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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
Would love to make this for a dinner party I am attending! If I make it ahead of time does it reheat well??
Hey Jennifer,
You bet, that will work nicely for you! I hope you love this recipe, let me know how it turns out for you!
I plan to make this tomorrow. I have a week old bottle of good red wine in the fridge. Can I use that?
Hi Amy,
Yes, that will be perfectly okay for you to use! I hope you love this recipe!
Happy Holidays!
Hi there! How do you recommend storing & reheating the sauce if made the day before serving? Thanks!
Hi Robyn,
You can store in an airtight container in the fridge. Reheat on the stove top:) I hope you love this recipe!
Does that mean 2 cans that are 32oz or 32oz total? What if the only cans that I can find are 28oz?
Hi Kathryn,
You are going to use two 32oz cans. If you can only find 28 oz cans that is perfectly okay! I hope you love this recipe!
Does this stay on the stovetop for 3.5-5 hours, or does it go in the oven? I’ve never cooked in a Dutch oven before and want to nail this recipe! Thanks!
Hi Julia,
It goes into the oven in step 3:) Please let me know if you have any other questions!
This recipe was good. The gravy was too thin for our personal taste. I added extra tomato paste, a cheese rind and thankfully I did not add the water. I used the crockpot which may have made the gravy thinner than if using a dutch oven.
I will definitely try this again using a dutch oven and reducing the amount of liquid. I will also add BVP meatballs rather than sausage balls.
Loved the cream, cheese and sage on top!
Hey Linda,
Happy Sunday! Thanks for the thoughtful feedback after trying this recipe, I’m happy to hear it was a win!
Hi! If I were to cook this in the crockpot, would you recommend cooking on low or high?
Hi Abi,
I would cook on low for 6-8 hours.
I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try!
Can you use something instead of ground sausage?
Hi Matt,
Sure, ground beef would also work nicely here. Please let me know if you have any other questions!
We made this last winter and LOVE it! It is cooler here this week and are making it tomorrow. Absolutely love it!
Hey Austyn,
Love to hear this! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and sharing your feedback! Happy Fall!
Hi!
Could you omit the cream in this recipe? Or sub anything for it? Like butter?
Thank you!
Hi Tess,
You could skip the cream:) Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it!
Delish and easy prep! Tender fall apart and juicy, so flavorful. The only issue I experienced, as other commenters mentioned, was the total amount of liquid in the recipe was too much for a standard sized Dutch oven. (I used lecreuset round). I skimped on the wine as a result, but next time I will skimp on the water 🙂 thankfully I was prepared for the boil over, which just means it’s extra good! I may sear the chuck first next time.
Hey Holly,
Wonderful! I am so glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a lot for making it!🎃👻
Hello. I made this for my family last week. It is a 10!!!! Do you have suggestions for preparing this in the crockpot?
Thanks you,
Dionne
Hey Dionne,
Thanks a bunch for trying this recipe, love to hear it turned out well! If you want to do the crockpot, I would cook on low for 6-8 hours. Let me know how that turns out for you! xT
This was such a huge hit! The flavors were incredible and I’m already planning to make it again for a big ski group coming up. I used a large crock pot since I didn’t have an oven-safe pot big enough and followed the recipe exactly—San Marzano tomatoes really made the flavor incredible! I even had extra sauce to freeze for another meal! It really makes a ton! Thank you for sharing…
Hey Janice,
Fantastic! I appreciate you making this recipe and your feedback, love to hear it turned out well! Have a great weekend!
So, my previous comment was not approved….I’ll try again. The finished product was delicious! 5 stars! Please note, however, Prep Time is considerably longer than 20 minutes. I’d suggest allowing yourself at least an hour for the prep
Hi there! I just replied to your comment, thank you for your patience and for the feedback on the prep time! Have a great day! xT
Made this and oh my! Prep was 22
Minutes (I was curious because the other comments). Is my new go-to recipe for pot roast.
Thanks a lot, Nancy!! I really appreciate it! Hope you are off to a great week:)
I’m rating the finished product 5 stars but was tempted to take off a star or 2 due to your Prep Time listed as 20 minutes. Even if you are the fastest dicer of vegetables on the planet, you could NEVER prep this meal in 20 minutes. I’d tell people to allow an hour of prep time AT LEAST! Just assembling the ingredients takes 5 minutes…getting 2 Tbl of fresh thyme off of the thyme stems takes at least 10 minutes…not to mention if, like me, you peel your carrots and celery and trim fat off of the roast…the recipe is delicious but please be more realistic when setting the Prep Times of your recipes
Hi there! So glad you enjoyed the recipe and thank you for the 5 stars! I hear you on the prep time, fresh herbs and veggies definitely take longer, especially with peeling and trimming. I’ll make a note to adjust the timing to be more realistic for home cooks. Really appreciate the feedback! xT
I make this once a month on a Sunday now, have enough sauce leftover for two more meals so I freeze it for a delicious and fast meal when I’m low on time. Everyone loves it. Never cooked a pot roast before!
Hey Courtney! Thank you so so much! I am sooo happy to hear you are loving this pot roast! It definitely is a great meal for yummy leftovers to enjoy throughout the week 🙂 xT