Traditional Homemade Italian Pasta Sauce Recipe

🍝 What makes this recipe special?

This recipe combines the deep flavor of a traditional French Tomato Mother Sauce with the meaty flavors of a hearty Italian Ragu sauce. So, this isn’t quite a conventional version of either the French tomato mother sauce or quite a traditional Italian Ragu. It lives somewhere in the middle.

We combine the two traditions for deep, rich tomato flavors. This recipe goes straight from fresh tomatoes to a completed, special sauce that will knock your socks off. 

If you are looking for a different ways to use your tomatoes, check out this Rustic Tomato Soup recipe or this Salsa Recipe. Looking for some other Italian recipes? Look at this Italian Zucchini Casserole recipe or this Traditional Puttanesca Sauce with Linguine recipe.

🍅 Ingredients

Tomatoes are obviously the star of this Italian pasta sauce recipe, but there is much more to it.

• Roma tomatoes
• Onion
• Carrots
• Salt pork
• Butter
• Beef broth
• Ground pork
• Ground hamburger
• Flour
• Red wine
• Salt and pepper
• Spaghetti noodles

See the recipe card for quantities.

Choosing Tomatoes

I have used the canned variety of San Marzano in the wintertime with great success, but I prefer fresh tomatoes! Right now, where I live, it is tomato season, and we have tomatoes growing in our garden. I am going to use them.

I choose fresh and ripe tomatoes almost every time. The caveat is that the tomatoes should not be of the giant or huge variety. Medium-sized and plump tomatoes have worked well for me. If you are only growing Big Boy or Beef Steak tomatoes and want to make a really special sauce, I would maybe get some store-bought roma tomatoes or (even better) from the farmers market.

I guess what I am trying to get at is that there is a tad of an art to this. Romas and San Marzanos are great for sauces if you can get them fresh (and ripe) or if they are canned ones and you don’t have access to great fresh tomatoes.

If it is the middle of the Winter and your produce section isn’t looking great, I would almost prefer the canned ones. If it is Summer and I have some thick tomatoes that I know will be great, I will pick those.

Salt Pork

It is a pork belly product, so it is closely related to bacon. It is different, however:

1. While salt pork is from the pork belly, it is more toward the end of the belly and is more fat than meat.
2. It is never smoked like bacon is.
3. It is cured in brine longer and with heavier flavors, so it is basically saltier.

It is great to have around and great for a big, hearty sauce like this. You could use bacon or pancetta in a pinch, but salt pork is the way to go. As a tip, you might find it in the frozen area of your store or ask the butcher.

Red Wine

A dry red wine should do. A Pinot Noir, Merlot, or Chianti will work well. As to the quality of the wine you use, I don’t know I would be spending too much on cooking wine. 

There is something to be said about only cooking with wine you would drink, but there are many reasonably priced wines that are drinkable. Don’t overthink it.

Render the fat from salt pork along with some butter. Add the veggies. After that cooks for a while, add flour, broth, and tomatoes. Cook for a good 90 minutes. 

Add the browned ground meat and wine to the sauce and continue to simmer for an additional 90 minutes. Then, serve this delicious Italian pasta sauce on top of some spaghetti. 

🤷 Substitutions and variations

There are plenty of ways to change this pasta sauce recipe up?

• Pasta – do you need to use Spaghetti noodles? No. Use whatever pasta you want. It will work. 
• Wine – This can change the flavor a bit, but use a reasonably priced Pinot Noir, Merlot, or Chianti.  
• Salt Pork – I call for salt pork, but you can use bacon or pancetta instead. 
• Tomatoes – Canned tomatoes can work. I am not afraid to use them, but I always think it is special to use fresh tomatoes. 
• Meat – I call for ground pork and beef. You can use one or the other, just double the amount. 

This is a pretty forgiving recipe ripe for the opportunity to make it your own. If you are using Italian flavors, most often it should work out. 

📦 Storage

I recommend using this sauce right away, but will last a few days in the fridge and it does freeze well. If you cover it and store it in the refrigerator, it should keep for three days. Use your common sense and just enjoy the flavors. 

❓ FAQ

📝 Tips and tricks

• Can’t find Salt Pork? Ask the butcher in your store or look in the frozen section. I find it in the frozen food aisles at my normal grocery store. If you still can’t find it, try pancetta or bacon.
• Don’t get too worked up about the kind of tomatoes. Some nice, ripe, fresh, and medium-sized tomatoes should do the trick. Roma and San Marzano are very popular in sauces, but I am not afraid of tomatoes that are a bit plumper. Canned San Marzano are also great!
• Chianti, Pinot Noir, or Merlot work great for the wine in this recipe. Buy stuff you would drink, but keep it on the more economical side of things.
• Freeze the sauce and keep it for leftovers or future meals. This is a great sauce for freezing.

🛠 Products used in this recipe

• Strainer for straining noodles.
• Large Glass Bowl for tossing.
• Large Pan for making sauce.

😋 Did you make this recipe?

Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try! I appreciate you allowing my recipe onto your grill and table. Could you do me a favor by leaving a review in the comments area below? This helps me know how I am doing and helps others decide if this is their recipe. Most of all, thanks for visiting Ramshackle Pantry!