Italian Spaghetti

Spaghetti is one of those dishes that pleases all ages. Small children love to slurp up the noodles and the love of spaghetti never goes out of style. Our Italian spaghetti recipe features a homemade tomato-based meat sauce that’s just as tasty as any you’ll find in a restaurant. The total prep and cooking time is just 25 minutes, so it’s a dish that’s easy to whip up even after a busy afternoon.

Ingredients for Italian Spaghetti

• Ground beef: The beef turns the pasta sauce into a meat sauce; it makes the spaghetti heartier, too.
• Green onions: Cut the onions into thin slices for this recipe.
• Tomato sauce: Tomato sauce is the base ingredient for your homemade pasta sauce.
• Sugar: A little sugar balances out the flavor of sometimes acidic tomatoes in the sauce; it also enhances the natural sweetness that’s tomatoes.
• Worcestershire sauce: The complex flavor of Worcestershire sauce makes the pasta sauce even more delicious. It also adds umami.
• Olives: Drain the liquid from the can of sliced olives; it won’t be needed in this dish.
• Spaghetti: Cook the spaghetti in advance; another option is to start cooking it just before making the sauce so both the spaghetti and pasta are ready at approximately the same time.
• Grated Parmesan cheese, bacon bits (optional): Parmesan cheese and bacon bits sprinkled atop the spaghetti add even more flavor and aroma to this tasty dish.

Directions 

Step 1: Cook the beef, start the sauce

In a large skillet, cook the ground beef and onions over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink; drain the liquid out of the skillet. Add the tomato sauce, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper to the skillet and bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce the heat; cover the skillet and the sauce simmer for 10 minutes.

Step 2: Finish the sauce and serve

Add the olives and simmer the sauce for five more minutes. Spoon the sauce over the warm spaghetti; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and bacon bits if desired.

Recipe Variations

• Add bell peppers: Diced red or green bell peppers add a little crunch and color to the pasta sauce. They’re loaded with nutrients such as vitamins A and C, too.
• Substitute ground turkey: Use ground turkey in place of the ground beef if your household is cutting back on beef. Ground turkey cooks the same as the ground beef and has the same texture when cooked. Here’s a slightly different spaghetti recipe that uses ground turkey.
• Add sliced mushrooms: Canned or fresh sliced mushrooms add even more flavor to the pasta sauce. Add them when you start the sauce or shortly after.
• Add seasonings: Sprinkle in some of your favorite pasta-sauce seasonings such as oregano and dried basil for even more flavor. A premade mixture called Italian seasoning works well too. It usually has oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary and marjoram in it.

How to Store Italian Spaghetti

When the spaghetti cools, transfer it to an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator. It’ll keep for three to four days.

Can you make Italian spaghetti ahead of time? 

Sure! Make the sauce a day or two ahead of time and cook the pasta when you’re ready to enjoy it. Heat the pasta sauce in a saucepan and then add it to the spaghetti at serving time.

Italian Spaghetti Tips

How can I make this vegan?

To turn this into a vegan dish, omit the ground beef entirely or replace it with meatless crumbles found in the frozen food section at the supermarket. The crumbles cook much like ground beef. To add protein to the dish another way add chickpeas, aka garbanzo beans, to the sauce; they’re also a good source of vitamins A and C and folate.

Can I make meatballs instead?

This Italian spaghetti recipe tastes delicious with meatballs in place of crumbled ground beef. Here’s our recipe for baked meatballs, plus one for spaghetti and meatballs.

Could I make this with zoodles instead of spaghetti?

Zoodles, also known as zucchini noodles, offer another way to enjoy this tasty spaghetti sauce. Zucchini noodles may be eaten raw or cooked, plus they have far fewer calories and carbs than traditional spaghetti. Here’s how to make them with or without a spiralizer.