We are Italian. My mother was born in Italy and came to the US when she was 7. She is 100% Italian and is an amazing cook. I’ve learned from her and put my twist on some things.
My husband is Portuguese but he cooks like an Italian there are some things he cooks better than me! :-). When he makes American Chop Suey, he uses Tomato soup. Now, I’m not saying that’s not good because he does a GREAT job. But when I make it, I make it Italian Style.
So you’re probably wondering how to make Italian Style American Chop Suey? Keep reading, it’s really easy. And so GOOD!
Italian Style American Chop Suey
One of my favorite parts of this recipe is that clean-up is easy. You’ll only need two pans – a large frying pan with a cover and a large pot to boil water. Dice a small onion and sauté that in about 1-2 tablespoons of Olive Oil for about 3 minutes. Then I add 1-2 cloves of Garlic either minced or chopped, whichever you prefer. And I sauté them together for about another 3 minutes.
Then I add 1 pound of ground sausage and 1 pound of ground beef. I try to get about 85% ground beef, but I get whatever is on sale right now because it’s not cheap!
Cook that all together until it’s cooked through and break it up as it cooks. I like to use a potato masher to break the meat up really well. Now, once that’s cooked you can drain the grease, but honestly, I don’t because it adds to the flavor. But it’s your choice. If it is too much, I will drain some of it.
Next, add (2) 28oz cans of Pastene Kitchen Ready tomatoes to the pan. We prefer Pastene Kitchen Ready but you can use your favorite brand or whatever you get on sale. But Pastene is delicious!!
Next, I add the following seasonings:
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Onion Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Ground Black Pepper
Cook that all together on low-med for about 30 minutes or more. The more it simmers the better it is!
In the meantime fill the pot with water and salt it generously to cook the pasta. Once that boils cook the pasta according to the box. You can use any pasta you like, but we love to have shells with ours because the shells “hug” the meat and sauce well. But I’ll be honest, I will use whatever pasta I have on hand.
Once the pasta and the meat sauce are cooked, drain the pasta and add it to the meat sauce and serve! I like to make a salad and garlic bread to finish off this meal.
Optional Items:
Mushrooms
Peppers
Pepperoni
Diced Tomatoes
Red Pepper Flakes
Any of the above items will be delicious. Make it the way your family will love it.
Italian Style American Chop Suey
Ingredients
- 1 small Onion
- 1-2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1-2 cloves Garlic
- 1 lb Ground Sausage mild, sweet or hot
- 1 lb Ground Beef
- 2 28oz cans Pastene Kitchen Ready Tomatoes
- 1 tsp Italian Seasonings
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Onion Powder
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Ground Pepper
- 1 box Pasta
- salt for pasta water
Instructions
- Dice onion and sauté in pan with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. Cook for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add diced/minced garlic to pan and sauté for another 3 minutes.
- Add ground sausage and ground beef to pan and cook through, breaking up the meat as it cooks.
- Add two cans of Pastene Kitchen Ready Tomatoes to the meat along with all the spices.
- Cook on med-low for about 30 minutes.
- In the meantime boil a pot of salted water for pasta. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box.
- Once the pasta and meat is cooked, mix together and serve.
And that is how you make Italian Style American Chop Suey! Let me know what you think. Enjoy.
If you want to make an easy dessert to go along with this check out our favorite quick cookies:
