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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Recipe
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
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.
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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!!
Simply put, this sauce is amazing! I have always been intimidated by making my own spaghetti sauce and just fall back on canned sauce for the convenience, but this weekend I thought I would step up to the challenge. I am so glad I chose this recipe as the directions were so simple easy to follow. My husband loved it and has already asked for it again this week. I think I will double the batch and freeze it, as it seems like it will freeze well. Thanks for sharing.
Absolutely love this sauce – and will be making it allot – I added canned mushrooms to mine
How much does a serving equals? Is it a cup or I 1/2 cups? I’m looking at making spaghetti for 75 to 80 people.
Each serving is appx 3/4 cup. Enjoy!
If I don’t have dried parsley, will it affect the taste much?
It will still taste fine 🙂
This was really good, we used it over stuffed shells. Delicious!
Sounds delicious! Thanks Kim!
If I add to much garlic, what can I add to take away some of the taste.?
Hi Kimberly, I’d suggest just making more sauce.
Delicious!
TSorry but this is not scratch. You use 6 oz tomato paste. From where? From a can? How do you make tomato paste? That would be scratch.
Hi Richard,
Thanks for your comment. I definitely value cooking from scratch and I try to provide recipes that use real ingredients and that anyone can make. I love the peace of mind that comes from making dinner for my family rather than relying on highly processed foods. In the case of homemade tomato paste the time and effort to make this particular ingredient myself does not seem worthwhile. It doesn’t qualify as a highly processed food (It has few and simple ingredients and Hunt’s tomato paste does not contain artificial ingredients or preservatives). However, I applaud you for wanting to make your own. Here is a recipe that might help.
Can i use ragu sauce still with tomato paste or will i taste differently?
You can–it will taste different but if you like the taste of Ragu it will be great!
I’ve used this recipe several times. I use canned diced tomatoes and tomato sauce instead of tomato paste. I let the sauce simmer a little longer to thicken it. I use ground turkey instead of ground beef to make it a little lower calorie.
Thanks for sharing Janet. I love your substitutions!