Skip to Content

How to Make Yummy Zucchini Marinara Meat Sauce

Sharing is caring!

I have made homemade marinara sauce many times because in my opinion canned sauce just won’t do. When I first was looking for a good marinara recipe, I had a really hard time finding a recipe that reminded me of Italian restaurant marinara.  It took some experimentation, but when I finally created “the one”, I was in love!  I hope you love it, too.  I love this sauce because it is really easy to make and it is a great way to use up some zucchini from the garden!  Your family will love it!

 

How to Make Yummy Marinara Sauce

 

pasta, red sauce, zucchini

This post contains ads.

 

Ingredients

1/4 c dried minced onion

2 tsp minced garlic

1 c grated zucchini (or grated carrots, if you don’t have zucchini)

1 1/2 tsp of garlic salt

1 pinch of fennel seed

1/2 tsp thyme

1/8 tsp crushed red pepper

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 bay leaf

56 oz. diced canned tomatoes (briefly pulse the tomatoes in your blender to the point that they are mostly liquid but still have some small chunks)

1 1/2 Tbsp  sugar

2 1/2 tsp dried oregano

2 Tbsp dried basil

A dash of tabasco sauce (ONLY a dash…anything more than that will over-power the flavor of your sauce!)

½ -1 pound of browned ground beef, drained (optional)

 

how to make yummy marinara

 

Now let me tell you how easy it is to throw it all together!

Directions

  • Heat all of the ingredients (except for the ground beef) in a large pot.  Note:  If you do not have fennel seed, get some!  I am telling you it makes all the difference in marinara sauce!
  • Once it comes to a boil reduce heat and let it simmer for 1-2 hours, so it can reduce. 
  • Meanwhile, brown your ground beef in a skillet
  • Once the meat is cooked thoroughly, drain it well, then add it to the simmering sauce.
  • After the sauce has simmered for 1-2 hours, remove the bay leaf.  Do not cut simmer time short.
  • Serve on pasta or use as pizza sauce.  Yum!  If you make large batches, you can freeze some of it for later.

 

 

pasta, red sauce, zucchini

 

I know that your family will love this delicious,  garden-fresh marinara!   Enjoy!

 

pasta, red sauce, zucchini

How to Make Yummy Marinara

Yield: 6-8 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes

This flavorful marinara brings garden fresh to your plate! Shredded zucchini or carrots, garden fresh tomatoes if you have them (although you can use canned tomatoes if needed), make this pasta sauce burst with flavor! Try this yummy shredded zucchini marinara today!

Ingredients

  • 1/4 c dried minced onion
  • 2 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 c grated zucchini (or grated carrots, if you don't have zucchini)
  • 1 1/2 tsp of garlic salt
  • 1 pinch of fennel seed
  • 1/2 tsp thyme
  • 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 56 oz. diced canned tomatoes (briefly pulse the tomatoes in your blender to the point that they are mostly liquid but still have some small chunks)
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
  • 2 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 2 Tbsp dried basil
  • A dash of tabasco sauce (ONLY a dash…anything more than that will over-power the flavor of your sauce!)
  • 1 pound of browned ground beef, drained (optional)

Instructions

  1. Heat the all of the ingredients (except for the ground beef) in a large pot. Note: If you do not have fennel seed, get some! I am telling you it makes all the difference in marinara sauce!
  2. Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat and let it simmer for 1-2 hours, so it can reduce (excess water evaporates so it thickens and makes the flavors bolder).
  3. Meanwhile, brown your ground beef in a skillet. Once it is cooked thoroughly, drain it well, then add it to the simmering sauce.
  4. After the sauce has simmered for 1-2 hours, remove the bay leaf. *Do not cut simmer time short.
  5. Serve on pasta or use as pizza sauce. Yum! If you make large batches, you can freeze some of it for later

Notes

*Do not cut simmer time short.

I love my Presto Salad Shooter for shredding the zucchini! It's fast, easy, and you can wash it in the top rack of your dishwasher, so it is easy to clean!

Nutrition Information
Yield 8 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 46Total Fat 1gSodium 46mgCarbohydrates 8gSugar 3gProtein 1g

See you next time!

Deb

 

yummy zucchini marinara

 

P.S.  You should try this marinara drizzled over my Stromboli recipe!  It tastes amazing!

Sharing is caring!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Shann Eva

Monday 31st of August 2015

Yum. This sounds great. I've always wondered what to use fennel seed for! Thanks for the recipe.

Nikki @ MBAsahm

Monday 31st of August 2015

This sounds sooo delicious! This is the first time I've seen zucchini used too! Will definitely be giving this a try :) Thanks for the inspiration!

Debra

Monday 31st of August 2015

Zucchini is AWESOME in marinara! :)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Skip to Recipe