Homemade Ragu Sauce
This rich, homemade ragu sauce is full of flavor, filling meat and veggies, and is incredibly delicious served over pasta. This recipe is a great way to elevate jarred or homemade marinara sauces!
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Meatballs and marinara has been one of my favorite meals for years, but this homemade ragu sauce over fresh pasta has easily taken its place as a go-to meal when I want something classic, cozy, and utterly delicious.
It doesn’t hurt that my kids proclaim it as “BEST PASTA EVER” whenever I serve this dish, usually alongside garlic knots, one-hour focaccia, or soft warm French bread.
Summer is a great time to enjoy homemade ragu sauce, too, because of the abundance of fresh tomatoes and peppers that taste better now than any other time of the year. (Though, canning tomatoes is a great option to enjoy a hint of summer taste later on when they aren’t growing fresh.)
Keep reading for the recipe and some tips and recommendations for sauce, pasta, and summer produce– a serious trifecta of goodness!
Homemade Ragu Sauce
While I still love meatballs, I really enjoy the simplicity and ease of homemade ragu sauce, especially when paired with a great marinara. Everything cooks together in one large pot, and once you get it going, it’s just a matter of letting it simmer for a while to develop the flavor.
Not to mention, it makes your home smell amazing!
The mix of ground beef and Italian sausage add a lot of depth to the sauce, so I absolutely recommend using both! (My boys very much appreciate the meatiness of this homemade ragu, too).
My first choice for the marinara I add is always homemade. I am a bit obsessed with homemade marinara sauce and always say I could drink it with a straw– even if I’ve yet to do so. I use the recipe from my Instant Pot cookbook for big batch marinara. The recipe makes enough for a batch of ragu and to have sauce leftover.
If I’m not using homemade marinara, my first pick for jarred sauce is Rao’s. It’s really good, and Costco now carries it too!
Likewise, my first choice for pasta to pair with homemade ragu is fresh, homemade pasta. There’s nothing quite like the silky, tender, deliciousness of fresh pasta noodles. If you’ve never tried making pasta at home, you should totally give it a try at least once!
That said, fresh pasta doesn’t always fit into the schedule so I always keep convenient package pasta on hand. A bag of spiral pasta is what I paired my last batch of homemade ragu with.
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Classic Homemade Ragu Sauce
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 10–12 servings 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
This rich, homemade ragu sauce is full of flavor, filling meat and veggies, and incredibly delicious served over pasta. This recipe is a great way to make jarred or homemade marinara sauces so much better!
Ingredients
- 1–1.25lb ground beef
- 2–3 sweet Italian sausage links
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 medium green pepper, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 6 cups marinara sauce
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 heaping teaspoon dried basil
- 1 heaping teaspoon dried oregano
Instructions
1. Heat a large dutch oven or similar style pot over medium heat. Add the ground beef and sausage to the pot and brown until the meat is no longer pink, using a spoon or spatula to break up the meat as it cooks. Drain any grease from the pot.
2. Push the browned meat to the edge, then add the onion, peppers, and garlic to the center of the pot. Flatten the vegetables down, then let them cook undisturbed for about 5 minutes. Once the vegetables are beginning to soften, stir them together into the meat mixture. Add the herbs and kosher salt and stir again.
3. Pour in the marinara sauce and mix until thoroughly incorporated. Bring the sauce to a low boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low/low and let the ragu simmer for at least thirty minutes. (You can simmer it longer, just keep the heat low so the sauce does not reduce too much).
4. Taste and add extra salt or herbs to your preference. Serve over pasta, potatoes, or polenta. Top with fresh basil and/or grated parmesan.
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