins
Cook:10 mins
Total:20 mins
| Nutrition Facts (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 435 | Calories |
| 18g | Fat |
| 37g | Carbs |
| 29g | Protein |
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)SAVE RECIPE
This beefy spaghetti sauce recipe with only six ingredients is a super simple, rich, and hearty family dinner that can be made quickly at the last minute. Just brown onions and garlic with ground beef, add pasta sauce and serve over spaghetti. It couldn’t get simpler than this for a filling meal.
When you buy ground beef for this dish, note that not all ground beef is created equal. Generally, the best ground beef for a spaghetti sauce is ground chuck because it contains more fat than ground sirloin and ground round. More fat means more flavor, and you can always drain excess fat.
It is also important to slowly brown the meet at medium-high heat so that it does not loses its moisture too quickly.
After you have cooked the meat, the rest of the recipe consists merely of popping open a jar of spaghetti sauce. There are lots of choices; it does not have to be a classic marinara. Try a pasta sauce with mushrooms or a tomato-and-garlic pasta sauce.
Serve this dish with a green salad and garlic bread or garlic knots.
If you have a busy weeknight coming up, you can make the sauce the day or two days before and store the sauce in the refrigerator for two to three days. Then all you need to do to get dinner on the table is reheat the sauce on the stovetop or in the microwave, is cook the spaghetti, and toss it all together.
Or, you can toss the cooked pasta and the meat sauce, transfer it to a casserole dish, and sprinkle it with a generous amount of shredded cheddar, Swiss cheese, or any other cheese that melts well. Bake in the preheated oven at 350 F until bubbly and browned on top.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for two to three days.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 (26-ounce) jar favorite marinara sauce
- 1 (16-ounce) package spaghetti
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Steps to Make It
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook ground beef with onion and garlic until beef is browned, breaking up beef with a fork so it cooks evenly.
- Drain well if necessary.
- Add pasta sauce to the ground beef mixture.
- Add 2 tablespoons water to pasta sauce jar, close lid, and shake to loosen the remaining sauce.
- Pour into the ground beef mixture.
- Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat and simmer, stirring frequently, while the pasta cooks.
- Cook spaghetti according to package directions until al dente.
- Drain well and place on serving plate.
- Top with meat sauce, sprinkle with cheese and serve immediately.
No-Fuss Spaghetti Sauce
Spaghetti Sauce is a hearty all-in-one dish full of goodness and great flavors. It makes your dinner enticing, texturally pleasurable, and tastier.
No-Fuss Spaghetti Sauce Dinner Recipe
Add this no-fuss meat sauce to your family’s stash of best recipes. You can make this sauce in about 40 minutes, including prep time.
This Spaghetti sauce is not only perfect for spaghetti, but it also pairs perfectly well with rice, couscous, quinoa.
Round out this meal with a side of steamed broccoli, green beans, and don’t forget that big basket of warm garlic bread.
This is a quick and easy sauce that gets dinner on the table fast, so grab a skillet and go. A tutorial video is included!
SPAGHETTI SAUCE FROM SCRATCH – MY RENDITION OF ITALIAN COMFORT FOOD
I’d like to share my family recipe, which is based on the classic Italian pasta sauce. I have made some kinds of adaptations to this sauce and everyone that have tasted this sauce always has something good to say about it.
This is my take on the famous classic Italian spaghetti sauce. You might be wondering, is Lola now cooking Italian food?” Well, yes and No. I just like to share recipes that our family truly enjoys, no matter it’s origin.
THIS SAUCE IS CUSTOMIZABLE
This spaghetti sauce is highly customizable. For example, you can use diced carrots or sweet corn as your veggies in place of bell peppers.
I can never hide my love for spicy food when it comes to cooking, so I added cayenne pepper to this sauce. However, you can leave it out if you don’t want any heat in the sauce.
I love minced meat for its versatility. It can be added to sauce, pasta, rice, used as meatballs, meatloaves, and so much more.
…AND IT’S EASY TO COOK!
This sauce can be a life-saver when the last thing you want to do is cook an elaborate meal!
This recipe is pretty straightforward. There’s no particular cooking skill involved. As long as you have all the ingredients to hand and follow the detailed, written recipe, nothing will go wrong.
It is very easy to make, and it even comes together faster when you have all your ingredients prepped ahead. I’m sure you will not be disappointed with this quick and simple meal if you get to try it.
Watch how to make it:
Ingredients for making Homemade Spaghetti Sauce?
- Olive oil – I used olive oil, but you can use any other cooking oil of your choice.
- Ground beef – I prefer using 85% lean ground beef because it has less fat.
- Salt and pepper – Use these to your taste.
- Onion and garlic – Don’t skip these two because they help to build the flavor for the sauce. Always use fresh.
- Canned tomato sauce – This is one of the main ingredients, so I try to use a very good sauce brand.
- Fresh herbs – I used fresh parsley. This helps to give the sauce a fresh flavor. You can also use fresh basil or a combination of basil and parsley.
- Dried oregano – Gives the sauce a little more oomph!
- Sugar? – I don’t use it because the sauce will not be sour if it’s well cooked. However, you may add a hint if you choose to.
How to make Spaghetti Sauce
- Brown the Beef – In a large skillet, add the oil and brown the meat.
- Season – salt, bouillon powder, black pepper, oregano, and cayenne pepper.
- Add the sauce and simmer – Give the sauce enough time to simmer. This will allow the sauce to reduce and thicken. It will also allow the flavors to meld. Simmer for longer for a thicker sauce or add water to thin.
- Serve with your favorite pasta, rice, couscous, in short, most grains.
How long does it take to make spaghetti sauce?
The cook time for this sauce is about 30 minutes plus 10 minutes for the prep time.
Spaghetti Meat Sauce Recipe
Spaghetti Meat Sauce is beefy, juicy and so satisfying. It comes together fast so it is perfect for busy weeknights, and it’s freezer friendly. Meat sauce has all of the comforting flavors of Spaghetti and Meatballs, or traditional Bolognese but is much easier!
Serve this meat sauce over spaghetti with a generous amount of parmesan cheese, paired with asparagus and crusty French bread. P.S. You can also use this meat sauce to make the Best Lasagna.
Spaghetti Meat Sauce
This is my sister Svetlana’s ground beef meat sauce recipe. She uses an original Prego sauce and makes it for camping every year. You can use a homemade marinara sauce or your favorite store-bought marinara. I’ve gotten so many requests for her famous meat sauce recipe so here it is! This one rivals Olive Garden’s spaghetti and meat sauce.
Which Pasta for Meat Sauce?
Here’s the beauty of this recipe – you can pair it with your favorite pasta! Meat Sauce for pasta is traditionally made with spaghetti, but it goes really well with any of these:
- String Pastas – Spaghetti, Linguine, Fettuccine
- Ribbon Pastas – Pappardelle or Tagliatelle
- Tubular Pastas – Penne, Cannelloni, Rigatoni, Ziti
- Corkscrew Pastas – Cavatappi
How to Make Spaghetti Meat Sauce:
The ingredients for this meat sauce recipe are pantry staples and we always keep a stash of ground beef in the freezer for the days we don’t have a lot of time to get dinner on the table. It comes together in 1 pot or dutch oven and really doesn’t get any easier than this. Seriously the best meat sauce!
- Sautee ground beef until no longer pink.
- Add chopped onion, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/4 tsp pepper, cook until soft then add garlic and sautee until fragrant.
- Add marinara sauce, 1/4 cup water and 1 tsp sugar. Partially cover and simmer meat sauce 20 minutes. Done!
How to Freeze Meat Sauce:
Meat sauce will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To store it longer, transfer meat sauce to a freezer-safe container, leaving just a slight amount of headroom at the top. We prefer freezing meat sauce in freezer ziploc bags because it lays flat in the freezer and can be quick-thawed under running water.
How to Defrost Meat Sauce?
There are a few ways to defrost meat sauce. Once it is fully thawed, reheat over medium heat just until hot and simmering.
- Quick-thaw method: Place the sealed bag of meat sauce in a bowl under cold water until thawed.
- Slow-thaw method: Place the frozen meat sauce in the refrigerator overnight.
- For a camping trip: place packaged frozen meat sauce in a cooler with ice and let it thaw as in a refrigerator overnight.