Sunday Gravy (Meat Sauce)

Green bowl with Sunday gravy pasta with meat sauce and sausages.

This traditional Sunday Gravy recipe is a rustic tomato sauce brimming with savory ground beef, bacon, and Italian sausages. Spaghetti with meat sauce is easy to make in less than an hour, and can even be prepared as a one pot pasta dish!

Prep Time10

Cook Time40

Total Time50

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 556kcal

Author: Sommer Collier

Ingredients

4 strips thick-cut bacon, diced
8 Italian style sausage links, smoked or raw
1 large sweet onion, diced
1 cup finely diced carrots*
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound ground beef
28 ounces crushed tomatoes (1 can)
15 ounces tomato sauce (1 can)
1 cup red wine
3 cups water
1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 pound dried spaghetti
Salt and pepper
Garnishes: Parmesan cheese, parsley

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Place a large 8-quart dutch oven over medium heat. Add the diced bacon and cook until brown. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve for later. Add the sausages to the bacon grease and brown on all sides. (If the sausages are raw, cook for 10-12 minutes.) Remove the sausages and reserve for later.
Add the onions, carrots, and garlic to the dutch oven. Saute for 3-5 minutes to soften, then add the ground beef and cook until brown. Use a wooden spoon to break the ground beef into small pieces while cooking.
Spoon the bacon back into the pot. Add both cans of tomatoes, red wine, water, Italian seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper.
Stir well and bring to a boil. Then lower the heat and stir in the Italian sausage links. Simmer for 15-20 minutes.
While the meat sauce is simmering. Set a large pot of salted water over high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir in the dried pasta. Cook according to the package instructions. Then drain the pasta and add it directly to the meat sauce pot. Stir to combine. Turn off the heat and serve warm.

Video

Notes

NOTE: The fastest way to finely dice carrots is to buy shredded carrots and chop them into smaller pieces.

ONE POT INSTRUCTIONS:

Add 3 cups of water to the Sunday Gravy, and bring to a boil.
Once the meat sauce is boiling, stir in the dried spaghetti. Stir well so the sauce separates the strands of pasta, and the meat doesn't stick to the bottom. Cover the pot and boil one minute.
Stir well again to keep the pasta from sticking together and the meat from burning on the bottom.
Do this 4-5 times until the pasta is cooked.

STORING LEFTOVERS: Transfer the cooled meat sauce and pasta to an airtight container, and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. UNLESS you are using leftover meat that is already a day or two old... In that case, you don't want to keep the sauce for more than 1-2 days.

FREEZING: Sunday gravy freezes beautifully! Cool it completely before transferring it to an airtight container. I suggest wrapping it in a layer of aluminum foil for extra freezer burn protection. Keep it in the freezer for up to 3 months and thaw it in the fridge overnight.

REHEATING: Reheat leftover pasta sauce in the microwave or on the stovetop. You might need to add a splash of water if the sauce has tightened up a bit too much.

Nutrition