Tag: pasta

Spaghetti with Kielbasa, Peppers, and Onions

On November 25, 2020

We make this spaghetti with kielbasa, peppers, and onions often at our house. Basil and fresh garlic give the oil-based sauce a delicious flavor along with the seasoned awesomeness of kielbasa. Everyone loves it and there are no complaints – a win!

This spaghetti is super simple to make and requires only 10 ingredients. It is ready in less than thirty minutes, and the sauce is completely ready by the time the noodles are done cooking! It is perfect for a busy weeknight and also reheats well for lunches during the week.

This will take you through how to make this delicious spaghetti with kielbasa, peppers, and onions step-by-step. Let’s get started!

Ingredients for Spaghetti with Kielbasa, Peppers, and Onions

Kielbasa – Use whatever kind of kielbasa you like. Depending on what brand you choose the package size can vary from 12-16 ounces.

Peppers – I like to use a red and green bell pepper but you can also use two green peppers or whatever color you prefer.

Onion – A large onion adds a mild sweetness.

Garlic – This recipe calls for 3 cloves of fresh garlic, and it gives the sauce a lot of its flavor. You can certainly use more than this if you really like garlic!

Basil, Cayenne pepper, and Salt – The basil adds flavor and the cayenne adds a subtle heat. You can adjust these to taste.

Oil – I use olive oil, but any cooking oil will do.

Spaghetti – I usually use plain spaghetti but feel free to experiment with other pasta shapes.

How to Make Spaghetti with Kielbasa, Peppers, and Onions

Step 1: Prepare the Ingredients

Start by chopping the kielbasa and all of the vegetables. This sauce goes together very quickly so you want to have everything ready to go. While you are doing this, start heating the water for the spaghetti.

Step 2: Cook the Kielbasa

Add the kielbasa to a large frying pan and cook it until it starts to brown. You may need to add a little oil to the pan if your kielbasa is very lean.

Cook the kielbasa until it starts to brown.

Step 3: Add in the Vegetables and Start Cooking the Spaghetti

Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook according to the package directions (usually about 8 minutes).

After you put the spaghetti in, add the remaining ingredients to the kielbasa. Cook over medium high heat for about 5-10 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

kielbasa peppers and onions — Add in the vegetables and seasonings and cook until tender.

Step 4: Add in the Spaghetti

Drain the spaghetti when it is finished cooking and add to the vegetables in the pan. Mix well so the noodles are thoroughly coated with the delicious oil from the sauce. Taste the spaghetti and add more salt, basil, or cayenne pepper if desired.

spaghetti with kielbasa peppers and onions — Stir in the spaghetti and mix well so the noodles are evenly coated. It is now done and ready to serve!

Serve

Serve the spaghetti topped with a big sprinkling of shredded parmesan cheese and a side of roasted garlic green beans. Yum! Now there’s a quick meal your whole family will enjoy 🙂

Hope you get to try this spaghetti with kielbasa, peppers, and onions soon! Happy Cooking!

Spaghetti with Kielbasa, Peppers, and Onions

Recipe by: Mandy

Kielbasa sausage, peppers, onions, and fresh garlic give great flavor to this spaghetti. It is quick and easy to make–perfect for a busy weeknight!

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 10

Total Time 25

Servings 6

Ingredients

12 ounces dried spaghetti
1 package kielbasa rope sausage (12-16 ounces depending on the brand)
2 bell peppers, sliced
1 large onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried basil, or to taste
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste

Instructions

Start by chopping the kielbasa and all of the vegetables. This sauce goes together very quickly so you want to have everything ready to go. While you are doing this, start heating the water for the spaghetti.
Add the kielbasa to a large frying pan and cook it until it starts to brown. You may need to add a little oil to the pan if your kielbasa is very lean.
Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook according to the package directions (usually about 8 minutes).
After you put the spaghetti in, add the remaining ingredients to the kielbasa. Cook over medium high heat for about 5-10 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
Drain the spaghetti when it is finished cooking and add to the vegetables in the pan. Mix well so the noodles are thoroughly coated with delicious oil from the sauce. Taste the spaghetti and add more salt, basil, or cayenne pepper if desired.
Serve the spaghetti topped with a big sprinkling of shredded parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

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Slow Cooker Spaghetti Sauce

By Mandy

On October 19, 2020

In Cooking

This slow cooker spaghetti sauce is one of our family’s favorite Tuesday night dinners. Why Tuesday night? Because I work on Tuesdays and need something easy and quick for dinner. Also, everyone loves this spaghetti sauce at our house and there are no complaints – a win!

Why is this sauce so darn good? Something almost magical happens when it cooks all day in the slow cooker. The meat becomes super tender, which actually helps make the sauce nice and thick. Also, the tomato products have a chance to caramelize a bit. This results in a sauce with amazing flavor!

Could you cook this spaghetti sauce on the stove? Probably. But it would take a long time, you would have to babysit the pot so it would not burn, and it may never develop the qualities that make this sauce so yummy. The slow cooker is the way to go, baby! Read on to learn how to make this at home.

Assemble the Ingredients

This sauce uses simple ingredients that many people already have on hand. We will go through them now:

Herbs and ingredients sitting on the counter

Tomato products – This sauce uses a large 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes. Why is that, do you ask? How are crushed tomatoes different than tomato sauce? Canned tomato sauce is made from tomatoes of course. But it also contains a bunch of other seasonings in it. On the other hand, crushed tomatoes are just that—crushed tomatoes, with a bit of citric acid and salt, for flavor. I like using the crushed tomatoes because it gives me more control over what seasonings go in the sauce.

Now, since crushed tomatoes are a little thinner than regular tomato sauce, I add in a small 6 oz. can of tomato paste to help thicken the sauce. I love tomato paste and use it all of the time. Tomato paste is about as simple as it gets ingredient wise–tomatoes. The combination of the crushed tomatoes and tomato paste gives this sauce a perfect thickness.

Ground beef – This sauce contains a pound of ground beef. Try to choose the leanest ground beef possible because it will cook in the sauce and you will not be able to drain away the grease.

Onions, garlic, and mushrooms – These give the sauce great flavor. I use onions and garlic out of my garden when I have them. For the mushrooms I use a 6 oz. can of chopped canned mushrooms for two reasons. First, they are easy and I can just dump them in. Also, they have been cooked and a lot of the extra moisture is gone. Fresh mushrooms might make the sauce too watery. And did I mention that canned mushrooms are easy?

You might notice that the mushrooms are missing from the picture above. I forgot to buy them at the store—oops! The sauce was almost as delicious without them 🙂

Seasonings – This sauce contains a variety of seasonings. The sugar and salt are importance for the balance of the sauce. You can adjust these to taste. The others seasonings help to develop depth of flavor. Adjust them to what you like!

Make the Sauce

To make the sauce you dump all the ingredients in the slow cooker and stir it up. Seriously. It does not get any easier than that!

Spaghetti sauce with wooden spoon in a slow cooker — Dump the ingredients in the slow cooker and stir it up.

This sauce can be prepped ahead to save you time in the morning. To do this stir everything together the night before. Take the liner out of the slow cooker base, cover it with the lid, and refrigerate overnight. In the morning all you need to do is take it out of the fridge, pop it in the base, turn it on, and go about your day.

Cook the sauce on low for at least 8 hours. When I am at work it cooks for 10 hours and turns out great. The longer cooking process is necessary to help the sugars in the tomatoes caramelize and develop a deeper flavor. Do you see how the color has changed the picture below?

Spaghetti sauce with a wooden spoon in a slow cooker — The sauce after cooking all day. See how the color has changed?

Serve

When you get home you will be greeted with the most amazing smell! Boil up some noodles, add some garlic roasted green beans (recipe here) and you have yourself a delicious meal everyone will love! Yum!

Spaghetti with sauce and green beans — Add some roasted garlic green beans and dinner is served!

I hope you get to try this slow cooker spaghetti sauce soon. Happy Cooking!

Slow Cooker Spaghetti Sauce

Recipe by: Mandy

This spaghetti sauce takes minutes to throw together. After cooking all day the flavors blend to create one amazing sauce. It is the perfect meal for a busy weeknight!

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 8

Total Time 8 10

Servings 6

Ingredients

1 lb lean ground beef
1 can crushed tomatoes (28 oz)
1 can tomato paste (6 oz)
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can sliced mushrooms (4 oz), drained
1 teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
½ teaspoon dried mustard
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
Dash red pepper flakes, or to taste

Instructions

Stir all ingredients together in slow cooker.
Cook on low for 8-10 hours.
Serve hot over spaghetti or as desired.

Notes

This recipe may be assembled the night before if desired. Remove the insert from the base, cover it with the lid, and refrigerate overnight. In the morning place the insert into the slow cooker base, turn it on, and go about your day. Easy!

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