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The BEST Meat Sauce Recipe has both beef and Italian sausage, plenty of spices, and even a touch of sugar. It’s perfect for lasagna, spaghetti, or zoodles, and it comes together with easy pantry ingredients.
This homemade spaghetti sauce recipe is made from scratch and worth getting excited about. First of all, it beats anything out of the jar. You can breeze right through the pasta sauce aisle, knowing that your homemade meat sauce is worlds better. Galaxies, even.
I recommend making the sauce with both ground beef and ground sausage (a half pound of each), but you can choose one or the other, too. Either way, adding the fennel seeds will really elevate the flavor of this sauce. The sugar is possibly a Midwestern thing; we love sugar in our spaghetti sauce. Feel free to leave it out if that sounds weird.
Put your easy meat sauce recipe to work with your favorite pasta or next batch of Spaghetti and Meatballs, Lasagna, or Baked Ziti. Cutting carbs? This meat sauce is a critical element in our Zucchini Lasagna and Zucchini Parmesan, and I bet you could make it work with Stuffed Zucchini, too.
Or, just toss it with spaghetti noodles and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. It’s easy and delicious!
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Ground meat: You can do 2 pounds of ground beef, 2 pounds of ground Italian sausage, or 1 pound of each. Choose lean ground beef if that’s important to you.
- Sugar: Even a tablespoon is too much for some people. If you don’t like the sound of sugar in your meat sauce, please leave it out. In my family, people add ¼ cup or even up to ½ cup.
- Italian seasoning: It’s easy to make your own homemade Italian seasoning with dried basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme and marjoram. Fresh herbs are delicious if you have them.
- Fennel seeds: The seeds make the Italian sausage flavors pop. If you love the taste of a sweet tomato sauce, use just ground beef (no sausage), at least ¼ cup sugar, and omit the fennel seeds.
Step-by-step instructions
- In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, add beef, sausage, and onion and cook until mostly browned, about 5 minutes. Break up clumps with a wooden spoon. Drain the grease if desired. Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- To the bottom of the pot, add crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, basil, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, and bay leaf. Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper).
- Serve with cooked pasta or spiralized zoodles. Or, use in your next Homemade Lasagna, Zucchini Parmesan, or Eggplant Parmesan.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This spaghetti meat sauce recipe makes 2 quarts (8 cups), enough for 16 servings, ½ cup each.
- Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: The sauce can be made, cooled, covered, and refrigerated up to 3 days in advance. To make sauce cool quickly, add it to a bowl set in a vat of ice water and stir frequently.
- Freezer: Cool the finished sauce, then pack into freezer-safe containers (I like to use glass Mason jars; leave a half-inch of head space for expansion), and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Flat-laying freezer bags work too!
- Customize your sauce: Change up this homemade meat sauce recipe to your personal preference. For a lighter sauce, use ground chicken or ground turkey instead of beef and ground pork sausage. You could even add veal for a “meatloaf mix.”
- Herbs: Stir minced fresh herbs into the final sauce or garnish your dish with fresh parsley or fresh basil.
- Spicy: Stir in red pepper flakes to taste with the other spices or pass separately at the table.
- Creamy: Add heavy cream to taste (start with ¼ cup and see if you want more). If you have time for the sauce to simmer longer, stir in a leftover Parmesan cheese rind from the freezer.
- Buttery: Add 1 or 2 tablespoons butter or a drizzle of olive oil to the sauce for a rich, buttery taste.
- Thicker: For a thicker homemade spaghetti meat sauce, simmer to your desired consistency or stir in a can of tomato paste.
- Bolognese sauce: Use a mixture of ground beef and pork with mirepoix, a mixture of onion, carrots, and celery sautéed in olive oil. Then, add tomato paste, white wine, and milk, and simmer. To me, the most noticeable factor of bolognese is that it doesn’t contain garlic.
- Italian meatballs: These classic Italian Meatballs are ready to be sauced and served with spaghetti, on meatball subs, or as an appetizer. Pan-fry and baking instructions included! Or try my wildly popular Turkey Meatballs.
- Meatless: For a hearty meatless marinara sauce, try my Homemade Tomato Sauce. You can add extra vegetables like onions, bell peppers, or finely diced carrots. This one makes a great pizza sauce, too!
- Spaghetti and Meatballs: This classic Spaghetti and Meatballs Recipe is a hearty and comforting family dinner idea. One bite of this Italian-American dinner recipe will transport you to a Midwestern red sauce restaurant.
- Spaghetti Squash with meat sauce: Learn how to cook spaghetti squash, then top with homemade tomato sauce or your favorite meat sauce.
- Lasagna: This traditional Lasagna Recipe has three kinds of cheese, two different meats, one fantastic homemade sauce, and plenty of cheese. Or, try my super popular Make Ahead Lasagna which uses standard lasagna noodles (not the no-boil kind) but they go in unboiled, uncooked, bone-dry. It’s amazing.
- Zucchini Lasagna: Grilled ribbons of zucchini stand in for lasagna noodles in this Zucchini Lasagna layered with ricotta and marinara-coated ground beef.
- Zucchini Parmesan: In lieu of the whole breading-and-frying situation, this fuss-free Zucchini Parmesan uses roasted zucchini “noodles” in one of my best Italian dinners for busy weeknights.
- Baked Ziti: Far less fussy than lasagna but just as cheesy and comforting, this meaty Baked Ziti casserole is made with ground Italian sausage and calls for just 15 minutes of prep time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you sure can! Transfer the browned meat, onion, and garlic mixture to a slow cooker. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, basil, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, and bay leaf, then cover and cook on HIGH for 2 to 3 hours or LOW for 4 to 6 hours.
Mix up your mix-ins by stirring in chopped green peppers or sliced mushrooms with the onions. Substitute fire-roasted tomatoes for the crushed tomatoes. Or, add chili flakes (a pinch or a lot!) for extra heat.
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Meat Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef and/or ground Italian sausage (see note 1)
- 1 medium onion peeled and chopped (about 1 cup)
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar or to taste (see note 2)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (see note 3)
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (see note 4)
- 1 bay leaf
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, add beef, sausage, and onion and cook until mostly browned, about 5 minutes. Drain if desired. Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
- Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, basil, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, and bay leaf. Simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper).
Recipe Video
Notes
- Ground meat: You can do 2 pounds of ground beef, 2 pounds of ground Italian sausage, or 1 pound of each.
- Sugar: Even a tablespoon is too much for some people. If you don’t like the sound of sugar in your meat sauce, please leave it out. In my family, people add ¼ cup or even up to ½ cup.
- Italian seasoning: To make your own Italian Seasoning, in a small bowl, combine 2 Tbsp. of dried basil, 2 Tbsp. of dried oregano, 2 Tbsp. of dried rosemary, 2 Tbsp. of dried thyme, and 2 Tbsp. of dried marjoram. Store extra in an airtight container.
- Fennel seeds: The seeds make the Italian sausage flavors pop. If you love the taste of a sweet tomato sauce, use just ground beef (no sausage), at least ¼ cup sugar, and omit the fennel seeds.
- Yield: This recipe makes 2 quarts (8 cups), enough for 16 servings, ½ cup each.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Didn’t follow the recipe “exactly” as I eyeballed the spices instead of strict measurements, but it came out great. The fennel is a nice addition and I semi-ground the seeds to make it more aromatic. Only used 1 T. of sugar, and think next time I’ll use a little less. This recipe is a keeper!
I don’t see tomato paste on the list of ingredients. I’m assuming half a 4 oz. can.
Hi Dan, I used to include tomato paste in the recipe but I don’t anymore (but I see I still talked about it elsewhere in the post, outside of the recipe). You can add half a can, a whole can, or no cans. It’s really about what you like and what consistency you prefer. I’m really sorry for the confusion! Thanks. -Meggan
I made this sauce, following the directions exactly, and my family loved it. My son-in-law actually groaned when he took his first bite. This was an easy weekend sauce for me to make and provided leftovers for the next day. Thanks for a tasty and easy sauce that will be added to my repertoire.
Hi Megan would I use the fennel seeds if only using beef for meat?
Hi Marissa, I do. I really like the flavor, and especially if I’m not using sausage I get just that tiny hint of it from the fennel seeds. Having said that, if you don’t have them already and don’t think you’ll use them much, it’s totally fine to leave them out! Whatever you want. But yes I use them with just the beef (especially if I’m doing just beef). Thanks! If you need anything else, please let me know. -Meggan
BRAVO! So delicious I literally licked the plate clean! This is just like my father used to make….only better! Can’t thank you enough! I did substitute fire roasted tomatoes though. Yum!
P.s. I made a second batch using fire roasted tomatoes and then added 1 1/4 cup of merlot (Beringer) to the recipe half way through the simmer and WOW. I didn’t think this recipe could possibly get any better but paired with a glass of merlot on the side its simply to die for!
Greatest meat sauce I ever.
Wow Gabrielle! Thank you!
Hello,
I’ve been using this recipe for a few years but has it changed recently? I clearly remember it used to have tomato paste? Is there a reason you removed it? Thanks! Great recipe btw!
Hey there, I’m REALLY sorry about the confusion. I did re-test and update this recipe within the last, I’d say, 2 weeks? Basically I periodically go through recipes and re-test them and make sure they are the best version. Especially older recipes, they might have been written before I went to culinary school and they just need to be fixed up. This meat sauce recipe was already pretty good, but I was working on it in conjunction with my lasagna (where it is featured) and I decided to take the tomato paste out. It really wasn’t necessary in my opinion, although you can definitely add it! And I will add a note about how it used to be there so no one else gets confused. Other changes include increasing the fennel seeds to 1 teaspoon (instead of 1/2 teaspoon), making the meat choices optional (using 1 pound each of beef and sausage, or just using 2 pounds of one of them), and playing around with the sugar content. It doesn’t sound like much, but I feel better about the recipe! Anyway. You can see the version you used to make in the Wayback machine here: http://web.archive.org/web/20190927032812/https://cash-surge.live/homemade-meat-sauce/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> And it’s really just minor changes. But yes, we used to have tomato paste and we don’t anymore. I’m really sorry for the confusion! Thanks. -Meggan
Really great recipe. I added some tomato paste and used a pound each of ground beer and sweet Italian sausage, and my whole family loved it, even my picky 8 year old.
Great sauce. I love it. I will make this one again and again.
Is this one pound of beef AND one pound of sausage (two pounds of meat total) or one pound of meat total?
2 pounds of meat total! One pound of each or two pounds of either one. That was written incorrectly in the recipe, I fixed it now. Thank you for pointing that out! -Meggan