from Tomato Sauce the Slow (and Cool-Kitchen) Way
Ingredients
SERVINGS: 4-6 Serving(s)
- 1 pound (local) ground beef or Italian sausage
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, optional
- 1 cup chopped onion, about 1 medium
- 4 to 6 large cloves garlic, minced
- 1 quart tomato sauce (or 28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes)
- 1 teaspoon dry basil
- 1 teaspoon dry oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
Instructions
- Cook the meat in a wide, heavy pot (deep skillet or Dutch oven) over medium heat until it has lost its red color, stirring and breaking it up as it cooks. Drain and set aside. (If you like, drain it using a sieve and catch the fat in the pan — many times there won’t be much, but you can use what there is for cooking).
- Add enough oil to the pan to make about 2 tablespoons. Add onion to the pan and cook on medium heat about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and cook 10 minutes more, stirring occasionally.
- Add tomato sauce, herbs, salt and peppers to the pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer. How long depends on how thick you like your sauce and how thick your tomato sauce was to begin with, but about a half an hour.
- Serves 4 to 6 as sauce for spaghetti noodles or ravioli.
Sauce freezes well.
