Ingredients
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat; add onion and cook until softened. Add the garlic and cook another minute. Add the tomato paste and cook over medium high heat, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes, or if using canned, cut the tomatoes up in the can with kitchen shears, then add them with their juices and bring to a boil; reduce to medium, cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Puree with an immersion blender if desired, or can leave chunky.
Cook ground beef in a separate skillet, drain off fat and add to sauce along with the Italian seasoning, basil, bay leaves, salt, pepper and sugar. Stir in the beef stock and tomato sauce, bring to a boil, reduce and simmer over medium low, covered, for 2 hours or longer. Taste, stir in parsley and Cajun seasoning, if using, and adjust seasonings as needed.
Cook's Notes: While it will vary on the size of the tomatoes, you'll need about 5 to 6 large tomatoes or somewhere around 4 pounds total. Out of season, substitute 1 large (1 pound 12 ounce) can of whole, Italian style tomatoes and 1 large (1 pound 12 ounce) can of pureed or crushed tomatoes for the fresh. I like to use Cento brand San Marzano Italian style tomatoes. Omit sugar if using canned tomatoes. This recipe makes approximately 12 to 14 cups of meat sauce, enough for two meals. I often set aside about 6 cups to make lasagna or ziti. Okay to substitute dry bouillon or beef base (like Better than Bouillon) with water for the beef broth.
Variation: Substitute half Italian sausage, ground venison, or raw, bulk pork sausage (not breakfast sausage) for half the ground beef, or use a combination of other meats for a total of 2 pounds.
Slow Cooker: Prepare as above, but transfer to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.
- 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups of chopped onion
- 2 tablespoons of minced garlic
- 1 (6 ounce) can of tomato paste
- 8 cups of peeled and chopped tomatoes, juices retained
- 2 pounds of ground beef
- 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon of dried basil
- 2 large bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon of kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon of freshly cracked black pepper
- 1-1/2 tablespoons of granulated sugar
- 1 cup of beef stock or broth
- 3 (8 ounce) cans of tomato sauce
- 2 teaspoons of dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon of Cajun seasoning, or to taste, optional
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat; add onion and cook until softened. Add the garlic and cook another minute. Add the tomato paste and cook over medium high heat, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes, or if using canned, cut the tomatoes up in the can with kitchen shears, then add them with their juices and bring to a boil; reduce to medium, cover and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Puree with an immersion blender if desired, or can leave chunky.
Cook ground beef in a separate skillet, drain off fat and add to sauce along with the Italian seasoning, basil, bay leaves, salt, pepper and sugar. Stir in the beef stock and tomato sauce, bring to a boil, reduce and simmer over medium low, covered, for 2 hours or longer. Taste, stir in parsley and Cajun seasoning, if using, and adjust seasonings as needed.
Cook's Notes: While it will vary on the size of the tomatoes, you'll need about 5 to 6 large tomatoes or somewhere around 4 pounds total. Out of season, substitute 1 large (1 pound 12 ounce) can of whole, Italian style tomatoes and 1 large (1 pound 12 ounce) can of pureed or crushed tomatoes for the fresh. I like to use Cento brand San Marzano Italian style tomatoes. Omit sugar if using canned tomatoes. This recipe makes approximately 12 to 14 cups of meat sauce, enough for two meals. I often set aside about 6 cups to make lasagna or ziti. Okay to substitute dry bouillon or beef base (like Better than Bouillon) with water for the beef broth.
Variation: Substitute half Italian sausage, ground venison, or raw, bulk pork sausage (not breakfast sausage) for half the ground beef, or use a combination of other meats for a total of 2 pounds.
Slow Cooker: Prepare as above, but transfer to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.
I am going to make it in the slow cooker and then freeze what we don't use. We will see how it turns out!
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