Marinara, Meat Sauce and Vodka Sauce

When I was younger, my mother who is of part Italian descent, taught me how to make red sauce and meat sauce.  Who knows if it is authentic, but this is how we made it : ) Sometimes we add a splash of red wine, or beef broth, but the basics stay the same.  Many variations existed for us, depending on what it was being used for.  Marinara for pizza, meat sauce for pasta, vodka sauce for rigatoni, etc.  When cooking for dad, these meals are nostalgic.  They can tend to be a little heavy, so I try and sneak in some vegetables and use fresh cheeses to reduce the saturated fats and preservatives.  

Basic Marinara:

2 jars tomato basil sauce (Lately I have been using Muir Glen Organic from Costco)

1 16oz can of diced tomatoes (Also Muir Glen Organic)

1 onion, diced

4 or 5 cloves of garlic, minced

pinch of sugar

pinch of salt

olive oil

Italian herbs (basil, oregano, parsley)

Directions:

Saute the onions on med heat until clear, then add the garlic.  Once just turning browned, add the sauce and diced tomatoes.  Add the seasonings to taste and simmer for however long.  I typically make sauce on the stove, just out of habit, but I am sure this can also be done easily in the Instant Pot.  

For Meat Sauce:

Same as the Marinara above, but prior to sauteing the onions, brown your ground beef in the pan or liner, and drain off most of the grease.  remove from the pan, and set aside until marinara is complete, then add the beef to the marinara for meat sauce.  

For "Vodka" Sauce:

We just add a bit of cream and Parmesan to meat sauce 😃

These sauces can then be incorporated into many types of freezer meals, or just frozen on their own to top any type of pasta.  

Enjoy!  


Here is the link for assembling the lasagna and baked rigatoni using these sauces: > lasagna-with-spinach-and-baked-rigatoni

Follow this link to my post about reheating using the Instant Pot>  reheating-frozen-meals-using-instant-pot

Hope you enjoy this easy recipe.  If you give it a try, would love to hear how it comes out for you!