I’m breaking out my slow cooker again for an absolutely delicious meat sauce! It’s so flavorful, and it’s loaded with both ground chuck and hot sausage. I even snuck a couple of red peppers into it for some added nutrients. My husband never even noticed them! This recipe reminded me of my mom’s (and aunts’) meat sauce. It was that good!
This recipe does require a decent amount of prep before you throw everything into the slow cooker, but believe me, it’s well worth the extra work. This also make a ton of sauce! I recommend freezing half of it right off the bat. (You could always just cur the recipe in half, but who doesn’t want a delicious sauce in their freezer for one of those busy weekday nights?)
I made zucchini noodles instead of pasta and they were perfect. (I am tempted to make some delicious rigatoni with the sauce I have in the freezer though. A little pasta never hurt anyone, right?) Use whatever pasta (or pasta substitute) your heart desires!
Start with the meat…
- Remove 8 hot sausage links from their casings. (You sweet sausage if you prefer!)
- Heat a skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add the sausage and 1 pound of ground chuck.
- Break the meat up with a wooden spoon.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until all of the meat is browned.
- Meanwhile, dice up 2 onions and 2 red peppers, and mince up 7 cloves of garlic.
- Once the meat is browned, transfer it to your slow cooker using a slotted spoon so all the fat drains out.
- Discard all the excess fat that remains in your skillet.
- Place your skillet back over the heat and add a little EVOO.
- Add the diced vegetables and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
- Transfer the vegetables to your slow cooker.
- Pour in 3 large cans of crushed tomatoes.
- Add 1 small can of tomato paste.
- Pour in ½ cup of red wine. (I used a Malbec because the bottle was already open.)
- Season generously with some coarse kosher salt and ground black pepper.
- Sprinkle in a little crushed red pepper flake.
- Add some dried thyme.
- Finish with some grated Parmesan cheese.
- Stir to combine.
- Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
- Just before the sauce is finished, spiralize 3 zucchini through the shredder blade.
- Place the zucchini noodles in a large microwavable bowl.
- Cover and microwave on high for 4-5 minutes until softened slightly.
- Drain the zucchini noodles before serving.
To serve, place some zucchini noodles in the center of your plate.
Top with lots of the meat sauce. (Don’t be stingy! Also, if you are using regular pasta, you may want to toss the pasta with a little sauce before serving and then top it with more sauce once it’s plated.)
Finish with a little Parmesan.
Enjoy!
- 1 pound ground chuck
- 8 hot Italian sausage links, removed from their casings
- 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 red peppers, diced
- 2 onions, diced
- 7 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 large cans crushed tomatoes
- 1 small can tomato paste
- ½ cup red wine
- coarse kosher salt
- ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flake
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 3 zucchini, spiralized through the shredder blade
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add the ground chuck and sausage meat.
- Break the meat up with a wooden spoon.
- Cook until browned, about 10 minutes.
- Transfer the meat to your slow cooker using a slotted spoon.
- Discard the excess fat in the skillet.
- Add the olive oil to the same skillet.
- Once the oil is hot, add the peppers, onions, and garlic.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 10 minutes.
- Transfer the vegetables to the slow cooker.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, wine, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flake, thyme, and Parmesan cheese to the slow cooker.
- Stir well.
- Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
- Just before the sauce is finished, place the zucchini noodles in a microwavable bowl.
- Cover and microwave on high for 4-5 minutes.
- Drain the zucchini noodles.
- Toss the zucchini noodles in the meat sauce and add some extra Parmesan cheese.
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