Mom's Classic Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Mom's Homemade Spaghetti Sauce is the best! Made with sausage, ground beef, onions, and tomatoes, then perfectly seasoned and simmered, this classic Italian-American meat sauce is a hearty, full-flavored family favorite.

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My childhood food memories are filled with meals like tuna casserole studded with green-gray peas, and creamed chipped beef over white rice. Mom was from the Midwest, where "they didn't have fancy foods like pizza or hummus," as she liked to tell me.

However, despite her aversion to cooking or eating anything not common among Depression-era Missourians, Mom did make some wonderful dishes, and the best of best was her rich, meaty homemade spaghetti sauce.

When it came to making spaghetti sauce, Mom was meticulous in her onion chopping. Each batch of sauce required four large onions, thus requiring a lot of time and tears; so spaghetti at our house was reserved for special occasions.

Oh, but when she made that amazing sauce! Thick, rick, deep scents would fill our house to the eaves, enticing me to the kitchen, where I would wait until Mom wasn't looking to sneak spoonfuls of hot, bubbly spaghetti sauce onto Saltine crackers, nearly always burning my tongue in my hurry. 

It was always worth it.

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This classic American-style spaghetti sauce recipe is based on Mom's original recipe, with just a few small adjustments. It retains all of the richness and depth that I remember. 

My best advice: if you have the time, make it a day ahead - and be sure to have some Saltines on hand for tasting.

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Recipe Updated September 20, 2021 (Originally published January 14, 2013)

How to Make Classic American Spaghetti Sauce with Meat

Ingredient Notes & Substitutions

Onions - Mom used plain old yellow onions. I prefer to use sweet onions, but either one will work.

Garlic - The recipe calls for four cloves. Don't go crazy. 

Salted butter - You can use unsalted butter. If you do so, add an extra ½ teaspoon of kosher salt to the sauce before simmering. 

Tomato sauce - If I can find it, I use a tomato sauce infused with garlic and onion. Regular tomato sauce will work fine, too. 

Tomato paste - Same as the tomato sauce. 

Canned tomatoes - I prefer to use petite-cut canned tomatoes with garlic and basil. 

Ground beef & Italian sausage - I use a combination of 1:1:1 of low-fat ground beef, sweet Italian sausage, and mild Italian sausage. However any combination will work. (If you prefer a spicier spaghetti sauce, try using spicy Italian sausage!)

We've also made this sauce with ground turkey and ground chicken Italian sausage with great results. 

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How to Make the Sauce

In a large, heavy Dutch oven or stock pot, brown sausage and ground beef together over MEDIUM.

Remove browned meat from heat, and drain in colander. (Do not rinse the browned meat, please. Just let it drain.)

In same large, heavy pot, melt the butter and olive oil together over MEDIUM heat.

Add chopped onions to butter and olive oil, reduce the heat. to MEDIUM-LOW, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

You aren't trying to caramelize the onions (which is an hour-long process). You want to fry them until they are just beginning to turn light, golden brown. 

Add minced garlic and continue to cook until onions are very soft and begin to take on a very light caramel color. (The onions in the image below are about halfway done.)

Reduce heat to LOW and add the drained, browned meat, tomato sauce, tomato paste, herbs, spices, and brown sugar to the onions in the pan. Stir with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined. 

Once everything is stirred together well, bring the sauce to a low, slow simmer.

Cover and simmer for an hour, stirring frequently.

Turn the heat off and allow to steep with the cover on for another hour before serving. 

I don't usually simmer it any longer than an hour, because the meat can take on a tough, spongy texture if it is overcooked. Allowing the sauce to steep in the pot off the heat alleviates this issue. (You also don't have to babysit it as much.)

Spaghetti sauce can be served immediately; however, it will be so much better when you reheat it the next day! Salt and pepper to taste. 

How long will spaghetti sauce stay good in the fridge?

Homemade pasta sauce will keep in the refrigerator for three to four days. Allow sauce to cool completely before refrigerating or freezing. 

Can I freeze spaghetti sauce?

You can freeze this pasta sauce in freezer bags, quart jars, or freezer containers. It will maintain its flavor for up to six months.

When you want to use it, defrost in the fridge or on the counter before heating. 

When should the pasta be tossed with the sauce? 

When I was growing up, Mom always serve spaghetti by placing a pile of plain, undressed noodles on a plate, and topping it first with a ladle of spaghetti sauce and then a snowfall of grated parmesan. (Honestly, that is still the way I like it best.)

However, this iconic image from middle America isn't the traditional (or even the best) way to serve spaghetti. 

For the best flavor outcome, the hot, drained pasta should be tossed with some of the hot pasta sauce, allowing it to absorb the flavors. Your cooked pasta shouldn't have to heat up the sauce, and your pasta shouldn’t sit in hot water slowly getting mushy. 

Can the pasta be prepared ahead of time, too?

To make the pasta ahead of time, cook it until it is tender, and then drain it to stop the cooking process. Toss the spaghetti noodles with a little olive oil, and then put it in a container and refrigerate until needed (up to two days).

To reheat, start by bringing a large pot of salted water to a boil. Place the refrigerated noodles in a pasta insert or colander and plunge the cold spaghetti into the boiling water for 30 seconds to one minute to reheat it. 

When you are ready, toss the hot pasta with warm sauce and serve. 

Serve with a fresh, green salad and warm garlic bread!

Have you tried our Sun-dried Tomato Carbonara recipe? It's ready for the table in just 20 minutes! 

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