Go Back Email Link
–+ servings
spaghetti with fresh tomato meat sauce on a fork in a violet bowl
Print Recipe
4.67 from 3 votes

Quick spaghetti with fresh tomato meat sauce

Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Servings: 2 servings
Author: Aleksandra

Ingredients

  • 6 oz (170g) spaghetti pasta
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small onion
  • 4 large cloves garlic
  • 1 teaspoon basil
  • a big pinch of cinnamon
  • a pinch of cayenne pepper
  • 7 oz (200g) ground beef
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 lbs (900g) fresh and ripe tomatoes 3 very large or 4-5 medium tomatoes
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • Parmesan cheese to sprinkle

Instructions

  • Cook the pasta al dente (it should have a bite to it) according to the package instructions.
  • Finely chop the onions and garlic. Peel the tomatoes and chop them finely, discard any excess water on the chopping board.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a big frying pan and add the onions, cook over medium heat for about 4-5 minutes or until soft and translucent. Add the garlic, basil, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper and cook for 1 more minute.
  • Move the onions and spices to the side of the pan, add another tablespoon of olive oil, set the heat to high and add the meat in an even layer. Let it cook for about 1 minute without stirring, letting the meat to brown, then stir and mix with the onions and spices. Cook, stirring, until the meat is cooked through (no longer pink).
  • Add the Worcestershire sauce, cook for 1 minute.
  • Add the chopped tomatoes. Cook over medium or medium-high heat for about 15 minutes until the tomatoes form a sauce (the sauce will be a little chunky). You can cook the sauce over high heat if your sauce is too watery. Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste.
  • Toss with the cooked spaghetti pasta. Serve sprinkled with grated Parmesan cheese.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

  • Please note that this recipe was developed as a quick summer dinner with fresh tomatoes in mind so it won't taste like a meat sauce that has been cooked for hours. This is a delicious compromise between flavor and preparation time!
  • Ingredient notes:
    • The point of this recipe is to use ripe and fresh summer tomatoes. If your tomatoes are watery, not very ripe and delicious it's better to use canned crushed tomatoes.
    • If your tomatoes are not very sweet, add 1/2 ts of sugar to the sauce.
    • Pasta - you can also use any other pasta instead of spaghetti.
    • Meat: I added lean ground beef but you can also use beef-pork mixture (if it's too fatty, drain the fat excess).
    • Worcestershire sauce can be omitted or you can add 2-3 Tbsp of dry white / red wine in its place.
  • Storage notes:
    This pasta dish tastes best freshly prepared. If you want to eat it the next day, you can store the sauce in the fridge for up to 3 days (or freeze it for up to 6 months) and serve with freshly cooked pasta.
  • Calories = 1 serving (1/2 of the recipe). This is only an estimate!

Nutrition

Calories: 789kcal