Slow Cooker Meat Sauce
Servings: 8 cups
Calories: 231kcal
This Slow Cooker Meat Sauce is perfect for your next spaghetti night dinner. Made with ground beef and Italian sausage, it’s hearty and full of tomato flavor. The best part, it’s simple to make because it cooks in the crockpot. Leftovers are great for a delicious homemade lasagna.
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Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef I prefer lean such as 90% or leaner
- ½ pound Italian sausage
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ½ teaspoon pepper or to taste
- 1-28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 2-6 ounce cans tomato paste
- ¼ cup water
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon rubbed sage
- ¼ teaspoon marjoram
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- In a large pan or dutch oven, cook the ground beef, Italian sausage, onion, and garlic until cooked through and no longer pink. Drain off fat, if desired. Season with salt and pepper.
- Transfer the cooked meat mixture to the insert of a 5 quart slow cooker or crockpot. Add the crushed tomatoes through the marjoram and stir to combine ingredients.
- Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours. Discard bay leaves before serving.
- Serve with your favorite pasta.
Notes
- We love this meat sauce on pasta like spaghetti or penne and even zoodles (zucchini noodles).
- If you don't like or want Italian sausage, add half a pound more of ground beef. You can also try ground pork or make the entire recipe with ground turkey.
- This sauce is slightly sweet so if you prefer more zing, leave out the sugar and replace one can of tomato paste with tomato sauce (puree). You can also add a teaspoon of crushed red pepper.
Nutrition
Serving: 1Cup | Calories: 231kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 58mg | Sodium: 517mg | Potassium: 425mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 125IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 2mg