What’s Cooking: Simple Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Sometimes, you need a quick, home-cooked meal for dinner that’s simple to make, and easy to enjoy. Something you and your spouse both like. Something comforting and low-maintenance. Which is why a simple spaghetti with meat sauce is an important meal to have in your repertoire.

Before I proceed, I want to touch on something important. If you’re looking for some old world, made-from-scratch sauce, cooked for 8-10 hours, with handmade pasta that’s been air-dried to ensure your sauce properly adheres to each noodle, this ain’t your article. As much as a I like all that, I’m talking to parents who need something on the table as soon as possible, and want it to be a few steps above a meal of reheated chicken nuggets and string cheese.

Alright, now that I got that out of the way, let’s move on. I started making this particular recipe two weeks ago, and have already made it again. Considering I got six to eight servings from each batch, I’ve been eating a lot of spaghetti over the last 14 days! But that’s okay, because this stuff is good. In fact, I found it to be comparable to the spaghetti served at one of my family’s favorite Italian restaurants. If you like spaghetti, and don’t have a recipe yet, this one’s worth a try. And if you do have a spaghetti recipe, but would appreciate having a simpler version in your cooking arsenal for those rough days, keep reading. Without further ado (after all, you’re busy!), here’s the recipe.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 6-8

Ingredients
2-2.5 pounds of lean ground beef (sirloin)
2. jars (24 oz.) of Barilla Traditional tomato sauce
1 box (16 oz.) of Barilla Thin Spaghetti pasta
2 tablespoons of light olive oil
6 tablespoons of grated parmesan cheese

Wait…that’s it? ! Yup, that’s it. I told you. This is a simple spaghetti with meat sauce. But don’t let the simplicity fool you. It’s good! Now, onto the directions!

Directions

1. Fill a stockpot with water, and bring it to a boil.
2. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of light olive oil into a 12-inch skillet or sauce pan.
3. Pre-heat your skillet on medium-high heat.
4. Once your skillet is heated, place your ground meat in the pan and cook until fully browned.
5. Once your water is boiling, cook the pasta for about 6 to 7 minutes. Drain the pasta when it has reached your desired tenderness. Place the pasta back into the empty stockpot.
6. When the meat is fully cooked, turn the heat down to low and add 40 ounces of sauce, stirring to ensure the sauce is properly warmed up, and the meat is fully mixed in.
7. Pour the sauce into the stockpot and mix over low heat until you’ve achieved a uniform consistency throughout. If you need more sauce, add the remaining 8 ounces of sauce and mix in.
8. Top each serving with 1 to 2 tablespoons of grated parmesan cheese, to taste.
9. Serve!

I told you. Super easy. Of course, if you want more cheese, add it on. If you don’t want cheese at all, leave it off! Maybe you like basil. Just add some while browning the meat. The same goes for garlic, if that’s your thing. I like to think of recipes as general ideas, so I improvise. If you like to improvise in the kitchen too, go nuts. It’s your meal!

That said, if you need to stay close to the recipe, this one won’t let you down. You’ll have a splendid spaghetti dinner ready in no time, possibly with leftovers. It’s easy to make, easy to customize, and easy to eat! The family might even wonder where you ordered it from, which, if I’m being honest, is one of the highest compliments I can get. Buon appetito!