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Yes, sometimes I just grab a big ole jar or two of spaghetti sauce at the grocery store instead of making a big batch of homemade. There’s nothing wrong with that. But I don’t just heat it up and toss it over cooked pasta. Nope, I gotta make my shortcut spaghetti. It’s a dish I started making in my bachelor years, and have perfected over time.

Stick With Italian Sausage

You can use ground beef instead of Italian sausage, but I wouldn’t. The first years I made shortcut spaghetti I used beef. Sausage is better. Much better. And my homemade Italian sausage is fantastic. I make a batch and freeze it in one pound packages. Perfect for a shortcut dish.

I like to use my good ole trusty Dutch oven to make this spaghetti and pretty much darned near anything like it on my stovetop. It’s nice and big and sturdy. That extra weight helps it maintain and distribute heat perfectly. As an added bonus, it’s actually pretty easy to clean up too!

Amazon Basics Enameled Cast Iron Covered Round Dutch Oven, 6-Quart, Blue

Oh, and I almost forgot! Instead of pasta, serve the meat sauce mixture on a hoagie or sub roll as a sandwich and top with tons of shredded mozzarella. It’s the perfect messy Sloppy Italian Joe sandwich. Or substitute meatballs for the sausage.

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5 from 1 vote

Shortcut Spaghetti

You can use ground beef instead of Italian sausage, but I wouldn’t. The first years I made shortcut spaghetti I used beef. Sausage is better. Much better.

Course Main

Cuisine American

Keyword spaghetti

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 3 30

Total Time 3 45

Servings servings

Calories 21kcal

Author Mike

Ingredients

2 14 ounce ground Italian sausage
1 pound mushrooms sliced
1 large sweet onion chopped
2 24 ounce spaghetti sauce
spaghetti cooked per package instructions
parsley chopped, for garnish
Parmesan cheese grated, for garnish

Instructions

Crumble the sausage into a large skillet over medium-high heat.
When the sausage is almost browned add the mushrooms and onion and continue sauteeing until the onion starts to soften. Remove from heat and drain.
Add sauce to a large pot over low heat.
Add in the meat mixture.
Cover and let simmer for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally.
Serve over cooked pasta (or mix the pasta in with the sauce first) garnished with parsley and Parmesan.