4.04 from 28 votes

HOMEMADE BEEFY SPAGHETTI SAUCE

Name: Homemade Beefy Spaghetti Sauce
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 2 pounds ground beef or sausage, ((or one pound of each)); 1 large green pepper (chopped); 1 small onion (chopped); 3 (15 oz) cans diced tomatoes; 2 (15 oz) cans tomato sauce; 1 (6 oz) tomato paste; 2 tbsp grape jelly; 2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese; 3-4 cloves garlic, (minced); 1 tsp Italian seasoning; 2 tsp dried basil; salt and pepper, (to taste)

The title of this recipe is Homemade Spaghetti Sauce, but really it’s great for any type of pasta. And like all great recipes, this one came to me by way of a friend. Our kids were hanging out playing at the park, and a friend tells me about a delicious pasta sauce that was given to her by a neighbor. Now, you know a recipe is gonna be good when it’s coming from a friend of a friend of a friend. Ha!

Easy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce with Ground Beef

A SECRET INGREDIENT

This sauce has a little secret ingredient up it’s sleeve (like all good handed-down recipes). And it really is so delicious and comes out right every time! Now y’all might laugh, but I knew this recipe was going to be great when I saw there was grape jelly in it. Do y’all remember those GLAZED PARTY MEATBALLS? The ones with the grape jelly in the sauce? I knew how good grape jelly could be as a secret ingredient. I think this would also be a great sauce to use in my FRIENDSHIP SPAGHETTI PIE.

Now, obviously, you don’t taste it as a separate ingredient. But most Italian cooks will tell you they put a pinch of sweetness in their sauces. Sometimes it’s sugar or brown sugar. In this case, it’s grape jelly!

Homemade Beefy Spaghetti Sauce recipe from The Country Cook #dinner #groundbeef

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

ground beef or sausage (see notes below)

green pepper

onion

diced tomatoes

tomato sauce

tomato paste

grape jelly

grated Parmesan cheese

garlic cloves

Italian seasoning

dried basil

salt & pepper

ground beef, garlic, onion, green pepper, grape jelly, tomato sauce, parmesan cheese, basil, Italian Seasoning, diced tomatoes,

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE SPAGHETTI SAUCE:

In a large pot, brown and crumble ground beef along with the onions and green pepper. Season with salt & pepper.

Drain excess grease. Put beef back into the pot. Add in diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato paste.

Give it all a good stir. Then add in grape jelly, Parmesan cheese, minced garlic, Italian seasoning and dried basil.

Stir then cover and allow mixture to simmer gently for at least 30 minutes. Or, you can put it all into a slow cooker and let it simmer on low for several hours.

This sauce really just gets better and better the longer it simmers. And leftovers freeze beautifully. This makes quite a bit of sauce so it’s good for a small crowd.

Cook’s Note: If you prefer more sauce than meat (like I do), then just use one pound of beef. If you like it really meaty then use two pounds of beef. The original recipe calls for sausage (one package hot, and one package sweet). You can also use ground turkey or pork. It is a very adaptable recipe. And, if you have it on hand, instead of the dried basil, the original recipe suggested using 12 leaves of fresh basil, cut into ribbons, and added in 5 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

Post originally published: September 2012
Updated and republished: February 2019