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Try a true taste of Italy right in your own kitchen! This Authentic Italian Spaghetti recipe is rich, hearty, and just like the pasta you’d find in a cozy trattoria.
A True Italian Recipe
This authentic Italian spaghetti recipe, also know as ‘Nicco’s Sghetti’ in our family, is all the classic comfort of spaghetti with a true taste of Italy. A special thanks to Nick (my brother-in-law) for sharing this recipe with us! He spent two years in Italy and brought home all sorts of delicious, Italian recipes including this one. This traditional spaghetti quickly became a family favorite, and it’s one we make over and over because it truly is a little taste of Italy.
Serve this up with Italian pasta noodles or make our homemade pasta from scratch (a recipe we learned at a culinary school in Napoli)! Try it alongside our Caprese Salad and Rosemary Garlic Focaccia Bread for a full meal.
🩷Erica
Table of Contents
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Tomatoes: If you can’t peel and dice your own fresh garden tomatoes, whole canned D.O.P. San Marzano tomatoes (from the grocery store, look for the DOP label) are the best substitution.
- Vegetables: Carrots, onions, and garlic are sautéed as a base for the meat sauce. These add a great flavor and a touch of sweetness.
- Meat: You can use all beef, all pork, or a combination of both!
- Seasoning: Authentic Italian spaghetti doesn’t require a lot of extra seasoning, all you need is some garlic, fresh basil, and salt and pepper.
- Sugar: I only use sugar if I feel like the tomatoes I’m using aren’t sweet enough or if I feel like the acidity isn’t balanced. Taste your sauce along throughout the process and decide if you feel like it is needed or not.
- Spaghetti Noodles: For best flavor and texture, use spaghetti or pasta imported from Italy, or make your own pasta. Authentic Italian spaghetti noodles are usually a pale cream color rather than bright yellow, with a slightly rough/textured, matte surface that helps sauce cling. They’re made from high-quality durum wheat semolina and are typically slow-dried, giving them a firm, yet chewy texture once cooked. It is very different from the smooth, yellow, shiny look of cheaper American-made pasta.
What Tomatoes Are Best For Homemade Spaghetti?
If using fresh tomatoes, you can never go wrong with a good garden tomato for spaghetti sauce. Romas are good, meaty tomatoes with few seeds and cook down well into a sauce after they are heated. Dip them in boiling water for 30 seconds to make removing the skins easier before cooking. If using canned tomatoes, my VERY favorite are San Marzano tomatoes with the D.O.P. label (pictured below). These tomatoes come straight from Italy and they are by far the best. The brand doesn’t matter as long as it has the D.O.P. seal. I usually get the “Kirkland” brand at Costco with the seal for an incredible price. I like getting the 28 oz. can of the whole, peeled tomatoes and crushing them myself with a wooden spoon after they soften and simmer down. They are much better than using crushed tomatoes.
Types of Spaghetti Sauce
The meat sauce for this spaghetti is a true Italian “ragù”. So what exactly does that mean? It is easy to get confused with all of the different kinds of “red” pasta sauces. What’s the difference? IS there a difference? Truth is, they are all similar and some are simply variations of one another, but they have their differences. Allow me to explain…
Common Tomato-Based Spaghetti Sauces:
- Ragù – Ragù is a meat-based sauce made with sautéed vegetables and simmered slowly for hours in tomato, broth, wine, and/or milk. There are two common variations of ragu: Ragu alla Bolognese and Ragu alla Napoletana.
- Ragù alla Bolognese (aka Bolognese) – From the Bologna (Northern) region in Italy. Uses less tomatoes and white wine. Traditionally served with wide pasta or lasagna.
- Ragù alla Napoletana – From the Naples (Central/Southern) region in Italy. Uses more tomatoes and red wine. Traditionally served with thinner pasta, such as spaghetti.
- Pomodoro Sauce – (also known as Sugo di Pomodoro) is a simple tomato sauce that is smooth and flavorful. It is another great authentic sauce for spaghetti that we got from Italy!
- Marinara – Marinara is a simple tomato sauce with common Italian seasonings. Unlike the sauces above, marinara is heavily tomato based and does not contain meat. Though the sauce is mostly tomatoes, it may or may not include onion or other vegetables. Marinara is bright, acidic, and light, as opposed to the above sauces which are more rich, hearty, and complex.
- Spaghetti Sauce – Spaghetti sauce is an Americanized term for any kind of red sauce that is served over noodles. It can include any of the sauces above. Be sure to try our Homemade Canned Spaghetti Sauce. This is our favorite way to make our fresh, garden tomatoes last all year!
Tips For Cooking Pasta Noodles
Learning to get the perfect spaghetti and sauce takes some practice but once you get it down, it’s easy! Here are some tips for making the perfect Italian spaghetti:
Use the good stuff – As I mentioned above, don’t use over-processed, Americanized pasta noodles (noodles should not be yellow). Find noodles that are imported from Italy (they are easy to find and not much more expensive).
Salt the pasta water – Not just a pinch. You want to add a good amount, enough that when you taste the water you can distinctly tell that there is salt there.
Stir while cooking: Stir the pasta immediately after adding it to the boiling water to prevent sticking. Stir occasionally during cooking to ensure even cooking.
Cook to al dente – Follow the recommended cooking time on the pasta package, but taste-test a minute or two before it’s supposed to be done. The pasta should be firm to the bite (al dente).
Save pasta water – Before draining the pasta, reserve a cup of the pasta cooking water. It’s rich in starch and can be used to adjust the consistency of your sauce.
Tips for Making the Sauce
Let the sauce simmer. The best spaghetti sauces take time. The longer you can let those flavors reduce and simmer together, the better. In many Italian kitchens, the sauce will simmer all day long before being served. It will get nice and thick without having to add tomato paste! If it gets too thick, just add a splash of beef broth to thin again.
Add a little red wine (optional): add a splash of red wine to the meat after browning but before adding the other ingredients for a new dimension of flavor.
Balance the sauce: Taste your sauce and adjust the seasoning as needed. You might need a pinch of sugar to balance acidity or some salt and black pepper for flavor.
Don’t over sauce: The sauce should coat the pasta, not drown it. Start with a small amount and add more as needed.
Finish in the pan: Finish the pasta in the pan with the sauce for a few seconds. This allows the flavors to meld. Use a little reserved pasta water if needed to thin.
Frequently Asked Questions
Adding a pinch of sugar to your pasta sauce can create a more balanced sauce by cutting the acidity of the tomatoes. The acidity of tomatoes varies depending on whether or not they are canned or fresh, the time of year it is, and the type of tomato they are. Just give your sauce a taste and stir in some sugar accordingly only if needed.
Typical American spaghetti sauce comes in a jar and is a complex blend of spices, flavors and additives combined with a tomato base. Authentic Italian spaghetti sauce (whether it be marinara, ragu, or pomodoro) is often homemade and starts with fresh tomatoes combined with a small handful of basic, fresh ingredients.
Read Next: Spaghetti Casserole
More Delicious Pasta Sauces
Have you tried this Authentic Italian Spaghetti? I’d love to hear what you think! Drop a comment below and let me know how you liked it. And don’t forget to take a pic and tag us on Instagram @favoritefamilyrecipes! 📸🍝🍅
Authentic Italian Spaghetti
Equipment
- Large Skillet (we love these cast iron ones from Camp Chef)
- large pot
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 3 carrots peeled, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic (crushed or minced)
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/2 pound ground pork
- 1 1/2 pounds tomatoes (fresh peeled and diced tomatoes or canned San Marzano tomatoes)
- 6 fresh basil leaves chopped (or 1-2 teaspoons dried basil)
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional, see notes above)
- beef broth (if need to thin sauce while simmering, you can also use pasta water or a splash of red wine)
- 1 pound spaghetti noodles
- fresh basil (for garnish)
Instructions
- Heat oil on medium heat in a large, deep skillet. Add onion, carrots, and garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add ground beef and pork and continue to cook.
- When meat is browned and onions are soft, add tomatoes.
- When tomatoes have softened and have started to release their juices (about 4-5 min) add basil, salt and pepper. If you are using whole tomatoes, mash them with a potato masher or spatula to release all their juices. Taste the sauce and only add sugar if you feel it is needed to balance the flavors.
- Simmer on low for at least 1 hour, or up to 6 hours, stirring occasionally. The longer you simmer, the better. Important: Tomatoes burn easily, so keep an eye on them and add beef broth a little at a time to thin sauce if needed.
- In a large pot, cook spaghetti in salted water to al dente, drain completely and return to pot. Add sauce to the spaghetti noodles and toss until noodles are covered. Add fresh basil for more flavor and garnish, to taste.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
What To Serve With Spaghetti
When we were growing up, our mom would almost always serve spaghetti with frozen peas. You can also serve your spaghetti with a side salad, or one of these tasty side dish ideas:
Awesome! Just follow the recipe.
Thank you! So glad you liked it!
Was looking for a recipe with carrots !! Making it today.
I hope you enjoy them!
I’ve a recipe similar to this one that I’ve meaning to try. I love good meat balls lazana pizza meat balls subs .I am going to soon. But interested in finding that one recipe. What do you call a clove of garlic 🧄 to you. The whole bloom or the portion that come apart?
Great question! A clove of garlic is a single segment of the garlic bulb or whole bloom. Thank you for asking!
The instructions say garlic, but there’s no garlic in the ingredients list. How much garlic does the recipe need?
Whoops, I don’t know where that could have gone! It is 4 cloves, crushed. I added it back into the recipe card.
What size are the pots or pans?
I usually use my large skillet (12″) and a 12-quart stock pot, but you can probably use an 8-quart too. Hope this helps!
Haven’t tried this yet, but it seems familiar to that used by the Ladies of St. Anthony’s church in Little Italy now called SOHO.
Great!
Thanks!
This was very informative & helped in perfecting my personal recipe.
BEST SPAGHETTI SAUCE EVER , I NEVER ATE A BETTER ONE THAN THIS GREAT SAUCE . 👍 👌 😋😋😋😋 WOW ! ! 🥰😍🤩🤗😋😋