True story: I, a professional amateur with absolutely no stakes in this blog whatsoever aside from bestowing my own whimsy and enjoyment to others, hemmed and hawed about posting this. I get in my own head about too many things.
I realized I had all the ingredients for a highly improved version of the meat sauce I used to make for myself in college. That was basically just jarred sauce and whatever ground beef was on sale, cooked with the background sound of the ghost of an Italian grandmother weeping in my apartment kitchen.
After assessing my pantry ingredients, I proceeded to fall down the rabbit hole of “is this meat sauce or is it Bolognese? What’s the difference? What does it all mean?”
Bolognese has red wine. Bolognese needs to cook/simmer for a million years. Bolognese must contain flakes from the bricks of the most beautiful Italian portico you’ve ever seen… on and on and on.
I was fraught. I didn’t want to overcomplicate things. I wanted to make what I had without running out for more ingredients to properly “classify” it as something.
It was then that I got a popup notification on my phone about the US Men’s hockey team hosting FBI Director Kash Patel at their post-victory locker room party. While the FBI director was celebrating the adequacy of the men’s team, troves of released Epstein files remain uninvestigated, someone got shot and killed after driving into the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, and Savannah Guthrie’s mom straight up disappeared.
So we’re all just gonna let that imposter syndrome go, okay? A cabal of pedophilic morons runs this country and unqualified people apply for, and get, jobs they are woefully unequipped for all the time. Make the sauce. Ask for the raise. Apply for the job. In a society that constantly rewards mediocrity, you will be a bright light in the universe.
As for this recipe? This sauce was good even though it doesn’t technically qualify as a bolognese. It’s quick, hearty, and easy – perfect for a weeknight and incredibly easy to adjust based on your taste and preferences. Add more seasonings you’re into, use a heartier or more flavorful stock, top it with shredded mozzarella as a finisher, add more liquid to make it thinner or keep it a little thicker and creamier. It’s up to you.
What’s in this meat sauce?
I was able to make this cozy sauce using the following ingredients:
- Mirepoix mix: diced celery, onion, and carrot. You can get it pre-made at the store.
- Ground beef
- Angel hair pasta: penne would probably have been better but I didn’t have any. Make it with penne and leave a review!
- Canned tomato sauce
- Heavy cream
- Chicken or beef stock (from bouillon cubes, powder, Better than Bouillon, or even just regular stock from a can or box – your call!): I used chicken but every recipe ever uses beef stock, presumably so the flavors don’t touch tips or something? I dunno. I didn’t have any so chicken broth made from bouillon powder came out ahead. No one was upset.
- Garlic
- Salt
- Pepper
- Italian seasoning: I saw this in another recipe, wasn’t sure what it meant, looked it up, found this breakdown, made it with everything except the marjoram because I didn’t have any, and now I have Italian seasoning. You can also buy it as its own blend at the store.
- Parmesan cheese
This is one of my “I should probably use this ingredient before it goes bad” recipes and I’m really pleased with it. I hope you are, too.
Meat Sauce
This simple and easy meat sauce might just become a staple once you figure out how to make it exactly to your preferences!
Ingredients
- 8 ounces spaghetti or angel hair
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 C mirepoix mix
- 4-5 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning , (store bought or homemade)
- 1 pound ground beef
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 2 8-ounce cans tomato sauce (you can also do 1 and 1/2 of the more standard 15-oz cans, but then what do you do with half a can of tomato sauce?!)
- 3/4 cup chicken or beef stock
- 1/3 – 1/2 cup heavy cream, depending on preference
- Parmesan cheese , grated for topping
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Reserve about a cup of pasta water just in case you thin out your sauce a little too much.
- In a large saute pan over medium-high heat, drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil. Once hot, add the mirepoix mix and sweat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- When the carrots start to get tender, add the garlic and seasonings. Stir for 30 seconds.
- Add all the ground beef, breaking it into crumbles. Season with salt and pepper.
- Once the beef is cooked through, add tomato sauce and the stock.
- Mix everything in the pan to combine and simmer for about 3 minutes.
- Add the desired amount of heavy cream, keeping an eye on the texture.
- Simmer for about 15 minutes or until slightly thickened.
- If you accidentally make it thinner than you want, this is where the pasta water comes in: after simmering, add the pasta water a few tablespoons at a time, stirring vigorously after each addition. The starch from the pasta will emulsify the sauce and make it a little thicker and smoother. Add in some grated parm, too, which will help to thicken the sauce and make it even cheesier. You’ll need to wait a couple more minutes to see the effects, but it’s pretty cool!
- Once the sauce is the desired consistency, add in the cooked pasta and toss to coat.
- Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese as desired before serving.
Leave a Reply