The 30-Minute Spaghetti I Make for People I Love

TL;DR

A nostalgic Midwestern-style meat spaghetti sauce using ground beef, Italian sausage, and crushed tomatoes, ready in 30 minutes.

Key Points

• 1.- Use 1 lb 80/20 ground beef + 8 oz Italian sausage; spend 6-7 minutes breaking meat into the smallest particles possible with a meat musher for better texture.
• 2.- Cook 75g tomato paste dry in fat until rusty red (~90 seconds) to eliminate tinny canned flavor and deepen tomato intensity before adding wet ingredients.
• 3.- Add 15g Better Than Bouillon beef base and 8g sugar to boost meatiness and balance acidity; use quality crushed tomatoes (recommended: Bianco DiNapoli, ~$3.99/can).
• 4.- Reduce sauce 30-40% over ~20 minutes with a lid to control splattering; finished sauce should leave a sturdy trail when a spatula passes through it.
• 5.- Finish with 10g fresh basil, heavy Parmesan (18-24 month aged), and a drizzle of good olive oil; drain pasta thoroughly to prevent watery sauce pooling in the bowl.