I grew up in an Italian American household which meant pasta once a week. We went through all the sauces very quickly, and sometimes twice a week. I thought I had tasted them all until my Mom’s 2nd annual work Christmas party and her friend Dottie made spaghetti. This was an off limits party to kids, but I knew I had to sneak in there and take a bit. My first bite I still remember. The sauce had big chunks of meat and peppers. It looked so juicy and decadent as I snuck myself a bowl. Her spaghetti had forever changed the way I viewed pasta night, so today I share that recipe with you.

Brown your meat! Take your time and get that pot hot as to allow your meat to caramelize. This is a crucial first step with meat recipes. After that everything else pretty much gets dumped in. If you prefer only ground beef or only Italian sausage, you do what you like. The sauce relies heavily on a meat element, but the spices are what give this sauce it’s signature zing.

When it comes to tossing the pasta with the sauce vs putting the sauce on top, please mix the sauce in. I know it may look good to some of the hooligans out there, but it does more to hurt the final dish then help. Garnish it with cheese and sprinkle with chopped parsley if you want to make it look even better. The sauce coats the noodles beautifully.

Don’t forget my favorite tip when making a big batch of sauce like this. Make extra and freeze for later! You will be salivating over this sauce and you will regret not having more. Think of Dottie from Chicago when you’re making this sauce and when you come to the windy city, you can thank her.