130 meat sauce recipes

Skinless chicken legs simmered low and slow in curried tomato sauce with garlic, cayenne, and mushrooms until the meat falls off the bone. Freezer-friendly and served over rice for an easy comfort dinner.

Hot bananas a la Baloo are grilled bananas marinated in honey, sambal oelek, and soy sauce. Spicy-sweet Indonesian-Japanese fusion side that pairs with grilled meats. Just four ingredients.

Cantonese-style asparagus beef stir-fry with thin-sliced flank steak, snappy asparagus and a punchy black bean sauce. Cornstarch-velveted meat stays tender, garlic-infused oil delivers aromatic depth.

Lemon oregano chicken thighs: pan-seared until golden, then roasted in a bright lemon-butter-oregano pan sauce. A fast Greek-leaning weeknight dinner with crispy skin and tender meat.

Low-fat roasted vegetable stock made with caramelized onions, carrots, leeks, and celery. This vegetarian brown stock adds deep, savory flavor to soups, risottos, and sauces without a drop of meat.

A punchy Venezuelan marinade with curry, fresh tomatoes, cilantro, and spicy barbecue sauce. Mix it in 10 minutes flat and slather it on any cut of meat for bold, smoky-spiced flavor.

Simple Middle Eastern yogurt and onion condiment with just three ingredients. Purple onion mingles with tangy yogurt and black pepper for a cooling sauce that pairs perfectly with grilled meats, rice, or flatbread.

Chicken Alla Spina braised with red wine, onions, and oregano in a roasting pan. An Italian-American one-pan chicken dinner with tender meat and a savory wine sauce for sopping with bread.

Create-a-casserole: a customizable baked pasta with your choice of meat, tomato sauce, and cheese. A flexible pantry dinner that uses up leftover cooked beef or chicken in 30 minutes of oven time.

Rendang is the legendary Indonesian beef curry: chunks of beef slow-simmered in spiced coconut milk and tamarind until the sauce reduces almost dry and the meat turns fork-tender. Deeply fragrant and richly spiced.

Duxelles is a mixture of finely chopped mushrooms, shallots and herbs cooked in butter. It is used to flavor soups and sauces, as a garnish, and a stuffing. Take a thinly pounded pork chop, veal or chicken cutlet, or even a flank steak. Spoon the precooked duxelles down the center. Roll the meat and then sauté or roast it.

Easy homemade pesto with fresh basil, garlic, pine nuts, Parmesan, and olive oil blended in minutes. Five ingredients for a vibrant sauce that beats anything jarred.

Homemade taco sauce simmers fresh peeled tomatoes with green chilies, onion, cumin, and oregano for 90 minutes, then water-bath cans into shelf-stable pints. A pantry stocker that beats anything in a jar at the grocery store.

Horseradish applesauce: a sweet-and-sharp two-ingredient condiment that wakes up roast pork, ham, or veal. The grandparent of every modern fruit-and-heat sauce.

Homemade chocolate sauce with semi-sweet chocolate, butter, sugar, and a splash of vanilla. Glossy, pourable, and shelf-stable for 6 months in the fridge. The make-ahead dessert sauce that beats every jarred version.

Whole berry cranberry sauce with fresh orange juice, zest, and just a cup of sugar. Done in 15 minutes from stovetop to bowl. The Thanksgiving classic that beats canned every time.