Bloke Cooking: Den's Easy Spag Bol

[den]

1/2 kg minced meat
2 small onions, or one large one
2 cloves garlic (or more if you like)
1 tin diced tomatoes
1 x 500g jar of pasta sauce (garlic & herbs, or red wine & mushrooms)
2 rashers of smoked bacon with the fat trimmed off.

Optional: Mushrooms, herbs. Basil is a good one to throw in, or add whatever you reckon is a fair thing even if it's that red stuff in the jar at the back of the cupboard that no one knows what to use in, or even who bought it..

Dice the onions and bacon, and slice the garlic really finely. Lightly brown the meat in a pan with about 2 teaspoons of oil (olive, canola or sunflower) to stop it from sticking. Then dump in everything, and use the tomato tin to add that much water. It will look disgustingly watered down. Don't panic.

Put a lid on the pan and let it simmer for more than 60 minutes.

Stir it occasionally. When it has reduced from an ugly watery mess into a nice thick sauce, bung it onto some spaghetti.

Consume with beer.

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/crossfire_/]

That pretty much describes my usual pasta sauce. Sometimes I get all fancy and use fresh tomatoes instead of tinned, but usually I don't bother. I also use tinned chicken broth instead of water, which makes it all the more tasty.

Oregano is another good herb to add to this one. Crumble it over the meat before you dump everything else in. Ditto thyme. Basil should go in near the end, since it's more delicate. Or does the use of too many herbs move it out of the realm of bloke cooking? ;-)

[dewhitton.livejournal.com]

If you use a lot of herbs you don't need salad. 8)

I would have used oregano if I had any. And I used fresh, minced basil about 15 minutes from the end. But with true bloke cooking it all gets dumped in at the start and is eaten in the end.

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

What size tin of tomatoes? In America there are two common sizes, one that's like a Campbell's Soup can and one about twice that big. Using the wrong one could lead to Problems. :)

[dewhitton.livejournal.com]

I used the soup can size, but for more meat I'd use the larger one. Better to have too much tomato than not enough. 8)

[sinboy.livejournal.com]

Oragano. Always oregano.

[dewhitton.livejournal.com]

Didn't have any. 8(

[accessingname.livejournal.com]

yummy

[dewhitton.livejournal.com]

it was. 8)

[kythrain.livejournal.com]

Yep... this sounds a lot like my typical pasta sauce. This would also quite likely kill acelightning with the onions and garlic.

[claire.livejournal.com]

Tis also Weredonut cooking, although I am only an honourary bloke.

The boything would not cook that as it has more than 3 ingredients. He's young, however, and may learn the proper way of cooking as he gets older...

[dewhitton.livejournal.com]

Tell him you can never have too much garlic.

[elektron.livejournal.com]

But bacon is half fat! (I'm not sure if you can dice it, anyway.)

Not exactly sure how 'that much' water is. Usually we just use pre-made pasta sauce. None of us are the onion type either =P

[dewhitton.livejournal.com]

"That much" is when you empty out the tin and fill it water then add that


And it depends on the bacon.