Crabzilla's Spicy Chunky Garlicky Spaghetti Sauce

Crabzilla's Note:

This is my own variation of my mom's sauce. It's simple to prepare and should be simmered all day for the best flavor. You can add ground beef, ground sausage, or brown up some Italian sausage links and simmer in sauce if you like. This freezes well and will easily feed 8 - 10 people, with leftovers. I'm not 100% sure of the exact size of the large cans of tomatoes this calls for as I don't have one on hand, however, I will estimate and say 28 oz. Just use the big cans that are usually on the bottom shelf of the canned tomato aisle. Hope you enjoy, vary spices according to your taste preferences. You may prefer your sauce less spicy, so sub the Rotel for petite diced tomatoes and omit the crushed red pepper flakes.

• Total Time: 6 hrs 20 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 6 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 10

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion (roughly chopped)
• 12 cloves garlic (finely minced)
• 4 ounces diced fresh mushrooms (optional)
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 (28 ounce) cans of progresso crushed tomatoes (or your fav)
• 1 (28 ounce) can of progresso whole canned tomatoes (or your fav)
• 2 (10 ounce) cans of rotel tomatoes and green chilies
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste (I use one with no salt added)
• 1 cup dry red wine

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large, deep pot.
2. Saute onion, garlic, and mushrooms until soft and slightly browned.
3. Add basil, oregano, black pepper, salt, and crushed red pepper flakes.
4. Saute for an additional 10 minutes (estimate), stirring frequently, being careful not to burn the herbs.
5. Add all the canned tomatoes, tomato paste, stir real well, and bring to a boil.
6. Boil for about 10 minutes and use a potato masher to crush the whole tomatoes (they crush easily after being boiled).
7. Add red wine and continue to boil for another 2 minutes.
8. Turn down to a low simmer, and simmer for at least 6 hours, stirring now and then.
9. I usually put a lid on to partially cover the pot for the first 3 hours and then remove it for the last 3 hours to let the sauce reduce, it should end up a nice deep, rich red color.
10. Serve over your favorite pasta and fix up a nice green salad and crusty loaf of bread to make a complete meal.
11. Let sauce cool before freezing- can be frozen in whatever size portions you like using zip-lock freezer bags.

Reviews

[CARML mama]

We loved this! Just the right amount of spicy and the smell filled the whole house. Yum!! Makes a lot but the leftovers were just as tasty. Thanks for sharing this recipe :)