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Pot Roast Sunday Sauce with Rigatoni. Slow braised pot roast with spicy Italian sausage, herbs, and red wine. Toss this Sunday-style sauce with rigatoni pasta, cream, and grated parmesan. Incredibly delicious and easy to make. All it needs is a side of crusty bread to mop up all that sauce, plus a great big winter salad. You simply can’t go wrong with this warming Sunday sauce. Serve on Sunday for a family dinner or at your next gathering with friends. It might be called Sunday sauce, but it’s wonderful any day of the week!
I’ve decided that pot roast is the most underrated meat. It’s often considered more of a cheap meat to work with, but when cooked properly, low and slow, it can be incredibly delicious and versatile.
I’ve been cooking with pot roast so much this past year that it’s really become my secret weapon. I used to prefer slow-cooking short ribs, which I still love and enjoy, but post-roast is easier, more affordable, and can be just as delicious!
You all seem to be loving the recipes, so that excites me! And my family never complains when pot roast is on the menu.
I always knew I wanted to share an Italian-style Sunday sauce this December, but when I was thinking about the recipe during a recent flight, I had the idea to use pot roast instead of short ribs.
It’s definitely not traditional, but I knew it could be a great recipe for us to share with holiday guests and family this winter! I think we’re all looking for more affordable ways to cook this season, so this is a great option! The sauce feeds a LOT of people. You can freeze any leftovers too!
My family, especially my oldest brother, younger sister, and mom, all thought this was so yummy!
These are the details
Ingredients
- beef chuck roast
- garlic
- onions
- carrots
- celery
- Italian seasoning
- bay leaves
- fresh thyme
- San Marzano tomatoes
- tomato paste
- red wine
- star anise – optional, but we enjoyed the spice/warmth this adds to the sauce
- rigatoni pasta
- cream, or use canned coconut milk if dairy-free
- salted butter
- freshly grated parmesan cheese
Special Tools
This recipe requires only your favorite oven-safe Dutch oven (on sale for Cyber Week)! You can also easily make this in a crockpot.
Steps
Step 1: the beef and sausage
Use a nice cut of beef chuck roast, then cut it in half or into chunks to help the meat cook evenly. Arrange the meat in a Dutch oven or crockpot.
Season the roast with salt and black pepper.
Have the butcher get you some high-quality spicy Italian-style sausage. I like to use ground sausage and roll the meat into incredibly tiny meatballs. You can also use chopped, uncooked sausage links. Arrange the spicy sausage around the roast.
Step 2: add the remaining ingredients
Now, everything else can be added. As usual, I don’t sear the meat, as I think it’s an unnecessary, very messy step. It’s just not worth the mess to me!
Layer the onions and garlic. Add the Italian seasoning, carrots, celery, bay leaves, and thyme. Next, pour over a couple of cans of crushed San Marzano tomatoes. Add a can of tomato paste, then pour over the wine.
Step 3: time to cook
Cover the pot and begin cooking. Depending on the size of your roast, this will take around four hours.
If time allows, it’s best to start the sauce a day before to allow the flavors to mend. The sauce will be even yummier on the second day!
Step 4: finish the roast
You’ll know the roast has finished cooking when it’s falling apart. Shred the meat in the sauce. Then, keep it simmering on the stove while you cook the pasta.
Step 5: the pasta
Boil the rigatoni, then add it right back to that same pot. Ladle over some of the Sunday sauce. Add the cream, the parmesan, and some butter.
Give the pasta a good tossing, adding more sauce, cream, or parmesan, as desired.
Step 6: serve
I like to serve this with parmesan and butter-fried thyme and sage leaves on top. You can also simply use fresh chopped parsley.
Add your favorite winter salad and some bread on the side.
This recipe feeds a lot, probably way more than you need, so you’ll likely have leftovers.
You can serve it throughout the week with pasta or make cheesy stuffed peppers (our favorite). You can also freeze the leftover sauce—the options are endless!
Looking for more pot roast type dinners? Here’s a few more to try!
Smothered Chicken in Mushroom Wine Pan Sauce
Crockpot Thai Short Ribs with Coconut Rice
Crockpot Short Rib Bourguignon
Lastly, if you make this Pot Roast Sunday Sauce with Rigatoni, be sure to leave a comment and/or rate this recipe! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Pot Roast Sunday Sauce and Rigatoni
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 920 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 1 (2-3 pound) beef chuck roast, cut into 4 chunks
- salt and black pepper
- 1 pound ground spicy Italian sausage
- 2 yellow onions, thinly sliced
- 6 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
- 2 cans (32 ounce) crushed San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 can (6 ounce) tomato paste
- 2 cups red wine
- 1 whole star anise (optional)
- 1 pound rigatoni pasta
- 1 cup cream
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 325° F.2. Arrange the roast in the bottom of a large, oven-safe Dutch oven. Season with salt and black pepper. Roll the sausage into tiny meatballs and arrange around the roast. 3. Add the onions, garlic, carrots, celery, Italian seasoning, bay leaves, and thyme. Pour over the tomatoes, add the tomato paste, the wine, 2 cups water, and the star anise (if using.) If you have a parmesan rind, add that too! Cover and roast for 3 1/2 to 5 hours or until very tender. Shred the meat in the sauce, it should be falling apart. Discard the star anise and bay leaves. 4. When ready to serve, cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain. Add the pasta back to the pot. Spoon over the Sunday sauce. Add the cream, parmesan, and butter. Toss to combine.5. Serve with lots of parmesan and crispy butter-fried herbs. Enjoy!
This post was originally published on December 4, 2024
Can this be made in the InstaPot or a Crockpot if you do not have a Dutch oven? I am SO excited to try this for Christmas Eve!
Hi Meghan,
You bet, you can cook on low in the crockpot for 6-8 hours. I hope you love this recipe! Merry Christmas! xT
Outstanding. Put it all together, put it in the oven, wait a while, make pasta and eat! The chuck shredded itself with just a little nudge from a wooden spoon. Delicious! I used whole Marzano tomatoes and just crushed them with my hands as I put them in … worked fine.
Hi Dean,
Happy Holidays!🎄🎁☃️ Thanks a lot for making this recipe, I’m so glad to hear it turned out well! XxT
If you can’t find Marzano crushed tomatoes, can you use whole ones and put thru the blender first? I think there will be more liquid/ runny though.
Hey Glyn,
Sure, that would be just fine for you to do! You can also use another brand of crushed tomatoes:) I hope you love this dish! xx
Thanks – put the San Marzano’s thru the blender and it was perfect 🙂
This delicious recipe was enough for 10 people plus leftovers for 2 more servings – it was a hit with everyone! Thank you, will make it again!
Loveee to hear that Glyn! Thanks for trying out the recipe! xT
Hi! If I make this the day before, how do I store it? Thanks!
Hi Brenna,
You can store in an airtight container in the fridge. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Absolutely YUMMY!! I made this last night. I used a hip roast and browned off everything before starting the long cook. I did use the star anise and two parm rinds. We have a ton of passata that I canned from our garden so I used that also. Tip: Use really good quality sausage meat. Mine wasn’t so lesson learned.
My Husband and I made fresh rigatoni pasta for it and all I can say is WOW, this one is 100% worth the up front effort. There is a ton left over and I have frozen it for a day after Christmas when I am exhausted. Thank you for the recipe.
Love to hear this, Christine! Thank you so much for trying this dish and your comment! Happy Holidays! xxT
I made this two weekends in a row! Makes a TON. The first time I made it, the cream and butter were accidentally forgotten at the end. It was amazing! Really great tomato flavor paired so well with the roast. The second time we added the cream and butter and it was still great! This will be a new family staple. We froze 2 quart size bags of the sauce.
I have also made this in the Dutch oven in the stove as well as on the stove (turned from med down to low once it started a slow bubble) both options worked great.
Thanks so much, Kitty!! I am so glad to hear your family has been enjoying this recipe! Thanks for making it! xxT
Could this be made in an instant pot??
Do you use two 32 ounce cans of tomatoes for a total of 64? or one can for a total of 32 ounces?
Hi Katelyn,
You are going to use two 32oz cans, for a total of 64oz. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
I made this yesterday but did not do cream or the butter at the end. Served it with homemade ricotta gnocchi….delicious !
Hey Carol,
Fantastic!! I’m so glad to hear this recipe turned out nicely for you, thanks a bunch for making it! Have the best week!🎄☃️ xT
Could the pasta be made ahead of time and added to the sauce so that it can just be reheated. I want to make this for a large family dinner during the holidays and want it to be easy during the party.
Hey Mindy,
Totally, that would be just fine for you to do! I hope you love this recipe! Happy Holidays! xxT
In the body of the recipe that can be saved and/or printed it states:
3. Add the onions, garlic, carrots, celery, Italian seasoning, bay leaves, and thyme. Pour over the tomatoes, add the tomato paste, the wine, 2 cups water, and the star anise (if using.) If you have a parmesan rind, add that too! Cover and roast for 3 1/2 to 5 hours or until very tender. Shred the meat in the sauce, it should be falling apart. Discard the star anise and bay leaves.
I don’t see water listed as an ingredient. Is this a misprint?
Thanks for your wonderful HBH recipes. We enjoy them!
Hi Chris,
I never add water as an “ingredient”. You can follow the directions as written, they are correct:) I hope you love this recipe! xx
This recipe is so delicious and easy to make, it’s another Tiegan hit!
Hi Dena,
Thanks so much for trying this dish and your comment, I’m so glad it turned out nicely for you! xx
This recipe was absolutely out of this world! My family loved it. It was perfect!!
Hey Ashley,
Awesome!! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for making it! Have the best weekend! xxT
Excellent and super easy recipe!! Next time I make this, I will take the time and make real mini meatballs instead of rolled sausage. Great job Tieghan!!
Hi Nikki,
Happy Friday!! Love to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it and your comment! XxT
This is a delicious sauce! The house smelled amazing while cooking. I did in a crock pot on low for 6 hours. I added muchrooms because my family loves them in everything. Was a hit!
Hi Heidi,
Happy Holidays! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe, I’m so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have the best day:) xx