Spaghetti Sauce with Meat - Slow Method

This sauce takes most of a day to make, but is well worth the time. I usually double the recipe and make about 4 gallons at a time and freeze it in 1 quart Ziploc bags for use all year.

• Ready In: 5 hrs
• Yields: 3-4 gallons

Ingredients

• Sauce

• 1 (10 3/4ounce) can condensed beef broth
• 2  large onions, finely chopped
• 2 -4  cloves garlic, minced,more to taste
• 2  sweet red peppers or 2  green peppers, seeded and chopped
• 5  lbs  fresh roma tomatoes, skinned,seeded and chopped,skin and juices reserved (plum)
• 4 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 1  cup dry red wine or 1  cup white wine
• 2  tablespoons  italian seasoning, lightly crushed
• 2  tablespoons dried oregano, lightly crushed
• 1  teaspoon fennel or 1  teaspoon anise, lightly crushed
• 3  tablespoons sugar
• 1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1  teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 2  lbs lean ground beef
•  salt
•  additional fresh ground black pepper
•  garlic granules
• 1⁄2 teaspoon msg (optional)

• Meatballs

• 1 1⁄2 lbs lean ground beef
• 1  large egg
• 1⁄2 cup  breadcrumbs
• 1  medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 -3  cloves garlic, minced
• 1  teaspoon  italian seasoning, lightly crushed
• 1⁄2 teaspoon msg (optional)
•  salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 2  tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2  lbs sweet Italian sausage links
• 1⁄4 cup butter
• 1  lb mushroom, cleaned and thinly sliced,more to taste
• 1⁄2 cup dry red wine or 1⁄2 cup white wine
• 1⁄4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1⁄2 cup  chopped sweet basil
• 1⁄2 cup  chopped fresh parsley
•  salt and pepper
•  tomato juice or  wine, to thin sauce if necessary
•  hot cooked and drained spaghetti, as accompaniment
•  freshly grated parmesan cheese, as accompaniment

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, combine bouillon and reserved tomato skins and juice.
2. Bring to a boil, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally and mashing pulp against side of pan.
3. Reserve.
4. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in large skillet.
5. Add garlic and chopped onions, and saute over medium-high heat until soft.
6. Add peppers, and continue cooking until onions are slightly browned.
7. In a large pot, combine chopped tomatoes and onion mixture.
8. Strain bouillon mixture into pot, pressing on pulp to maximize liquid, discarding pulp.
9. Add tomato sauce, tomato paste, wine, and spices.
10. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer covered, stirring regularly to prevent sticking and burning.
11. In a large skillet over medium heat, break up 2 pounds ground beef into small pieces.
12. Season to taste with salt, pepper, granulated garlic, and optional MSG.
13. Cook until browned, continuing to break up meat with a large fork.
14. Drain excess grease, and add meat to tomato mixture.
15. Continue cooking sauce, covered, for about 1 hour.
16. In a large bowl, combine thoroughly 1-1/2 lb ground beef, egg, onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, MSG, salt, and pepper, and breadcrumbs, adjusting to a firm consistency by varying amount of breadcrumbs.
17. Form into 3/4" meatballs.
18. Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in large skillet.
19. Add half of meatballs, and brown well over high heat.
20. Remove meatballs from pan, and reserve.
21. Repeat with remaining meatballs.
22. Drain grease from pan, but do not clean it.
23. Pierce skins of Italian sausages with a sharp fork.
24. Place in the skillet with about 1/2" of water.
25. Simmer over medium heat for about 10 minutes to render excess grease, turning several times.
26. Do not scrape bottom of pan while turning.
27. Drain water, and return pan to heat.
28. Continue cooking, turning sausages regularly, until skins are browned.
29. Remove from heat, and cool until sausages can be handled.
30. Cut each sausage crosswise into 1/4" slices.
31. Return to pan, and brown over medium-high heat.
32. Reserve sausage, and drain all but 2 Tbsp grease from pan.
33. Do not clean the pan.
34. Alternately, sausage can be removed from casing and cooked with the ground beef noted as in the first paragraph, and adding the following steps at that point.
35. Add 2 Tbsp butter to pan, and heat until sizzling.
36. Add mushrooms, and toss to coat with butter.
37. Saute over medium heat until mushrooms start releasing juice.
38. Add 1/2 cup wine, and simmer about 5 minutes, scraping bottom of pan thoroughly to deglaze.
39. Remove from heat, and reserve.
40. After tomato mixture has simmered for 1 hour, add meatballs, sausage slices, fresh basil, parsley, and mushroom mixture to sauce.
41. Continue cooking for about 15 minutes.
42. Adjust seasoning, adding more Italian seasoning, sugar, and salt and pepper as needed.
43. If sauce is too thick, thin with tomato juice or wine.
44. If sauce is too thin, continue cooking, uncovered, until desired consistency is reached.
45. Cover, and continue cooking for 1 additional hour, stirring regularly.
46. There should be little or no grease on top of the sauce.
47. If there is, skim or blot off and discard.
48. Toss 2-3 cups of the sauce with hot pasta that has been cooked until al dente.
49. Divide into serving portions.
50. Top each portion with about 1 cup of additional sauce.
51. Pass freshly grated Parmesan cheese on the side.
52. This may seem like a very large recipe, but it obviously takes quite awhile to prepare, so make the full recipe, and freeze the excess in fairly small containers.
53. It will keep for 6-8 months easily, and in my opinion, tastes better after aging.
54. If desired, and if you have a big enough pot, double the recipe, and pack in 1 quart Ziploc freezer bags for freezing.
55. One quart of sauce and 1 lb of uncooked dry spaghetti, cooked until al dente, will serve 4 people.