One Pot Spaghetti Sauce equals Four Meals

Cooking — By GroceryQueen on August 2, 2011 10:38 am

When I cook spaghetti sauce I don’t mess around.

I usually cook a large batch in my gigantic stock pot because it does take time to cook.

I have a very specific ways to cook my gravy … I don’t do just warming up can a sauce or even starting my sauce from scratch … it is not economical.

When stores have great sales on spaghetti sauce I stock up.  While others buy 5-10 jars I usually buy 10-20 because I go through them so quickly.

Also, I am too lazy to cook the gravy from scratch … I don’t have the time nor the patience to do this.

It’s important to mention it to you that I buy most mellow tomato sauces in a jar: i.e. traditional or basil sauces.

I opt not to go with three cheese flavor or vodka sauce or meat flavor sauce because I tweak it to make it my own.

Here is what I do:

1)  Sautee 2-3 large onions with little bit of salt and pepper.

2)  Add 1 lb of ground beef and 1 lb of sweet Italian sausage (I stock up on these babies when they have mega meat sales).

3)  Add 2 jars of spaghetti sauce (I buy the jar rather than cans because of the tastes.  Sometimes canned sauces will have metal taste to it.  My hubby thinks I am crazy because he can’t taste it, but since it’s my sauce and I am cooking it I buy ONLY jars … LOL).

Add 2 cans (14 1/2 oz) cans of diced tomatoes with juice.  This will expand the amount of the sauce and it’s docile in taste.

4)  I then add my garlic (I don’t cook garlic with the onions and ground meats because it can burn and there’s nothing worse then burnt garlic!  YUCK!)  Also, amount of garlic is all up to you.  My sister doesn’t like garlic so I don’t use garlic, but if it’s just for my family … boy, I add good tablespoon full of it!.

5)  Cook and simmer.  At this point you can either finish it on the stove top or can transfer it to the crock-pot … let it cook on low heat for 4 hours.

6) After couple of hours you taste the sauce and add about 1/2 tsp or 1 tsp of sugar.  Many people don’t do this, but I do because tomatoes are very acidic and sugar will mellow it down.  I guess I can use carrots to sweeten things up when cooking with onions and ground meats, but … YOU GUESS IT … I am too lazy.

I wait for couple of hours to add more salt & pepper and sugar because you never know how the sauce will turn out.  For instance, diced tomatoes might be more sweet (or not sweet) than the last batch. While tomatoes cook with the jar of spaghetti it creates it’s own sugar level and mixed with sweet Italian sausage it can go either way.  So … ALWAYS taste!!!

7)  Now just let it cook and walk away.

 

With this much spaghetti sauce I cook 1 lb to 2 lbs of spaghetti for dinner, and the leftover will serve us for next day lunch.

The other 1/2 sauce will allow me to make lasagna … a pan full.  We can only eat 1/2 of the pan and the the other half is either put it in the freezer for future meals or for lunch/dinner for next day.

Just remember you don’t have to serve next 4 meals with spaghetti sauce.  Just keep it in the refrigerator and serve it in couple of days … just space it out.

 

 

Tags: Cheap, meals, recipes, spaghetti sauce