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Easy homemade spaghetti sauce, using ingredients you probably already have in your pantry! This recipe is a family dinner staple!
Spaghetti Sauce
This spaghetti sauce recipe may be the first thing I learned to cook, completely by myself, when I was really young. As I got better at cooking and baking (and because I loved it so much) I can specifically remember two recipes my Mom would let me make all by myself: this homemade spaghetti sauce, and our family's favorite Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies.
She'd be nearby for supervision, but it was a huge confidence boost for me to cook all on my own! And an even bigger confidence boost when my older brothers said they liked the food 🙂
This Homemade Spaghetti Sauce recipe has been a family staple for as long as I can remember. It's really simple and the flavors are fantastic.
This is one of those meals that always tastes amazing–and it's perfect for busy weeknights this time of year! Plus, there's no picky eater that would ever say no to spaghetti!
How to make homemade spaghetti sauce:
First brown the beef and onion. Chop the ground beef finely as you go. After it's browned I often like to add it to my food processor to pulse it once or twice so that it's finely crumbled. It makes the sauce extra smooth (although some people like their spaghettie sauce with larger peices of meat in it,)
Next, add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, seasonings, Worcestershire sauce, and sugar and bring the mixture to a simmer. Add water and simmer for 30 minutes or longer, to get more depth of flavor. The longer you simmer it, the more the flavors will blend together beautifully.
I use this sauce all the time in my Spaghetti Pie, Million Dollar Spaghetti, Slow Cooker Lasagna and Instant Pot Spaghetti.
Spaghetti sauce, marinara sauce and pizza sauce; what's the difference?
There is all sorts of confusion surrounding these terms, but spaghetti sauce, marinara sauce, and pizza sauce are usually all tomato based sauces. Marinara sauce, or pasta sauce is a slow-simmered sauce that is often made with tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. In America, we often refer to marinara as a meatless, tomato-based sauce.
Spaghetti sauce is essentially any sauce that you put on spaghetti. Traditional spaghetti sauce is often just a more complex marina sauce that has additional spices and may be made with meat, vegetables, cheese, etc.
Pizza sauce is typically uncooked and refers to any sauce you put on pizza. This sauce is usually simple, with few ingredients and is meant to cook with the pizza for added flavor.
Tips for making ahead and freezing spaghetti sauce:
This homemade spaghetti sauce can be easily made ahead of time. Store it in the fridge for 3 to 4 days or freeze it. Before freezing spaghetti sauce, allow the mixture to cool completely. Label a gallon freezer bag and fill it with the sauce. Store it on a flat surface so that it freezes into a flat shape that will store easily. Store it for up to 4-6 months. To use, place frozen sauce in a pot and reheat on the stove until warm.
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Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef, (or ½ lb ground Italian sausage and ½ lb ground beef)
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, , to taste
- 1 medium onion, , chopped
- 15 ounces tomato sauce
- 6 ounces tomato paste
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 Tablespoon dried parsley flakes
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- crushed red pepper flakes, , to taste
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, (optional)
- spaghetti noodles, , for serving
Instructions
- Season ground beef with salt and pepper.
- In a large skillet, add the beef and chopped onion and brown. Drain excess grease.
- Add tomato sauce, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, parsley, garlic powder, crushed red pepper, worcestershire, and sugar to the skillet.
- Stir well to combine and bring to a boil. Add water and stir well.
- Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add chopped basil before serving, if desired.
- This sauce tastes great in Spaghetti Pie, Million Dollar Spaghetti, Slow Cooker Lasagna and Instant Pot Spaghetti.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
*I originally shared this recipe in September 2015. Updated July 2018.
So good! I have made this at least 5 times already. I always make a big pot and freeze half for another night for dinner ☺️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This recipe turned out great. It was even better than my recipe straight from Italy.
My family LOVES this sauce! It’s so good and easy to make! Thank you!
I made this sauce for my lasagna. It was the best I’ve ever tasted! Loved it and will continue to make it.
This recipe is seriously delicious, having made sauce hundreds of times this one is a true keeper. I’ve made your recipe about 10 times and it never fails. Thank you
Thank you so much for this keeper of a recipe. I have been looking all over and attempted so many recipes for homemade spaghetti sauce and am so glad to have found ‘THE ONE!’ It is absolutely ‘fantabulous!’ And I love pressing the easy button too!
I’ve tried a number of homemade spaghetti sauces and this is my favorite of all! Thank you so much.
Holy moly!! This is seriously good!! I was nervous that the seasonings wasn’t enough but it packed enough punch!! Soooo yummy and I made a huge batch so I’m sure the flavors will start to deepen and develop over a couple of hours. Thanks for sharing your yummy recipe!!
I am not a great cook but I can follow instructions. I was looking for something to replace the bottled sauce I have been using for years. I had tried 5-6 recipes from other sites and all were acceptable but not “keepers”. This recipe is a keeper. This is how I will be making my sauce going forward. Thank you for sharing.
Next I am going to try the sweet and sour chicken because that is something I have never made successfully at home and the bottled stuff from the stores are horrible.
Thanks for sharing Chris! I’d love to hear what you think of the sweet and sour chicken!
I tried this recipe with half sausage and half ground beef. I also let it simmer for a couple of hours. I served it with noodles I had just made. If was a fantastic meal! Thanks for sharing this recipe.
The recipe as is, is great. I’ll never understand why people leave a review and then say oh but I added such and such. Make it as is and you will enjoy it.
Delicious sauce and easy recipe! I made this sauce per the recipe and added diced zucchini, red bell pepper and mushrooms and sauteed it all for 5 hours on low in the crock pot. We absolutely loved it. I’m enjoying several of your recipes. I’m handicapped and love to cook but can’t stand for a long time and only have the use of one arm. I appreciate the simplicity and efficiency of your recipes, ingredients and instructions. Thank you!!
I love the idea of adding extra veggies! Thank for sharing!
I substitute crushed tomatoes instead of sauce, add petite diced tomatoes and squeeze wedge of fresh lemon for a zesty fresh taste since my herbs are usually dry store bought. This is my go to recipe with my couple of personal touches.
I think the recipe had good bones. I wasn’t a fan of the Worcestershire sauce because it gave it like a bbq taste. I added 1-2 tbsp of soy sauce. I used 1 tsp baking soda to neutralize the acidity, but still added the sugar. I added extra garlic with the meat. I also added a whole carrot to simmer for extra flavor and sweetness; I removed it when finished. Overall good.
I also add beef bouillon. And I use whatever tomato products I have on hand, whether it’s my homemade canned tomatoes, or tomato sauce, puree, whatever you have it will be good!
HI. I USE KETCHUP AND SEASONINGS AND IT’S DEEEE LICIOUS!!! ?????️????
No just no ?
Recipe came out Great, so yummy !!! I didn’t use the tomato paste. I Just didn’t have any. I also used marinara sauce and a can of tomatoes. I’ve never used Worcestershire in my sauce before and I think that’s what the kicking ingredient was.
funny how all the recipes say to use tomato sauce. I use tomato “puree” because it’s guaranteed to have less added ingredients that can alter the overall flavor of the recipe. And to further differentiate my sauce, I add some beef consome. And a note about white sugar. It is added to cut the acid from the tomato to help eliminate any of your guests who might suffer from heartburn or acid indigestion.