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Healthy One Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce

written by Ashley Fehr

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4.92 from 49 votes
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 6 servings

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Last updated on August 26, 2024

This One Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce is a healthy, easy and delicious meal for any night of the week! Made healthier with hidden veggies and whole grain pasta.

Step by step recipe video included in the recipe card.

overhead image of one pot spaghetti with tongs stuck in

Table of Contents

I can’t speak to how things go at your place, but some days 5:00 hits and I stand in my kitchen, casually looking around for dinner to jump out and make itself.

And then nothing happens.

Sometimes I even — gasp — go to the emergency boxes of mac & cheese.

This One Pot Spaghetti? It’s made for Real Life.

(This Chicken Pesto Pasta, One Pot Taco Mac, and Easy Mac and Cheese are other one pot pastas we adore!)

close up image of one pot spaghetti and meat sauce with tongs stuck in

As a working mom of 3 kids 9 and under, the one pot pasta is a lifesaver.

When there is nothing else in the house, and the fridge and the veggie drawer are empty, I can still whip up some kind of one pot pasta because that is something we always have on hand.

This One Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce has got to be the favorite with my kids.

All three of them are big spaghetti lovers and will easily take a bowl of this over any creamy, cheesy pasta concoction I might come up with (which is why I had to whip up this Instant Pot Spaghetti recipe as well!)

I originally created this recipe after coming up with my Ultimate Mix and Match One Pot Pasta Guide, and it’s been a hit ever since.

It’s actually amazing how many veggies and healthy things you can stir into a bowl of pasta without anyone noticing 😉

Tips for making this One Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce:

  • I mean, I love to twirl, but do yourself a favor and break those spaghetti noodles in half. They will cook much more easily and you’ll have less clumping!
  • Use a big pan. The right pan is going to make a world of difference here — no one wants pasta juices sloshing over their stove top!
  • The secret to sneaking in veggies (not that we need to sneak them in, my girls actually prefer raw veggies!), is to shred them, puree them, or dice them up super small. If you have a selective eater, this is a great way to show them that they actually do enjoy a lot of the things they might think they don’t.
ground beef and onions cooking in pan
Cook ground beef and onions
veggies added to cooked ground beef and onions
Add vegetables and seasonings
liquid ingredients added to ground beef and vegetables for spaghetti
Stir in liquid ingredients
dry spaghetti added to spaghetti sauce in pan
Add dry pasta and cook until al dente
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Variations of this One Pot Spaghetti:

  • For more flavor, swap the ground meat for Italian turkey sausage.
  • If you really like a punch of flavor, you can add a little more red pepper flakes to bring the heat.
  • You can leave out the meat and add extra veggies — mushrooms and peppers are great additions!
  • If you prefer to cook your pasta separately, try this Best Homemade Spaghetti Sauce!
close up image of one pot spaghetti with fork stuck in

Like this one pot Spaghetti? Here are more spaghetti recipes you might enjoy:

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Healthy One Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce

written by Ashley Fehr

4.92 from 49 votes
This One Pot Spaghetti and Meat Sauce is a healthy, easy and delicious meal for any night of the week! Made healthier with hidden veggies and one other secret ingredient I bet you’ll never guess! www.thereciperebel.com
overhead image of one pot spaghetti with tongs stuck in
Review
Print
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Cuisine American
Course Main Course
Servings 6 servings
Calories 406cal

Ingredients

  • 1 lb lean ground beef or use turkey or pork if you want
  • 1 small onion finely diced
  • 1 large carrot (peeled and shredded)
  • 1 cup freshly chopped spinach
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • ½ tsp dried oregano
  • ½ teaspoon dried basil
  • ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 4 cups low sodium chicken, beef or vegetable broth
  • 28 oz canned crushed tomatoes
  • 375 grams box of whole grain spaghetti (about 13 oz)
US Customary – Metric

Instructions

  • In a large skillet, cook ground beef and onion over medium heat, stirring often, until beef is browned. (If not using lean ground beef, you may want to drain excess fat from the pan)
  • Add shredded carrot, spinach, salt, garlic, Italian seasoning, oregano, basil and red pepper flakes and cook 1-2 minutes.
  • Add broth and crushed tomatoes. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and then dry spaghetti and reduce to medium heat. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes until pasta is cooked, stirring often to keep spaghetti from clumping. (If sauce thickens too quickly and pasta is not yet cooked, simply add another ¼-½ cup broth and keep cooking)
  • When pasta is cooked, taste and adjust seasonings as desired. Optional: add 1 teaspoon granulated sugar if tomatoes are bitter.
  • Serve with shredded Parmesan cheese and fresh basil as desired.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 406cal | Carbohydrates: 62g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 47mg | Sodium: 1065mg | Potassium: 1026mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 2479IU | Vitamin C: 16mg | Calcium: 114mg | Iron: 7mg
Keywords one pot pasta, one pot spaghetti

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Meet Ashley

My name is Ashley Fehr and I love creating easy meals my family loves. I also like to do things my way, which means improvising and breaking the rules when necessary. Here you will find creative twists on old favorites and some of my favorite family recipes, passed down from generations!

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Comments

  5. Beth says

    How lovely and such a delicious meal! We’ve made this a few times now and my son really loves this! Such great flavor and I can’t wait to make this again!

    Reply

  6. Angela says

    I am all for one pot meals! I used ground turkey here and the spaghetti turned out amazing! I’ll never boil pasta separately again.

    Reply

  9. Lilly Stevens says

    So I’ve been dieting and came across this recipe. I made it today and OMG it is so good! I used vegetable pasta instead of whole wheat. Delicious! Next I’m trying the One Pot Chicken Fajita Pasta! Thank you so much for sharing!

    Reply

  12. Marisa says

    Hi Ashley,

    Just tried this recipe for tonight’s dinner as I was running out of time. It was super yummy and not too salty at all. My toddler slurped it all up in no time. 🙂 Thanks for this yummy recipe! Definitely a keeper in my recipe book.

    Reply

  14. Cailee says

    This looks perfect!! I love it! I’m really getting into one pot dishes as of late! Great recipe! Thanks for sharing!! This is definitely “blog worthy” :p you’re the cutest!!

    Reply

  15. Dorothy Dunton says

    Hi Ashley! I like the way you think! I quite often add vegetable juice to casserole type meals – low sodium is a must for us as we are both quite salt sensitive. I can’t tolerate a lot of canned products because of the high sodium levels. I cook with salt of course because some salt is needed, but I never find it necessary to salt my prepared food and I don’t keep a salt shaker on the table, a peppermill yes.

    Reply
4.92 from 49 votes (30 ratings without comment)

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