GREEK SPAGHETTI WITH MEAT SAUCE RECIPE (MAKARONIA ME KIMA)

Greek Spaghetti with Meat Sauce is a traditional pasta dish that’s a cherished favourite for all Greek families. It’s rich, aromatic, and so flavourful!

Greek Spaghetti and Meat Sauce, also known as Makaronia me Kima or Μακαρόνια με Κιμά in Greek (pronounced Maka-RO-nia me Kee-MA) is a beloved pasta dish similar to an Italian Bolognese Sauce. Warming spices give it a complimentary and unique flavour compared to other tomato-based meat sauces. Cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg are added with just little dashes, but as they cook, they infuse a very rustic, full-bodied, balanced flavour.

There are many variations for Greek Spaghetti and Meat Sauce recipes. We are sharing a traditional and classic recipe but you can always adjust it to your preference.

Makaronia me Kima is easy to prepare. Most of the time it takes to make it is hands-free, while the meat sauce is simmering. It can be prepared as a weeknight meal because it’s ready to eat in about an hour from start to finish. However, if you have more time, like for a fancy Sunday lunch, let the meat sauce slow cook on a simmer for up to two hours to give it a more indulgent flavour and texture. Once you try our recipe you will never eat jarred pasta sauce ever again!

TONY’S NOTES

“Makaronia me Kima is an all-time classic recipe that every Greek family loves. It’s part of the average Greek family’s menu at least twice per month. As a child, I remember craving it the way my kids crave it today. Greeks typically add lots of shredded hard cheese on top of their Makaronia me Kima. The most popular choice is graviera cheese but you can use any other substitute such as parmesan or Swiss gruyere. It is a humble recipe that is memorable and comforting. Smile and Enjoy!”

INGREDIENTS FOR GREEK SPAGHETTI AND MEAT SAUCE RECIPE

Meat Sauce

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 800 grams ground beef
• 1 (approx 3/4 cup) large carrot peeled, finely chopped
• 1 (approx 1/4 cup) celery stalk leaves removed, finely chopped
• 1 (approx 1 cup) medium red onion finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic peeled, crushed
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 4 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 can (400g) no-salt added diced tomatoes in liquid
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley finely chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 beef bouillon cube
• 1½ tsp sugar
• 1½ tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 dash ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch ground nutmeg
• 1 pinch ground clove
• 3/4 cup water
• 3 tbsp butter (optional)
• 1/4 cup hot pasta water

Pasta

• 500g (1 package) dry spaghetti noodles
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 10 cups water

HOW TO MAKE MAKARONIA ME KIMA RECIPE

Place a large Dutch oven on the stovetop and set to medium-high heat. Once hot, add the olive oil first and then ground beef to the pot. Break the meat up into pieces with a spatula so it’s spread across the whole bottom of the pot. Do not overmix because you want the meat to brown and caramelize which will give it an excellent flavour. Mix approximately 3 times in about 5 minutes, keeping an eye on it to ensure that it doesn’t burn.

Once the beef has browned and looks like it’s almost fully cooked, add the onion, garlic, carrot, and celery and mix together. This needs to be cooked for only about 3 minutes, just enough to make the onions sweat.

Add the wine and deglaze the bottom of the pot with the spatula. Scrape any little brown meat bits from the bottom of the pot. The brown bits add more flavour to the sauce. Allow the wine to cook for about 3 minutes.

Next add the tomato paste, the canned tomatoes, the spices, the seasonings and 3/4 cup of water. Mix until well combined. Bring to a boil and then turn down the heat to low-medium.

Cover the pot. Let it simmer for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. If you are not in a rush then allow it to slow cook on low heat and simmer for up to 2 hours. Add a tiny bit of water if needed. Over time, you will see the colour becomes a deep, rich red and the aromas release from the spices.

After the meat sauce has been simmering for about 15 minutes, you can start preparing the pasta. On another burner, bring a large pot of water to a boil. When the water is at a full boil, add 1 teaspoon of salt and the noodles. Cook the noodles to al dente, which is tender but firm, based on the package instructions, usually between 6-10 minutes, depending on the type of noodle. When the cooking is complete, carefully scoop out 1/4 cup of hot pasta water and set aside. Remove the pot from heat and drain the pasta. Place the pasta back in the pot it cooked in and set aside for one minute.

At this time, turn off the heat for the meat sauce, discard the bay leaves, and add the hot pasta water and butter (if using) to the meat sauce and stir until it melts. With tongs, carefully add the cooked noodles to the meat sauce in small batches, folding them into the mixture so they don’t break. Once all of the pasta and meat sauce are mixed together, let it sit in the Dutch oven with the lid on for at least 10 minutes. This allows the noodles to absorb the flavours of the meat sauce.

Serve warm, on a plate or in a bowl topped with grated cheese and a side of bread.

NOTES AND TIPS

• I prefer preparing the sauce for Makaronia me Kima in a large Dutch Oven. The heaviness of the pot allows it to cook more evenly and the weight of the lid gives it a tighter seal than a regular pot. This allows the liquid from the cooking process to be redistributed into the sauce instead of evaporating.
• Once you try our classic recipe as posted, you can play around with different variations to suit your preferred tastes. You can add other vegetables that you would have on hand such as mushrooms or zucchini, or you can remove some of the spice if it’s a bit too aromatic (even though these warming spices give the dish its signature flavour). For an extra kick, try adding a dash of red chili flakes or hot sauce.
• Butter is not totally necessary to this dish but I highly recommend adding it to the sauce. Adding butter to meat sauce creates a rich, creamy texture with a delicate flavour. Finishing tomato-based pasta sauces with butter mellows the acid from the tomatoes and vegetables and gives it a decadent result.
• Traditionally this dish is prepared with normal spaghetti noodles. My kids really love it with rotini noodles because it is a little easier to eat when the pasta is in bite-sized pieces. The ground meat also sticks into the little corkscrew grooves perfectly.
• I always combine the sauce with the noodles before serving and allow it to sit for at least 10 minutes before serving to allow the pasta to absorb the flavours of the sauce. Before I combine the sauce with the noodles I always set aside a little bit of the meat sauce because the boys like to eat it by the spoonful and Tony will scoop it up with a piece of crusty bread. Try it for a little treat!

SERVING SUGGESTIONS FOR MAKARONIA ME KIMA

Typically Greek people add a finely grated strong-tasting Greek hard yellow cheese to the top of the pasta before serving. The most common choices would be graveira, kefalograveira, kefalotyri, or myzithra. Alternatively, parmesan and Swiss gruyere go well with it too. Adding cheese isn’t mandatory and the taste is amazing even without it. Greeks often also add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil on top of the pasta, before adding any cheese.

I recommend serving Greek Spaghetti and Meat Sauce with a small (or big) piece of crusty bread to clean up any remaining sauce on your plate.

Finally, you might as well finish off that bottle of red wine you opened for the sauce and pour yourself a glass, or two, to round out the rest of this meal.

ALLERGY INFORMATION FOR GREEK SPAGHETTI WITH MEAT SAUCE

Our Greek Spaghetti with Meat Sauce recipe is:

• Egg-free
• Nut-free
• Peanut-free
• Soy-free
• Sesame-free
• Fish-free
• Crustacean-free
• Mustard-free

Always check food labels to ensure the ingredients comply with dietary needs. Some bouillon contains dairy and wheat. This can be substituted with soup salt or plain salt.

This recipe can be dairy-free by omitting the butter or using vegan butter.

HOW TO STORE GREEK SPAGHETTI AND MEAT SAUCE

Store leftover Makaronia me Kima in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Place it in an airtight, freezer-proof container when storing it in the freezer. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. When ready to use, let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Gently heat over the stove. The pasta texture will change a bit and aesthetically it won’t look as nice, but the flavour is still on par.

TRY THESE DELICIOUS CLASSIC GREEK RECIPES NEXT!

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