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Meat Sauce and Spaghetti

Alton Brown

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2009

Show: Good EatsEpisode: American Classics: Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Rated: 4 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (54)

  • Cook Time:

    5 hr 0 min

  • Level:

    Easy

  • Yield:

    6 to 8 servings

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Times:

Prep
45 min
Inactive Prep
--
Cook
5 hr 0 min
Total:
5 hr 45 min
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Ingredients

Meat sauce:

  • 6 ounces thick sliced bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 2 large onions, finely chopped
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 1 whole star anise pod
  • 3 stalks celery, finely chopped
  • 5 cloves garlic, 3 minced and 2 sliced
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 8 ounces coarsely ground beef chuck
  • 8 ounces coarsely ground pork butt
  • 1 1/4 cups white wine, divided
  • 3/4 cup evaporated milk
  • 3 cups beef broth
  • 1-ounce dried porcini mushrooms, finely chopped
  • 2 (28-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons dried basil
  • 2 teaspoons dried marjoram
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan

Pasta:

  • 1 gallon water
  • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 1/2 pound dry spaghetti

Directions

For the meat sauce:

Place an 8-quart Dutch oven over low heat and add the bacon. Cook slowly until the bacon is crispy and has rendered its fat, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove the bacon from the pan for another use. Add the onion, salt, and pepper and stir to combine. Place the clove and star anise into a small spice bag, add to the Dutch oven and stir to combine. Cook, uncovered, over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions caramelize, 45 to 60 minutes. Add the celery and the 3 cloves of minced garlic to the pan and continue to cook over low heat until the celery is semi-translucent, approximately 30 minutes. Remove the spice bag from the pot.

Meanwhile, place a wide 4-quart saute pan, over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and once it shimmers, add the beef chuck and the pork butt and cook, stirring frequently, until the meat is well browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the meat to a colander to drain. Return the pan to high heat, add 1/2 cup of the wine and deglaze the pan, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Transfer these bits and any remaining wine to the Dutch oven along with the meat.

Add another 1/2 cup of the wine, evaporated milk, beef broth, and mushrooms to the Dutch oven and stir to combine. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 3 hours.

Once the sauce has been cooking for 1 1/2 hours, place the 4-quart saute pan over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Once it shimmers, add the 2 cloves of sliced garlic and cook for 30 to 45 seconds or until fragrant. Do not allow the garlic to brown. Add the tomatoes, oregano, basil, and marjoram and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, approximately 30 minutes. Add the remaining 1/4 cup wine, tomato paste, ketchup, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce and stir to combine. Decrease the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes. Increase the heat to medium high; add the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 to 3 minutes.

Transfer the tomato mixture to the meat mixture and stir to combine. Simmer the sauce, uncovered, over low heat, stirring occasionally, while preparing the pasta.

For the pasta:

Bring the water and salt to a boil over high heat. Carefully add the pasta, stirring quickly to separate. Cover and return to a boil, being careful that the water does not boil over. Once boiling again, uncover and continue to cook until slightly less than al dente, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain in a colander.

Add the pasta to the meat sauce and cook, over low heat, for another 2 to 3 minutes or until the pasta is al dente. Add the Parmesan cheese and toss to combine. Transfer pasta and sauce to a serving bowl or individual bowls and serve.

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Read more Comments & Reviews (54)

Comments & Reviews

  • recipe Meat Sauce and Spaghetti
    Corinne Quispamsis, NB 10-13-2009

    Flag

    Delicious!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    I made this recipe with a few variations because I decided to make it on a whim and didn't have every ingredient. I kept the... fundamentals the same, and it turned out just beautifully. I made it for my family and everyone raved, and there wasn't a single bite left at the end of the night. The major switchups were I used all ground beef, carrots instead of celery, and I replaced all of the white wine with a 1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar and used this in the deglazing faze. The color was rich and deep, and I attribute this to the balsamic vinegar. As for the dishes, it really only took two pots to make, plus a few prep bowls, which isn't much more than I usually use for spaghetti sauce. And for the cook time, a good spaghetti sauce will always have to simmer for a few hours. This recipe was straight-forward and simple and has a real earthy, almost sweet undertone to its meaty richness. Another home-run for Alton.Read more
  • recipe Meat Sauce and Spaghetti
    Josh Philadelphia, PA 10-13-2009

    Flag

    A bit time consuming, but all the parts worth using

    Rated: 4 stars out of 5
    One of the things I love about Good Eats is that it is not dogmatic about recipes. Obviously, there is a recipe for... anything, but I always found the core philosophy of the show is that if you learn about how food works, you can make anything. This recipe is no different. I followed it to the letter the first time and the result was excellent. A very tasty sauce. That said, my view is that the result is not so much better than other efforts that I could justify 5-6 hours of my time again. Unlike restaurants or tv shows, we all have to make that cost benefit analysis. That said, I think there are some real gems in here. Personally, I have incorporated that diced tomato reduction into my everyday sauces. I think a lot of the depth of flavor comes from that element and I have added it to a lot varieties and it seems to draw praise in all. While I generally won't spend 5 hours making my sauce, this recipe certainly added something to my cooking arsenal. Thanks Alton.Read more
  • recipe Meat Sauce and Spaghetti
    Michele Newport, MI 10-05-2009

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    Worth the wait!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    Take a long time to make, but totally worth it!
  • recipe Meat Sauce and Spaghetti
    Mike Safety Harbor, FL 10-03-2009

    Flag

    "Tastes like the old days"

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    I had forgotten what real sauce tasted like ,thank you Alton. I have made this three times since it aired and my family... thinks I'm a genius in the kitchen. Believe me you can't miss by making this one. Read more
  • recipe Meat Sauce and Spaghetti
    Meg Laughlin AFB, TX 09-14-2009

    Flag

    as close as I can get to my mother-in-law's homemade sauce!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    Thanks for a wonderufl, flavourful recipe -- this is worth the time to make, and it made my whole house smell wonderful!
  • recipe Meat Sauce and Spaghetti
    Frank plano, TX 09-10-2009

    Flag

    This an excellent dish certainly worth the time and effort, You will enjoy it

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    I have read all the comments, good and bad............. I have made this dish 3 times and am about do so again today. The... reason, everyone I have served it to loved it. The origins of this meat sauce is based on the traditional Bologna Ragu commonly referred to as "Spagetti Bolognese" around the world........ I can't understand what all the fuss is about. Yes it does take time to make but is not labor intensive. One other point, the evaporated milk is added to the meat not the tomato sauce. It adds flavor and tenderness to the meat. I followed the recipe as is since I like the subtle flavors it achieves. Because it was such a hit with our friends first time out, I doubled recipe the second time I made it. Mind you, you will need a larger pot or as an alternative split into two pots when you combine the meat with the tomato sauce. Since I don't add the pasta directly into sauce, this allowed me to split up the remaining sauce into freezer bags for another time when a quick Dinner is required. (Small hint here, use the auto-defrost feature of your microwave,when thawed out (15 mins or so) transfer to pan on low heat while you prepare the pasta) Overall I rate this a 5 star because of: Flavors, Texture and Taste Try it I think you will enjoy it. Read more
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