Best Slow Cooker Sunday Sauce Recipes

SLOW-COOKER SUNDAY GRAVY

Slow-Cooker Sunday Gravy image

This sauce showcases tomatoes three ways: sun-dried tomatoes add sweetness and body, toasted tomato paste adds intense flavor, while crushed tomatoes melt down into this hearty sauce.

Provided by Food Network Kitchen

Time 8h30m

Yield 6 to 8 servings

Number Of Ingredients 13

Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pounds hot Italian sausage links
2 tablespoons tomato paste
4 beef short ribs (about 2 pounds)
2 teaspoons dried Italian herb mix
6 cloves garlic, smashed
6 sun-dried tomatoes, preferably not oil-packed
Two 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
1 large onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound rigatoni or ziti
Freshly grated Parmesan or pecorino

Steps:

Heat a large skillet or a 5 1/2- to 6-quart stovetop-safe slow cooker insert over medium-high heat. Add the oil and sausage and cook, turning occasionally, until brown all over, 7 to 8 minutes. Push the sausage to the side of the cooker. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until brick red, about 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup water and bring to a boil, stirring to scrape up the browned bits.
Add the short ribs, Italian herbs, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, onions, bay leaf, 1 tablespoon salt and some pepper to the insert and put it into the slow cooker. If you're using a skillet, transfer the tomato mixture to the slow cooker at this point. Cover the cooker, set it on low and cook until the beef is very tender, 6 to 8 hours.
When ready to serve, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain.
Transfer the sausage and beef to a cutting board, slice into serving portions and arrange on a serving platter. Toss the pasta with some of the sauce and transfer to a serving bowl.
Serve the meat and pasta with the Parmesan and remaining sauce on the side. Freeze any leftover sauce for up to 1 month.

SUNDAY SAUCE

Sunday Sauce image

In many Italian American households, Sunday means there's red sauce simmering all day on the stove. It might be called sauce, sugo or gravy, and surely every family makes it differently, but the result is always a tomato sauce rich with meat. This recipe (which you can also make in a slow cooker) follows a classic route of using shreddy pork shoulder, Italian sausage and meatballs. Once the sauce is done, coat pasta in the sauce, spoon some meat on top and share it with the whole family alongside a green salad, crusty bread and red wine. The sauce can keep refrigerated for up to one week and frozen for up to three months.

Provided by Ali Slagle

Categories dinner, pastas, main course

Time 3h30m

Yield 6 to 8 servings

Number Of Ingredients 12

Ingredients

2 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 3-inch chunks
Kosher salt and black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
1 pound hot or sweet Italian sausage, or a combination
1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
6 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1/3 cup red wine
2 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
3 basil sprigs
1 pound uncooked homemade or store-bought meatballs
1 1/2 pounds tubular or long noodles, like rigatoni or spaghetti
Grated Parmesan or pecorino, for serving

Steps:

Season the pork shoulder all over with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium high. Working in batches if necessary, cook the pork until browned on two sides, 8 to 10 minutes total, adding more oil if the pan looks dry. Transfer pieces to a bowl as they finish. Add the sausages to the pot and cook until browned, 4 to 6 minutes total. Transfer to the bowl.
Reduce the heat to medium-low. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, if needed, and the onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, and cook until softened, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the red wine, stir, scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan and cook until the wine is nearly evaporated, 2 to 4 minutes.
Add the tomatoes and basil, then fill one of the 28-ounce cans with water. (You'll use it in a second.) Return the pork shoulder and sausages to the pot, along with any accumulated juices in the bowl. Nudge them around so they are submerged. Add the meatballs on top, then add enough water from the can to cover the meat. (There's no need to stir.) Partly cover the pot, bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pork shoulder falls apart when shredded with a fork, 2 to 2½ hours.
When you're ready to eat, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package instructions until al dente. While the pasta cooks, slice the sausage and shred the pork shoulder. Transfer to a platter along with the meatballs and a few spoonfuls of sauce. Reserve ½ cup pasta water, then drain and add the pasta to the pot of sauce. Over medium heat, toss the pasta with the sauce, adding pasta water as needed until the sauce clings to the pasta.
Divide pasta between bowls, then top with a bit of each meat. Pass the Parmesan and platter of meat at the table.