Vegetarian Crock Pot Spaghetti Sauce

Vegetarian Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce

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Prep: 35 mins
Cook: 8 hrs
Total: 8 hrs 35 mins
Servings: 6 servings

This excellent and nutritious sauce combines beautifully with any type of pasta. Rotini or rotelle are good because their ridges hold the sauce as you eat.

We think that spaghetti sauce is one of the easiest recipes to make vegetarian. You don't need meat in this type of sauce. The vegetables add more than enough flavor. ​

You can use your favorite vegetables in this sauce; don't limit yourself to just a few. Add some sliced or chopped zucchini or yellow summer squash. Grated carrots would be delicious. And more types of mushrooms, including dried mushrooms, add umami, that "fifth flavor" that tastes like meat.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

  • 1 onion, chopped

  • 3 cloves garlic, minced

  • 2 carrots, 1 chopped, 1 shredded

  • 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced

  • 1 green bell pepper, chopped

  • 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce

  • 2 (14-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained

  • 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste

  • 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 2 teaspoons sugar

  • 16 ounces spaghetti

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2. Add the olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium heat.

  3. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 minutes until they are tender.

  4. Add the carrots, mushrooms, and bell pepper and stir.

  5. Cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.

  6. Place the vegetables in the bottom of a 4- to 5-quart crock pot and add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, pepper, salt, and sugar.

  7. Stir well. 

  8. Cover the crock pot and cook on low for 7 to 8 hours. This recipe can cook as long as 10 hours.

  9. Uncover the slow cooker, stir the sauce thoroughly, then leave the cover off the crock pot and turn the heat to high.

  10. Cook, uncovered, for 1 to 2 more hours to thicken the sauce.

  11. At this point, the sauce can be frozen.

    Or you can go ahead and serve the heated sauce with cooked spaghetti and grated Parmesan cheese.

  12. Enjoy!

Freeze the Sauce

  1. Divide into smaller portions and cool in the refrigerator.

  2. Portion the sauce into freezer containers.

  3. Wrap, label, and freeze the sauce up to three months.

  4. To thaw and reheat, thaw the sauce overnight in the refrigerator.

  5. Pour into a skillet and heat over medium heat, stirring frequently, about 15 to 20 minutes or until the sauce bubbles and is thoroughly heated.

  6. You can even cook the pasta until almost tender and combine it with the cooled sauce.

  7. Freeze as directed, and thaw as directed.

    Tip

    You may need to add 1/4 to 1/3 cup water when reheating if you are freezing the pasta in the sauce. The pasta will be very soft using this method, like canned spaghetti.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
256 Calories
6g Fat
46g Carbs
9g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6
Amount per serving
Calories 256
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 6g 8%
Saturated Fat 1g 4%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 745mg 32%
Total Carbohydrate 46g 17%
Dietary Fiber 8g 29%
Total Sugars 15g
Protein 9g
Vitamin C 46mg 230%
Calcium 94mg 7%
Iron 4mg 24%
Potassium 1097mg 23%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)