Better Than Jar Pasta Sauce

Pasta Sauce Basic

1 small sweet oniondiced small

3 cloves roasted garlicmashed

2 tbsp olive oil

1 stalk celerydice half, cut the rest into 3 large pieces

1 medium carrotsliced down the middle and cut into 4 large pieces

1 large bay leaf

28 oz fire roasted tomatoeslarge can, diced

28 oz san marinino tomatoescanned, whole peeled

½ small can tomato paste

½ tomato can of waterpouring in both cans to get all the sauce from the can

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried parsley

1 ½ tbsp unsalted butter

½ cup parmesan cheesegrated fine.

Pasta Sauce Finish

1 tbsp olive oil

1 ½ lbs fresh ground chuck or skirtor if you have ground bison available

2 tsp kosher salt

2 tsp black pepper

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 cup sweet oniondiced

8 oz crimini mushrooms sliced

½ cup chicken stock

Pasta Sauce Basic

In a 8 quart pot heat olive oil to medium high heat. Saute onion for a couple minutes, add mashed garlic and stir well to incorporate. Salt and pepper to taste. Add celery and carrot and saute for 3 or 4 minutes. Add bay leaf.
Add tomatoes, paste and water. (I pour up the water up in one can, then empty it into the second can to get the rest of the contents, then pour it on.) with a wooden spoon, break up whole tomatoes.
Bring to a boil, stir well, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover and simmer on low for an hour.

At this point, remove the bay leaf and large portions of the carrot and celery.
With an immersion blender, blend up about 1/3 to all the sauce to desired consistency. If you want a little thicker sauce, reserve your pasta water and pour a small amount of it at this point. But use small amounts. Add oregano and parsley, stir and simmer 5 more minutes. Add butter and let melt, stir to mix well. If still too thin, add Parmesan when you plate it.

Pasta Sauce Finish

Heat olive oil in 3 quart saute pan to med high heat, add ground meat in chunks. Let sear slightly before breaking up. Season well with salt, black pepper and garlic powder.
Add onions and mushrooms, mix well and let simmer 10 minutes. Drain off fat and pulse in a processor 3 or 4 pulses, or to desired consistency.
Place back in heated saute pan and let reheat well.

Let mixture cook until it just begins to stick on the bottom of the pan. Turn up heat slightly, add tomato stock and clean bottom of pan with wooden spoon. Add more stock if needed to make sure all the meat has liquid. Cover and simmer 10 minutes, uncover and let simmer until most liquid is gone. Stirring along the way.

Once the meat mixture is finished; add 6-8 ladles of pasta sauce to saute pan and bring up to simmer. Stir well to combine. Cover and simmer 5 minutes. Check for seasoning.

Tips and Techniques

If you are looking for a thinner sauce, it should be good out of the pan, or add a small amount of pasta cooking water to thicken slightly.
If you want a thick sauce, then add some Italian bread crumbs; one tablespoon at a time, mixing well before adding the next.

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Better Than Jar Pasta Sauce