It’s time to give up the jar for good boos. My homemade spaghetti sauce is not only easy to throw together but absolutely real deal delish. I pack it with savory meat and create a rich tomato sauce filled with aromatics, spices and herbs galore. Get ready to devour over any pasta you can dream up or in baked dishes galore.
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Now I know that most of y’all will head to the grocery store and pick up a jar of your fave spaghetti sauce on busy weeknights. But seriously, let me have you reconsider. This Southern-style homemade spaghetti sauce recipe is the real deal, and it is completely no fuss. You won’t believe how easy it is to make a spaghetti meat sauce from scratch. And trust me, the flavor is beyond anything you can even get in a jar.
The Lowdown of the Best Spaghetti Sauce
Cuisine Inspiration: Italian-American with a Southern Twist
Primary Cooking Method: Simmering
Dietary Info: Contains meat (sausage and beef). Gluten-Free
Key Flavor: Rich and savory with a hint of spice and sweetness
Skill Level: Easy (No Sweat Fam!)
Flavors on Flavors
The combo of red wine and chicken stock creates deep, savory notes while the Italian seasoning and aromatics layer in some bomb explosions of flavor in each spoonful.
Super Versatile
Perfect for spaghetti, but don’t let that limit you boo. This sauce can legit go on any pasta you love or even over rice, chicken and other proteins.
Better than Store-Bought
Ain’t nothing like a homemade sauce made with love. It is legit soul warming. Plus it’s whipped up in less than an hour with zero fuss boos.
Ingredients you’ll need to make spaghetti meat sauce
- Olive Oil: This is gonna sauté everything to perfection.
- Meat: Our mix of Italian sausage and ground beef creates some hearty, meaty goodness boos. We go heavy on the meat so you get that flavor in every spoonful.
- Seasonings: Seasoned salt and black pepper to kick up the flavor.
- Veggies: Chopped onions and green peppers help with our flavor building and give some bomb texture.
- Garlic: Those aromatic vibes are seriously everything.
- Tomatoes: A mix of crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce give us a rich flavorful sauce base.
- Liquids: This mix of red wine and chicken stock is giving savory depth and nuance.
- Spices: Italian seasoning is giving us perfect spaghetti vibes, granulated sugar helps balance the acidity of the tomatoes, and we add a little crushed red pepper flakes for some heat boos.
How to make spaghetti sauce
What to serve with the homemade spaghetti sauce
- Go Classic: This sauce is perfect with classic spaghetti and meatballs boos.
- Bake it Up: Having this sauce be the base for this baked spaghetti recipe, baked ziti or lasagna is beyond delish.
- Over Grits: Folks love to serve this sauce over polenta in Italy so why not do it with Southern polenta: grits! And if you want to cheese it up, serve over these cheese grits.
- Homemade pizza: No pizza sauce lying around? Use leftover spaghetti sauce instead. It would be a dream in this Sicilian pizza or meat lovers pizza.
Recipe Substitutions
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Just sub in a neutral oil like vegetable oil or canola oil here.
- Ground Beef: Ground turkey or ground chicken works just fine y’all.
- Crushed Tomatoes: If you’ve got whole canned tomatoes, you can crush by hand or add to a blender for a few secs to make your own crushed tomatoes.
- Chicken Stock: Chicken broth or beef broth work just as well. You can also use vegetable broth or stock too.
- Red Wine: Don’t want any alcohol in the mix? Just use more stock or you can add in a bit of balsamic vinegar for more depth of flavor.
Recipe Variations and Additions
- Make it Vegan: Replace the meats with veggies like mushrooms, eggplant, spinach or even lentils and also swap out the chicken stock with a vegetable stock.
- Spice it Up: Adding a bit more red pepper flakes or even a pinch of cayenne to the mix can give more of a kick.
- Get Herby: The addition of fresh herbs can really create a nice aromatic earthy vibe. Go with herbs like oregano, thyme or basil.
- Get Creamy: Just a splash of heavy cream to the mix will give this sauce such a velvety luscious texture. It’s a dream.
Expert Tips and Tricks for making the best homemade spaghetti meat sauce
- Use Quality: Go with quality tomatoes, meats and spices. Because this sauce is pretty low-key, the quality makes the difference in the final product.
- Don’t Rush The Simmer: Allowing that sauce to simmer and thicken at a lower temperature so those flavors really develop.
- Taste Along The Way: Give the sauce a taste as it starts to develop and adjust flavors along the way so it comes out just how you want it.
- Don’t Skip the Sugar: Listen, this sauce has more Southern vibes than strict Italian notes. The sugar really rounds out the flavor and doesn’t let the tomato flavor overtake the sauce with acidity and bitterness.
How to store & reheat Southern spaghetti sauce
Pop any leftover spaghetti meat sauce in an airtight container or freezer bag after it has cooled to room temp.
I like to reheat on the stovetop in a saucepan over medium low heat until warmed through. Add a little water or chicken stock to thin it out.
How long will spaghetti sauce last in the fridge?
It should last up to 5 days.
Can I freeze homemade spaghetti sauce?
For sure boos. Pop in an airtight container or a freezer bag after it has cooled down and label. It should last for up to 3 months.
Frequently asked questions
You sure can boos. In fact, you can make ahead up to 5 days. Just store in the fridge. For anything longer, just freeze.
Yep boos you can. I would still not skip the browning process since that gives a ton of flavor but you can toss everything else in a crockpot and let it go on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4.
If the consistency is too thick, thin it a bit with some additional chicken stock. If it’s too thin, just keep on simmering until it thickens how you like it y’all.
Ok boos, I think I’ve sold you enough on this delish homemade spaghetti sauce recipe. It doesn’t take all day to make, requires straightforward ingredients and is pretty easy to pull off. Get into it!
More Fave Pasta recipes
Spaghetti Sauce
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lb ground beef or ground turkey
- 1 lb Italian sausage
- seasoned salt to taste
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup chopped onions
- 1/2 cup chopped green peppers
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 48 oz canned crushed tomatoes 1 1/2 (28 oz) cans
- 29 oz canned tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp red wine
- 1/4 cup chicken stock
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning can make it homemade
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar plus 1 teaspoon
- 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Add olive oil to large pot over medium high heat on stove.
- Add ground beef, italian sausage, onion, green pepper and salt and pepper. Brown until cooked.
- Next add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Then add in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, red wine, chicken stock, italian seasoning, sugar, and red pepper flakes. Lower heat to medium low and continue to simmer until sauce has thickened about 40-50 minutes then add to additional recipes or serve.
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If I were to add pepperoni how much should I use?
You can absolutely add pepperoni. I would add about 1/2 cup- 1 cup based on your preference.
Ground beef OR turkey….or ground beef AND turkey?
Hi Alicia! Great question it’s OR. I have fixed the recipe card!
Deicious!!! So rich and flavorable
How much do you need for a pot of spaghetti?
This will definitely make a large pot.
Do you use 1 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes or 1.5 cans? I want to make sure I get this RIGHT!
You need 1 1/2 cans.
I am super excited to try this recipe
I have made this twice and followed your recipe to the letter…AWESOME!! Hubby loves it. There’s enough for me to freeze for eatin’ later and it tastes even better (if that’s possible!). Thank you for sharing your awesomeness!!
For the Italian sausage… are you using ground Italian sausage or links?
Ground Italian sausage. You can remove from the casings of the links.
Omg I tried this recipe and it was a HIT in my home.
Can you leave the wine out
Yes you can replace with stock.