Anyone have a good, easy spaghetti sauce recipe?

[katie111]

Looking for a good, easy recipe for sauce that I can make & freeze. It's one of the few meals that all my kids will eat and I'm sick of using gross jarred sauce. My kids like something pretty plain, definitely no onions or peppers in there.

 

[pjlla]

Are you looking for a recipe using fresh tomatoes or canned? ..................

 

[HM2012Butler]

http://www.lidiasitaly.com/recipes/detail/589

This one is very simple and delicious!

 

[bettymae1121]

Assmuning you want a meat sauce...

1 pound ground beef

3 15 oz cans tomato sauce
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes

1 to 2 Tbsp dried basil
1 to 2 Tbsp dried oregano
1 to 2 tsp garlic powder or 1 to 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced

Brown ground beef, drain. Add canned sauce/tomatoes and seasonings. simmer for about 1 hour. Makes enough sauce for 1 pound of pasta.

If you don't want the tomato "chunks" you can use 4 cans tomato sauce. If you don't have a full hour to simmer, you can cut it shorter and thicken it with tomato paste. For the seasonings, start with the lower amount listed and add more to taste if you feel it needs it (I like the higher amounts myself).

 

[Marionnette]

Looking for a good, easy recipe for sauce that I can make & freeze. It's one of the few meals that all my kids will eat and I'm sick of using gross jarred sauce. My kids like something pretty plain, definitely no onions or peppers in there.

My older son hates onions and yet he loves my "gravy" (it's what Italians in Philly call it).

• 1 med. onion (diced)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 Tbls. olive oil (finely chopped or pressed thru a garlic press)
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 large can tomato puree
• 1 large can crushed tomatoes
• 1 Tbl. sugar
• salt and pepper to taste

Add oilve oil and onions to a cold pot and saute over med-high heat until translucent. Do not brown the onions! Add garlic and stir until fragrant (15 seconds). Stir in the tomato paste until all the onions are mixed in. Quickly add the other canned tomatoes and stir. Rinse the cans with about 1/2-3/4 cup of water and add to the sauce. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Add the sugar, salt and pepper. Stir. Cover and simmer at least 1 hour to eliminate the "canned" taste of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning.

 

[Stephaniesue]

google crock pot spaghetti sauce. I am at work and don't have the recipe on hand. It is very easy, just put all of it in the CP and cook all day. Let it cool, I dip it out in 3 cup portions and put into freezer bags and freeze flat.

 

[pryncess527]

This is my favorite:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/real-meatballs-and-spaghetti-recipe.html

For the sauce:
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 onion)
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup good red wine, such as Chianti
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, or plum tomatoes in puree, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the sauce, heat the olive oil in the same pan. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and cook on high heat, scraping up all the brown bits in the pan, until almost all the liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/real-meatballs-and-spaghetti-recipe.html?oc=linkback

 

[mjkacmom]

My older son hates onions and yet he loves my "gravy" (it's what Italians in Philly call it).

• 1 med. onion (diced)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 Tbls. olive oil (finely chopped or pressed thru a garlic press)
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 large can tomato puree
• 1 large can crushed tomatoes
• 1 Tbl. sugar
• salt and pepper to taste

Add oilve oil and onions to a cold pot and saute over med-high heat until translucent. Do not brown the onions! Add garlic and stir until fragrant (15 seconds). Stir in the tomato paste until all the onions are mixed in. Quickly add the other canned tomatoes and stir. Rinse the cans with about 1/2-3/4 cup of water and add to the sauce. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Add the sugar, salt and pepper. Stir. Cover and simmer at least 1 hour to eliminate the "canned" taste of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning.

This is pretty much what I do - sometimes I just use purée instead crushed to eliminate the complaining about chunks (to think I used to use whole and just crush them with my hands before kids...). I usually use 4 big cans of tomatoes and freeze it.

We call this sauce, but if you add meat (ground beef, sausage, meatballs, braciole), then it's gravy.

 

[North of Mouse]

Looking for a good, easy recipe for sauce that I can make & freeze. It's one of the few meals that all my kids will eat and I'm sick of using gross jarred sauce. My kids like something pretty plain, definitely no onions or peppers in there.

Here's recipe that we have used for years and 'everyone' raves about it - use it for my lasagna recipe also. 'Very' easy!!

1/2 lb. ground chuck, 1/2 lb. ground sausage, browned
and drained
1 large onion (diced - can be omitted)
1/2 bell pepper (diced - can be omitted)
(simmer above together to saute' veggies)


1 pkg. McCormick dried spaghetti sauce mix
2 small cans tomato sauce
additional Italian spices if desired (already some in dry mix)
water - to desired consistency

Just simmer all these ingredients 15 - 30 min. All done and delicious. Of course much better flavor with the peppers and onions Maybe you could cut them larger, then remove them!!

Freeze in desired portions. Recipe is easily doubled. We, too, cannot stand the jarred sauces.

 

[JanaDee]

This is my favorite:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/real-meatballs-and-spaghetti-recipe.html

For the sauce:
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 onion)
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup good red wine, such as Chianti
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, or plum tomatoes in puree, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the sauce, heat the olive oil in the same pan. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and cook on high heat, scraping up all the brown bits in the pan, until almost all the liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/real-meatballs-and-spaghetti-recipe.html?oc=linkback

This sauce sounds good! I'd add a lb of ground pork sausage to make it meat sauce, but I love the addition of the wine.

 

[NotUrsula]

I've got texture issues myself; but I would hate red sauce that didn't have onions and garlic in it. My immersion blender is my wonder tool that makes things with unpleasant "lumpy" textures as smooth as silk.

In our house DH makes the red sauce. It starts with canned sauce/paste (2 pts sauce to one pt. paste), but after that bits of just about everything in the pantry go in. We like to use a splash of sweet Marsala in ours, rather than sugar. I find that a bit of sweetness in a red sauce takes the overt tang off the oregano.

 

[danetter]

I usually use a jar of sauce as my base. My youngest dd won't touch anything if she sees an onion.
I brown a pound of hamburger meat with my seasonings(onion powder or onion salt, garlic and italian seasonings), drain, then add the jar sauce usually ragu. I will then add more of the above seasonings to desired taste.
Very good and easy, and my youngest dd doesn't even know there is any onion in there. and yes it freezes very well.

 

[texasroni75]

My sons dislike any sauce that has visible chunks of veggies or even tomatoes. So, I buy a small package of spicy Italian sausage. I cook it on the stovetop - you can follow package instructions, but I fill a skillet halfway with water, bring it to a boil with the sausage in there, then bring it down to medium heat and cover for about an hour. I check on it every once in a while and add more water if necessary.

Once it's cooked, I drain the water, and slice the sausage into 1/2 inch pieces. I add a large can of tomato sauce, a little more water, and simmer on low for about 2 hours. It doesn't require a ton of attention while it cooks.

The sauce very flavorful, just the tiniest bit spicy. If you find it's too spicy, you can use mild Italian sausage instead. And, it's easy to separate the sausage from the sauce for the picky eaters. Sometimes I make a double batch and freeze some. And sometimes I make home-made pizza and the slices of sausage are perfect for a pizza topping too.

 

[AquaDame]

Edit: just realized you said no peppers or onions... GG reading comprehension! Sorry >_<

1-2 Jars of Newman's Sockerooni or merlot marinara sauce depending on how much I want to make
1/2 lb if one jar or 1 lb if two of ground beef (optional - I prefer all veggies)
chopped yellow onion to preference (1/2- to more depending on amount of sauce)
chopped bell pepper to preference (same as onions)
Fresh mushrooms to preference (a handful of criminis is what I use)
2-3 diced roma tomatoes (canned if you prefer)
A splash of wine we're having with dinner if I feel like it
Just before serving: italian seasoning to taste & a tiny bit of cayenne for spice
fresh basil or spinach for color

If I use beef I start it browning and then add onions. If there is a lot of fat in the pot we'll drain it. I add the bell pepper in a few minutes later (we like them still a tiny bit on the crunchy side). Then toss in the sauce with the mushrooms and tomatoes and cook a few minutes more. Then I put in some wine if we are having any (just a splash for flavor) and start putting in spices. I keep tasting it and add as necessary. Then toss in the basil or spinach and turn off the heat. The greens will still cook a tiny bit so you may find that you want to put more in.

 

[My2CrazyGirls]

Are you using fresh tomatoes?

 

[mommyburns]

If you are trying to use up fresh ones, I Blanche the tomatoes (about a pound or so) to take off the skins and them place the tomatoes, 1 onion and 3 tablespoons of butter. Cook on simmer for 40 minutes, crushing the tomatoes every once in a while. I put it in a food processor to get out the chunks. You can then can the sauce for later.

 

[sarahk0204]

My older son hates onions and yet he loves my "gravy" (it's what Italians in Philly call it).

• 1 med. onion (diced)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 Tbls. olive oil (finely chopped or pressed thru a garlic press)
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 large can tomato puree
• 1 large can crushed tomatoes
• 1 Tbl. sugar
• salt and pepper to taste

Add oilve oil and onions to a cold pot and saute over med-high heat until translucent. Do not brown the onions! Add garlic and stir until fragrant (15 seconds). Stir in the tomato paste until all the onions are mixed in. Quickly add the other canned tomatoes and stir. Rinse the cans with about 1/2-3/4 cup of water and add to the sauce. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Add the sugar, salt and pepper. Stir. Cover and simmer at least 1 hour to eliminate the "canned" taste of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning.

That's pretty much our recipe, too, whether crock pot or stove top or oven.

Our New York cousins call it red gravy. We Illinois Italians call it "Sugo" (pronounced SOO-go).

 

[CAFarmerGirl]

I will throw a bunch of fresh, whole tomatoes into the crockpot, a little of whatever wine I have, Italian seasoning, a tiny bit of sugar, salt and garlic. I let it cook while at work. When I get home, I will blend it all with the immersion blender and cook it down in the cast iron pot to the desired thickness.

So easy! No peeling, no seeding, just using an immersion blender...my kids love it. It also freezes well.

 

[wishesuponastar]

I use canned purée or crushed tomatoes . For two cans I sautée 4 cloves of garlic in olive oil. Then add the tomatoes, salt & pepper. Simmer for 30 minutes.

 

[pklein09]

Half Sicilian here....and we can our own tomatoes....as in we put up around 150 quarts a year. In years we can't get tomatoes, I use Tuttoroso Crushed canned tomatoes (green label). I've tried using other brands, but they usually have skins, and I can't stand skins in my sauce. Also, this brand does not add any preservatives or sugar (I've never understood sugar in tomato sauce ). This is what I do:

1-2 cans Tuttoroso Crushed tomatoes
fresh basil (I like a lot of basil....I keep it frozen in my freezer all year long)
maybe some garlic

That's it. Plain and simple. Cook it down....it doesn't take long because the tomatoes have already been processed. Adjust the seasonings to your taste (i.e. more garlic, more salt, oregano). I generally don't add salt until after it cooks because there's usually salt already in there to preserve the tomatoes.

If I want gravy (yes, from the Philly area!!!), I sear my meat (sausage, meatballs, chicken, pork, beef, and/or brasciole), put it in a large pot, cover it with as much tomatoes that it takes, season with basil, oregano, and garlic, and let simmer for 4-6 hours or so. The taste can't be beat! The sauce is smooth has the taste of gravy, and it's not chunky like a Bolognese.