Ground beef spaghetti sauce

[buckytom]

I would use both.

Start the garlic over low temp in olive oil (a little more than you think you need) in the stew pot. When it just begins to turn a little brown, add diced onions. Stir several times, and when the onions are starting to become translucent, add a couple of cans of tomatoes. If whole tomatoes in puree, dump them in the pot, crushing the whole ones in your hand as they go in.

Add dried herbs. Stir and raise the heat just a bit so that it simmers. Remember to stir occasionally so that it doesn't burn on the bottom.

In the deep saute, I would brown the crumbled meat(s) over high heat so that they get good brown color. Don't overcrowd the pan or it'll steam instead of brown. Better to do it in 2 or 3 small batches.

Add the crumbled, brown meat into the now bubbling sauce in the stew pot. Add other ingredients like peppers, or mushrooms, or the like.

In the saute pan, deglaze with some red wine, scraping up any brown bits. Add to the stew pot as well.

Simmer uncovered, or partially covered, or with a splatter screen, stirring occasionally again to prevent burning. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Maybe add a pinch if hot red pepper flakes.

If you are adding fresh basil, add it shortly before serving.

HTH.

 

[caseydog]

I would use both.

Start the garlic over low temp in olive oil (a little more than you think you need) in the stew pot. When it just begins to turn a little brown, add diced onions. Stir several times, and when the onions are starting to become translucent, add a couple of cans of tomatoes. If whole tomatoes in puree, dump them in the pot, crushing the whole ones in your hand as they go in.

Add dried herbs. Stir and raise the heat just a bit so that it simmers. Remember to stir occasionally so that it doesn't burn on the bottom.

In the deep saute, I would brown the crumbled meat(s) over high heat so that they get good brown color. Don't overcrowd the pan or it'll steam instead of brown. Better to do it in 2 or 3 small batches.

Add the crumbled, brown meat into the now bubbling sauce in the stew pot. Add other ingredients like peppers, or mushrooms, or the like.

In the saute pan, deglaze with some red wine, scraping up any brown bits. Add to the stew pot as well.

Simmer uncovered, or partially covered, or with a splatter screen, stirring occasionally again to prevent burning. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Maybe add a pinch if hot red pepper flakes.

If you are adding fresh basil, add it shortly before serving.

HTH.

Those instructions may be more complicated than Caslon wants to dive into.

A ground beef meat sauce is pretty much a one pot meal, IMO. Both pans look like non-stick pans, so there is not likely to be much in the way of "brown bits" to deglaze.

Caslon, I would use the deep pan. Brown your meat first, then drain off the liquids. You can put your browned meat aside in a bowl, and use the same pan to sauté your veggies (onions, garlic, whatever you like). Then, just combine the meat, veggies, herbs/spices and tomato sauce and let it simmer. Very simple.

You talk about your cooking skills in a somewhat negative way. You are probably better than you think you are. Don't try to do things the way a trained professional chef would. You will end up hating to cook anything. A basic meat sauce is not difficult, unless you psych yourself out and make it difficult.

Look up the term, mise en place. Prep all your ingredients before you even think about actually cooking anything. I promise you that mise en place will change your world. Cooking will become so much easier.

CD

 

[taxlady]

Those instructions may be more complicated than Caslon wants to dive into.

A ground beef meat sauce is pretty much a one pot meal, IMO. Both pans look like non-stick pans, so there is not likely to be much in the way of "brown bits" to deglaze.

Caslon, I would use the deep pan. Brown your meat first, then drain off the liquids. You can put your browned meat aside in a bowl, and use the same pan to sauté your veggies (onions, garlic, whatever you like). Then, just combine the meat, veggies, herbs/spices and tomato sauce and let it simmer. Very simple.

You talk about your cooking skills in a somewhat negative way. You are probably better than you think you are. Don't try to do things the way a trained professional chef would. You will end up hating to cook anything. A basic meat sauce is not difficult, unless you psych yourself out and make it difficult.

Look up the term, mise en place. Prep all your ingredients before you even think about actually cooking anything. I promise you that mise en place will change your world. Cooking will become so much easier.

CD

Sound advice in my opinion.

 

[Caslon]

Understood. Follow that net recipe and report back. Seems like an ok one. Will do. Basic spaghetti meat sauce. Good enough for me and it has to be better that Stouffers. Pardons if this went on too long.

 

[Addie]

Pretty much, there isn't much difference among dry pastas. That's not to say that any cheap pasta is as good as the more expensive option. You're going to have to taste them and decide.

Or on a day when you are bored and have nothing to do, (see I do have a sense of humor) you can make your own pasta. A great way to get out all your frustrations and anger. I always add about 1/4 of semolina flour to my regular flour. It not only adds strength to the pasta, but a flavor of it own. There are plenty of recipes for it. Just make Google your best friend.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

...Pardons if this went on too long.

Are you kidding? You should know by now that we all thrive on complicating a simple question. [emoji1] This thread has been informative and entertaining.

 

[Kayelle]

Are you kidding? You should know by now that we all thrive on complicating a simple question. [emoji1] This thread has been informative and entertaining.

So inspirational in fact that I made and froze a big vat of my own sauce today.
It's a durn good batch too if I do say so myself.


You'll do really well Caslon and I confirm how important it is to follow Casey's instructions here...

Look up the term, mise en place. Prep all your ingredients before you even think about actually cooking anything. I promise you that mise en place will change your world. Cooking will become so much easier.

 

[medtran49]

Good advice... but I'm thinking I've heard that before. Did somebody already say that?

CD

So what? I skim read posts when the thread starts to get long. So sorry I missed yours. It's not like it's an original and proprietary idea now is it?

 

[CraigC]

Remember too that red wine can go "off" pretty quickly. We don't drink red wine so it makes sense for us to buy the little four bottle packs, and each bottle is about a cup of wine. We do drink white wine however so it's always there to cook with.
Glad you're throwing out that nasty "cooking wine" as it's worse than worthless.

We buy those for cooking, but swap 2 reds for whites. Some recipes call for whole 750ml bottles, which we buy when making them.

 

[di reston]

I very often think of recipes as indicators to what you want to do - most people like to put their stamp on a recipe, amen to that! It's always good to see that at DC you all like to put your seal of approval on what you're doing.

di reston


Peeple of zee wurl, relax!
Tom Robbins - Fieerce invalids home from hot climates

 

[CakePoet]

This my sauce, added some ketchup and olives.

 

[Kevin86]

My mom used canned mushrooms and wife uses fresh. But I think it’s what you grow to know and time and budget often are bigger factors than I used to think in mom and grandmas cooking. But they’d always feed a crew at the drop of a hat


My wife actually makes a chilli then uses that for lasagna, spaghetti, etc it works nicely.

If you worry about splash mess but want your pot uncovered use a big pot. Don’t fill it but height saves mess and larger bottom acts like a frying pan size

 

[Kevin86]

Sound advice in my opinion.

Read advice in my opinion, lol.

 

[taxlady]

Read advice in my opinion, lol.

 

[CharlieD]

Oh my gosh, Caslon, green peppers? What kind of recipe did you find, for a knock-off Manwich? I suppose if you like them...

.

Exactly. Yes, I understand some people like the green peppers, to me they are simply green. Read not ripen.

 

[RPCookin]

If you worry about splash mess but want your pot uncovered use a big pot. Don’t fill it but height saves mess and larger bottom acts like a frying pan size

When I make anything saucy like spaghetti sauce, I use my 6 qt enameled Dutch oven. I made a pot of chili con carne w/beans for last Sunday's dinner for my FiL... one pot and no messy stove to scour afterward. That pot is really my kitchen workhorse. Was $40 at Sam's Club at least 10 years ago, and gets used once or twice weekly.

If I could justify it to my wife, I'd swap it for one of the pricier ones like Le Creuset or Staub, but the only thing I'd gain from that is perhaps it not being quite as heavy... hard to justify the cost for that.

 

[jennyema]

You can freeze wine, you know.... it doesn't oxidize that way

 

[tenspeed]

You can freeze wine, you know.... it doesn't oxidize that way

I've never frozen wine intentionally, but I can tell you not to freeze it in the bottle.

 

[Caslon]

When I make anything saucy like spaghetti sauce, I use my 6 qt enameled Dutch oven.

I've gathered all the ingredients but am still wondering whether to use my large non-stick sauce pan or my stew pot with lid (similar to dutch oven). I posted pics of the two earlier in this thread. There's something I just don't like about the slippery surface of non-stick pans. In the past, when I saute veggies with it, the oil always slips around and separates and spreads around the pan unevenly. My stew pot also has a glass lid to it. I'm still on the fence as to whether I should cover while simmering (maybe leaving it wedged open a little). I'll be cooking it up tonight or tomorrow night while I gather some last suggestions or opinions from this forum.

 

[Kayelle]

I've gathered all the ingredients but am still wondering whether to use my large non-stick sauce pan or my stew pot with lid (similar to dutch oven). I posted pics of the two earlier in this thread. There's something I just don't like about the slippery surface of non-stick pans. In the past, when I saute veggies with it, the oil always slips around and separates and spreads around the pan unevenly. My stew pot also has a glass lid to it. I'm still on the fence as to whether I should cover while simmering (maybe leaving it wedged open a little). I'll be cooking it up tonight or tomorrow night while I gather some last suggestions or opinions from this forum.

That's a question you'll be able to answer as you cook it, and nobody can tell you. As you cook, you'll see if it's getting too thick, or too thin. If it's getting too thick, cover it. If it's too thin, uncover it. That's cooking.
Be sure to stir it occasionally.
I hope you've set the table for all of us.