Simple Chunky Meat and Vegetable Pasta Sauce

My Simple Chunky Meat and Vegetable Pasta Sauce is super easy, can be made ahead, freezer friendly and is also packed with flavor. It’s a family favorite!

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Friends, I’m a spaghetti sauce fiend. I love, LOVE spaghetti pasta with red sauce. Sometimes I’ll mix things up and serve it over spaghetti squash. I’ve even been known to eat the sauce on it’s own just by the spoonful. What I love about this Simple Chunky Meat and Vegetable Pasta Sauce is that, as the name suggests, it’s full of healthy veggies too!

I’m not kidding when I say I could eat this every day. Like every day for a month and still not tire of it! For real. My family is not as big fan as I am but they do like it and know of my love for it. Maybe it’s my Italian roots that influence my love—it’s in my blood!

This Simple Chunky Meat and Vegetable Pasta Sauce is super simple to make. Chop up the vegetables ahead of time (or use frozen, prechopped veggies!) so that assembly is quick and easy come meal time.

Easy Make Ahead, Freezer Friendly Meal

I also LOVE that I can make a big batch of this Simple Chunky Meat and Vegetable Pasta Sauce, portion it out and freeze it so I can thaw it out later for a quick and easy meal that saves my sanity after a busy day. I’m all for make ahead whenever I can! Plus, this sauce tastes even better the second day once the flavors have time to blend.

I originally shared this recipe with you back in 2012 (can you believe?!) and it was part of a Crazy Cooking Challenge where we, food bloggers, took other bloggers recipes and modified a recipe we found online, make a few modifications and then post the recipe on our own blog. My original inspiration came from a blog called In Between Laundry but it looks like the last post there was back in 2012 so the owner is no longer blogging. Bummer!

This Simple Chunky Meat and Vegetable Pasta Sauce is a bit chunkier than some others. If you prefer a smoother sauce or you’ve got family members that may turn up their noses if they spy the extra veggies, I will sometimes modify it by taking about half of it the cooked sauce, pulsing it a few times in the food processor to make it a little “smoother”. Then I will add that back to the rest of the chunky sauce and it is perfect! I actually like it both ways, but my kids prefer the smoother version.

I serve this Simple Chunky Meat and Vegetable Pasta Sauce over our favorite shaped pasta and add a garden salad and homemade garlic bread on the side. My family loves this sauce as an alternative to the Slowcooker Homemade Spaghetti Sauce (that we love too—it’s so versatile!)

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Print Recipe

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Ingredients

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup onion chopped
• 3/4 cup carrots grated or finely diced
• 1/2 cup celery chopped
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 3 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 1/2 cup tomato puree
• 28 ounces petite diced tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions

• In large saucepan, saute ground beef until browned. Remove from pan to a medium bowl and set aside. Drain off or wipe up any liquid from pan. 
• In same large saucepan, add olive oil and saute onion, garlic, carrots and celery until tender. 
• Reduce heat and add fresh parsley, dried oregano, tomato puree, petite diced tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, pepper and beef from first step. 
• Stir to combine. 
• Increase heat to medium high and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. 
• Serve with your favorite pasta or use as a marinara in your favorite recipes!

Serving: 0.66cup | Calories: 2107kcal | Carbohydrates: 109g | Protein: 99g | Fat: 148g | Saturated Fat: 42g | Cholesterol: 322mg | Sodium: 2346mg | Potassium: 5299mg | Fiber: 27g | Sugar: 57g | Vitamin A: 404.5% | Vitamin C: 160.8% | Calcium: 59.4% | Iron: 145.1%

Notes

This recipe can be made ahead and also frozen! 

Make ahead and store in refrigerator for up to three days until you are ready to use. 

Or store in freezer safe containers, label and freeze for up to 3 months. 

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Love Pasta? Check out these Similar Recipes With Pasta

Slowcooker Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
Delicious Crockpot Lasagna Soup
Super Simple Skillet Lasagna Florentine
Pepperoni Pizza Pasta Salad
One Pot BLT Pasta

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