30 Minute Spaghetti with Tomato Sauce
Posted February 28, 2007 – 7:11 pm in: 30-Minute Meals, How To, Italian, Main Dish, Pasta, Tips
The Simple Dollar offers five tips for preparing home-cooked meals, with minimum effort at the end of a busy day.
- Prepare meals in advance.
- Discover the crockpot.
- Have regular “leftover” nights.
- Use lots of items that require minimal preparation.
- Eat extremely simple meals
The Simple Dollar » “I’m Too Tired To Cook” - At-Home Dining Solutions For The Overworked Family.
I find that a combination of the last two tips can lead to some first-class dishes, without resorting to microwaved “poor man quesadillas” Here’s my recipe for spaghetti with tomato sauce that can be prepared in the time in takes the water to boil and the pasta to cook.
Ingredients:
- 1 pound dried spaghetti
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- 1 28 ounce tin of diced tomatoes
- salt and pepper to taste
- grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
- Fill the pasta pot with enough water to cook the spaghetti, salt well and place on high heat. Once the water comes to the boil add the spaghetti and cook until al dente.
- Meanwhile, heat oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion, a pinch of salt and saute for five minutes. Add the dried herbs, crushing them and cook for another minute.
- Add the ground beef, break it up and cook until no longer pink.
- Stir in the diced tomatoes, bring to a simmer. Add pepper and reduce heat and continue to cook until the spaghetti is ready.
- Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
- Drain the spaghetti, return to the pot and toss with the tomato sauce.
- Serve with Parmesan cheese. Serves four as a main course.
The thing with this, and similar dishes, is you can substitute to your heart’s desire depending on the contents of your pantry.
- You can use ground or boneless chicken parts or omit the meat for a vegetarian version.
- If you like it spicy, add some dried chilis during the cooking process.
- Use what dried herbs you might have, instead of basil and thyme.
- If you happen to have fresh herbs on hand, chop them and add them just at the end of the cooking process.