David’s 30 Minute Spaghetti

David’s 30 Minute Spaghetti

Contributed by: David LaFerney

Source: From a word of mouth recipe that I was taught by my Mother.

Shirley’s Father (Earl Jean Maxwell) and before him Her Grandfather (John H Wilmoth) always raised cattle and would give a fattened calf to our family and each of Shirley’s siblings at least once a year. Because of this we always had a plentiful supply of beef in our freezer, especially ground beef, and it was a staple in our household.

This recipe is inexpensive, quick, and delicious so our family had it at least once a week for years (plus leftovers). By thawing the meat in the microwave, you can literally have this on the table 30 minutes after you start.

  • 1 pound of ground beef
  • 1 tablespoon of chopped garlic (I usually use the kind that is pre chopped in a jar)
  • 1 large onion chopped
  • 1 bell pepper (any stage of ripeness) chopped
  • 26 oz more or less have canned spaghetti sauce (Prego, or hunts)
  • Or 26 oz tomato sauce
  • Or 12 oz of tomato paste and 12 oz of water
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 tablespoon of cooking oil (I prefer olive oil, but you can use any kind including butter or margarine)
  • 4-8 servings of pasta (according to package directions) we usually use spaghetti, but any kind will work

    In a heavy 4 qt. pan over medium high heat start browning the onion, peppers, garlic and meat in the cooking oil. Season lightly with salt and pepper. If you are using packaged spaghetti sauce be careful not to over season. When the meat is browned, pour the meat mixture into a colander to drain any fat that has cooked out. While the meat is draining, lower the heat to medium and add the tomato sauce to the pan. Stir until the sauce comes to a simmer (this will loosen the brown bits from the meat) and then add the meat mixture back to the pan. Return to a simmer (stirring often to prevent sticking) then lower the heat to very low and cover until the noodles are ready. This is the time to taste the sauce and add more salt or pepper if needed. Toss together the sauce and noodles and serve with Parmesan cheese, salad, bread, and iced tea. This makes good leftovers for a few days.

    Tips:

  • 3) Nobody likes over cooked pasta. If the package says, cook for 9-11 minutes start tasting it at 7-8 minutes and drain it immediately as soon as it is no longer crunchy.
  • 4) Season the pasta water with 1 tablespoon of salt and butter or oil.
  • 5) Wait for the water to boil before adding the pasta then bring it back to a boil and lower the heat to medium low. Don’t cover the pan or it will boil over.
  • 6) Don’t add spaghetti noodles to the water in a bundle. Fan them out as you add them or they will stick together in a mass and be disgusting. Stir the water as you add them to prevent this. Once the water comes back to a boil (30 seconds if you are on high), the danger of sticking is over.
  • 7) Try to avoid holding the noodles once they are drained and ready or they will again stick together. Adding oil or butter to the water helps to avoid this, but the best thing is to be ready to mix the sauce and noodles as soon as the noodles are ready.
  • 8) If you drain the noodles in the same colander that you already used to drain the meat, the hot water will go a long way toward getting the colander cleaned up.
  • 9) If you add the noodles to the sauce in the pan that you cooked the sauce in, and serve it out of the same pan, you will only have one pan that is really very dirty. This is a worthy thing after a workday.

    Put leftovers in an uncovered casserole dish; heat in the microwave, top with cheese and brown in a 350-degree oven as a variation.

    • Jones :: Sep.14.2007 :: Entrees ::

    Comments are closed.

    Trackback URI |