This is the best spaghetti sauce recipe you’ll ever make! This easy recipe is thick, meaty, and full of rich tomato flavor. It’s also versatile as it’s great for serving with some meatballs, pasta, garlic bread, and more, making for the perfect dinner staple. It’s one of those recipes that both adults and kids will want seconds of!
While it takes some time to simmer on the stovetop, it’s definitely worth the wait. It’s so much more flavorful than jarred sauce from the grocery store and uses simple, wholesome ingredients. You may already have everything you need to make this spaghetti meat sauce in your pantry. Its also a great recipe to make ahead since it keeps wonderfully in the fridge and is freezer-friendly, so you can make a double or triple batch to freeze the leftovers for the next day or all week.
If you want another easy, classic pasta recipe, then try my cacio e pepe, stuffed shells, or baked rigatoni.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Oil — I use olive oil, but you can use any neutral oil.
Ground beef — I like to use 90/10 ground beef for this easy spaghetti sauce because it has less fat overall, so you don’t have to drain it. If using a higher fat percentage, then drain the beef mixture after its browned.
Tomatoes — this recipe uses canned diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste to give the sauce its delicious, classic flavor. When using whole tomatoes, try to get the best quality fresh tomatoes possible for this sauce in order to get the best flavor.
Herbs — this sauce uses a combination of fresh herbs and dried herbs. The bay leaf, dried basil, and dried oregano are added before simmering, so their flavors can infuse into the sauce. While dried herbs don’t technically expire, they do lose their flavor over time. Make sure your dried herbs haven’t been sitting in your cupboards for too long!
Sugar — a bit of sugar helps to cut the acidity of the tomatoes and helps to balance the sauce.
Red pepper flakes — red pepper flakes add a little heat to the sauce. You can skip it if you prefer.
How to Make Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
1. In a large deep skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and onions. Cook, stirring often, until the beef is browned and crumbly and the onion is tender. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant.
2. Stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste.
3. Stir in the bay leaf, dried basil, and dried oregano.
4. Stir in the sugar, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes if using. Bring to a simmer. Reduce from medium heat to low heat, and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until thickened. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Stir in chopped parsley and fresh basil, if desired.
Pro Tips for Making This Recipe
- Add stock or water after cooking to adjust the consistency if you prefer a looser sauce. If the sauce is not as thick as you prefer, you can keep simmering it.
- If you do not have ground beef, you can swap the ground beef with ground turkey, ground chicken, Italian sausage, or pork.
- Don’t rush the simmering process! The more time the sauce simmers, the richer the flavor will be.
- This homemade spaghetti sauce recipe is the perfect consistency for coating spaghetti noodles. It also makes for a great lasagna sauce!
- If you are serving this spaghetti sauce with pasta immediately, let the pasta and the sauce cook together for a few minutes before serving for a more flavorful dish, as the pasta can absorb some of the sauce.
- If you prefer the sauce to be less chunky, you can use crushed tomatoes instead of diced tomatoes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Let the spaghetti meat sauce cool to room temperature before transferring it to an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can reheat the sauce in the microwave or stovetop, stirring it as it warms up.
Yes, this is a freezer-friendly spaghetti sauce. Allow the sauce to cool completely before transferring it to a freezer-safe container or bag. If using freezer bags, make sure to remove as much air as possible before sealing to prevent freezer burn. Freeze for up to 6 months. Allow your frozen sauce to thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating in the microwave or stovetop.
You sure can! If you want to serve this spaghetti sauce with meat (such as meatballs!) and want to leave the ground beef out of the sauce, you can simply skip it for a delicious meatless sauce.
If you love this recipe try these out!
If you’ve tried this easy Spaghetti Sauce recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Spaghetti Sauce
Equipment
- Large skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef (450g)
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 2 (14.5-ounce/411g) cans diced tomatoes
- 1 (15-ounce/425g) can tomato sauce
- 1 (6-ounce/170g) can tomato paste
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes optional
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- Fresh basil leaves optional
Instructions
- In a large deep skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add the ground beef and onions. Cook, stirring often, until the beef is browned and crumbly and the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, bay leaf, dried basil, dried oregano, sugar, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes if using. Bring to a simmer.
- Reduce the heat to low, and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 1 hour.
- Remove and discard the bay leaf. Stir in chopped parsley and fresh basil, if desired. Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles, or let the sauce cool to room temperature before storing in an airtight container. The sauce will keep refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 6 months.
Notes
- Add stock or water after cooking to adjust the consistency if you prefer a looser sauce. If the sauce is not as thick as you prefer, you can keep simmering it.
- If you do not have ground beef, you can swap the ground beef with ground turkey, chicken, or pork.
- Don’t rush the simmering process! The more time the sauce simmers, the richer the flavor will be.
- This homemade spaghetti sauce is the perfect consistency for coating pasta. It also makes for a great lasagna sauce!
- If you are serving this spaghetti sauce with pasta immediately, let the pasta and the sauce cook together for a few minutes before serving for a more flavorful dish, as the pasta can absorb some of the sauce.
- If you prefer the sauce to be less chunky, you can use crushed tomatoes instead of diced tomatoes.