Our Favorite Spaghetti Meat Sauce

How to make our easy, one-pot, and ultra flavorful spaghetti meat sauce from scratch in under 45 minutes. The kind of meat you use is up to you! Ground beef, ground turkey, sausage, pork, and ground chicken all work in this easy sauce. Jump to the Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce Recipe

Homemade Spaghetti Meat Sauce

Making Our Favorite Weeknight Spaghetti Sauce

We love incorporating as many healthy, fresh ingredients into our meals as possible, which is why we love making recipes from scratch. We also don’t enjoy hovering over a hot stove for hours (who does?). Like you, we live busy lives and expect dinner on the table quickly.

Fortunately, this easy sauce fits right into our busy schedules! Homemade spaghetti sauce is easy to make and it can be made well in advance. For more traditional meat sauce, take a look at our Favorite Bolognese Recipe.

For a meatless version of spaghetti sauce, try our homemade marinara sauce. It’s light, easy to make, and delicious. Or try our veggie spaghetti!

How to use the sauce

We use this homemade sauce lots of ways! Here’s a list of our favorites:

Pot of Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

How to Make Spaghetti Meat Sauce From Scratch

We’ve made this sauce countless times and are always happy that we did. The sauce starts with a base of ground meat. We love keeping the sauce on the leaner side and use ground turkey, but any ground meat like beef, pork, chicken, and lamb will work.

After browning the meat in a little oil, we add chopped onion. When the onion starts to soften, more aromatics go into the pot. We add garlic, tomato paste, and spices.

Then when the aromatics are warmed and fragrant, we pour in a little liquid to help scrape any stuck bits from the bottom of the pot. There’s lots of flavor down there! For the liquid, you can use water, broth, and even wine. It’s all up to you.

Adding tomatoes to the pot with browned meat

When the bottom of the pot is scraped clean (which takes less than a minute), we stir in canned tomatoes and bring the sauce to a simmer. It cooks at a simmer until reduced (20 to 30 minutes).

As the sauce simmers, we like to taste it every so often to make sure the seasoning is right. Don’t be afraid to add more spice, salt, or pepper.

If the flavor of the sauce doesn’t pop, you probably need a bit more salt. If it seems really acidic, a pinch of sugar will do the trick. If it seems light on flavor, think about adding a few dashes of fish sauce or minced anchovies (both add a rich savory flavor). Mushroom powder is also a nice addition (we use this a lot in our recipes, you can see why by clicking over to our essential mushroom powder seasoning).

Storing / Make Ahead Tips

This spaghetti sauce can be made in advance and should last in your refrigerator up to 3 days and in your freezer for about three months. 

We recommend using freezer-safe glass containers, or double layers of freezer bags to store sauces. To thaw, leave it overnight in the refrigerator.

More Easy Pasta Recipes

  • This Easy Baked Spaghetti combines a simple tomato sauce with ground beef, spaghetti, cheese, and a creamy pesto layer.
  • We use a similar sauce to make our Easy Weeknight Spaghetti!
  • Our readers have said that our Meaty Lasagna Recipe is the best they’ve ever made. We combine beef, sausage, and a homemade sauce.
  • This Easy Fettuccine Alfredo features a silky smooth sauce made with butter and parmesan cheese, cooked sausage, and lightly wilted spinach.
  • For a lighter take on spaghetti, try our Fresh Veggie Spaghetti. The sauce is simple and made 100% from scratch.

Our Favorite Spaghetti Meat Sauce

  • PREP
  • COOK
  • TOTAL

We’ve made this easy spaghetti meat sauce countless times and are always happy that we did. The sauce starts with a base of ground meat. We love keeping the sauce on the leaner side and use ground turkey, but any ground meat like beef, pork, chicken, and lamb will work.

Makes about 5 cups of sauce

You Will Need

Meat Sauce

1 pound lean ground meat like beef, turkey, chicken or lamb

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup (130 grams) chopped onion

3 garlic cloves, minced (1 tablespoon)

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Pinch crushed red pepper flakes

1 cup water, broth or dry red wine

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

Salt and fresh ground black pepper

Handful fresh basil leaves, plus more for serving

Optional Ingredients, See Notes

2 to 3 teaspoons fish sauce

1 to 2 teaspoons mushroom powder, here’s our recipe

3 to 4 anchovy fillets, minced with some of their oil or use anchovy paste

Pinch sugar

1 leftover rind from a wedge of parmesan

Directions

    1Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat (we use a Dutch oven). Add the meat and cook until browned, about 8 minutes. As the meat cooks, use a wooden spoon to break it up into smaller crumbles.

    2Add the onions and cook, stirring every once and a while, until softened, about 5 minutes.

    3Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, oregano, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring continuously for about 1 minute.

    4Pour in the water and use a wooden spoon to scrape up any bits of meat or onion stuck to the bottom of the pot. Stir in the tomatoes, 3/4 teaspoon of salt and a generous pinch of black pepper. Bring the sauce to a low simmer. Cook, uncovered, at a low simmer for 25 minutes. As it cooks, stir and taste the sauce a few times so you can adjust the seasoning accordingly (see notes for suggestions). Stir in the basil just before serving.

Adam and Joanne's Tips

  • Storing/Make-ahead: The sauce can be made in advance and should last in your refrigerator up to 3 days and in your freezer for about three months.
  • If the flavor of the sauce doesn’t pop, you probably need a bit more salt.
  • If the sauce is too acidic, a pinch of sugar will do the trick.
  • If the sauce tastes light on flavor, think about adding a few dashes of fish sauce or a few minced anchovies (both add a rich, savory flavor).
  • Adding a leftover rind of a parmesan wedge to the sauce at the same time as adding the tomatoes adds richness and extra flavor. It won’t melt all the way, just remove what’s left before serving.
  • Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA database to calculate approximate values.

If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste

Nutrition Per Serving Serving Size 2/3 cup sauce / Calories 167 / Total Fat 9.9g / Saturated Fat 1.9g / Cholesterol 39.1mg / Sodium 500.2mg / Carbohydrate 8.7g / Dietary Fiber 2.1g / Total Sugars 4.8g / Protein 12.9g
AUTHOR:  Adam and Joanne Gallagher
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2 comments… Leave a Review
  • Jennie December 28, 2022, 10:16 pm

    Just made this recipe and it was so tasty! I added a teaspoon of werstershire sauce. I have enjoyed many of your recipes. Thanks for making things simple and delicious!

    Reply
  • Gregory A Anderson March 7, 2019, 12:54 am

    You had me trusting this recipe when I read about the process, as well as the tips about umami (fish sauce, anchovies…) and the pinch of sugar. How delightful.

    Reply

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