Monday, September 21, 2009

Spaghetti Sauce

4 pounds ground chuck (can use hamburger)
2-12 oz. cans of tomato paste
2-15/16 oz cans of tomato sauce
1/2 cup sugar
3 medium to large onions chopped very small
3 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons black pepper
4 teaspoons salt
6 Tablespoons chili powder
2 Tablespoons vinegar
hot water

Combine all ingredients in a LARGE heavy pan. Don't brown the beef or cook the onion first. Add 1/2 can of hot water from each can. (I swirl it around to get all the bits out and pour from can to can.) Stir all together and stir often at first to make sure the ground chuck doesn't clump together. Simmer uncovered slowly on a medium low heat for at least 3 hours, stirring occasionally. It does tend to pop out of the pan some so prepare for a clean up later. I would make it like this at first but in an emergency you can use a quart or so of home preserved tomatoes instead of the sauce and paste. I sometimes use two of the 28 oz tomatoes(crushed, pureed, whole, whatever) from the store or one or two of my quart size frozen tomatoes. This is pretty flexible...just be sure you have lots of tomatoes and don't forget the extra WATER. Add more water if you like it thinner.
I can't even remember where I got this recipe originally, but I have changed it to suit our tastes. It is very reminiscent of Jim's Spaghetti, a local restaurant.
We usually had this spaghetti when we were having guests and then the leftovers were either frozen in a freezer bag or made into baked spaghetti. If you thaw the leftovers you will likely need to add a 1/4 cup water or so to it to warm up without burning. It would serve us a couple of times later. Great served with a salad, garlic bread, and parmesan cheese.
Enjoy!

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