Grandmas Meat Sauce Recipes

GRANDMA'S OLD ITALIAN SPAGHETTI SAUCE WITH MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in the bottom of a large saucepan, and fry the garlic cloves 5 to 8 minutes, until brown and fragrant. Remove the garlic cloves and set aside. Place the pig's feet and pork neck bones in the saucepan and fry, turning occasionally, until the meat and bones have browned, about 15 minutes.
• Return the garlic cloves to the saucepan, and stir in the tomato paste and 1 1/2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, and pour in the tomato puree. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 3 hours, stirring from the bottom often to prevent burning, until the pig's feet are tender and the mixture begins to thicken. Stir in the sugar, pepper, and baking soda. Continue to simmer while you prepare the meatballs.
• Soak the torn bread with 1 cup of water in a bowl. Squeeze excess water out of the bread, and place the bread in a large bowl with the 6 beaten eggs, ground pork, ground veal, and ground beef. Mix thoroughly and form into 24 meatballs about 2 1/2 inches in diameter.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, stir in the minced garlic and chopped fresh basil, let them cook for about 1 minute, and then add the meatballs. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and fry them on all sides until brown, about 15 minutes, working in batches, if necessary.
• Place the browned meatballs, along with the oil, garlic, and basil from the skillet into the sauce, stirring lightly to avoid breaking them. Add the whole hard-boiled eggs, and simmer for about 1 1/2 more hours, until the meatballs are cooked, the sauce is thick, and all the flavors have blended.

GRANDMA'S SUNDAY SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a pot and cook pork ribs until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Cook sausages until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the same plate as the ribs.
• Drain off some of the excess fat. Reduce heat to medium-low and pour in remaining olive oil. Add onion and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook and stir until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute; make sure not to burn. Pour in 1/2 of the red wine and scrape up any browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
• Add tomato paste, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Stir until paste starts to darken, about 2 minutes. Stir in remaining red wine and water.
• Add tomatoes and their juices, crushing by hand as you add them to the pot. Season with basil, remaining salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to a low simmer. Taste and add sugar if sauce is too acidic.
• Return ribs to the pot. Simmer, partially covered, adding more liquid if needed, for at least 2 hours. Add sausages back to the pot for the last 45 minutes of cooking. Add fresh basil during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Discard bones before serving.

GRANDMA MAGGIO'S SPAGHETTI SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat, and cook and stir the onion and garlic until translucent but not browned, 6 to 7 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms and basil, and cook and stir until the basil is wilted and the mushrooms are cooked through and have given up their juices, about 10 minutes.
• Pour in the whole peeled tomatoes, and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring and chopping the tomatoes into pieces with a spoon. Pour in the tomato sauce and stir, crushing any large pieces of tomato left, and bring to a simmer. Let the sauce simmer until slightly thickened and bubbling, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.
• Stir the tomato paste into the sauce, and fill the empty tomato paste can with Merlot wine, stirring to dissolve any remaining tomato paste in the can. Pour the Merlot wine into the sauce, and stir well to combine. Bring the sauce back to a simmer, and stir in the salt, pepper, dried oregano, and sugar. Let the sauce simmer until the seasonings are blended and the sauce is heated through, about 3 more minutes.