• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Buy This Cook That
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Meal Plans
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Pasta

    Thick and Chunky Garden Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce

    Updated Jun 14, 2022

    466 shares
    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    This delicious homemade Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce is full of healthy and colorful vegetables. Fresh summer squash, zucchini, onions, sweet peppers and mushrooms simmer for hours and create a zesty sauce for your favorite pasta. Plus, we made it super filling with a mixture of sweet Italian sausage and lean ground beef.  Can't wait to twirl this around on a fork.

    Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce

    Thick and Chunky Garden Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce. An amazing recipe to twirl your fork around in.

    I'd like to meet the inventor of the crock pot slow cooker and kiss them square on the mouth. Seriously, outside of the discovery of fire, has there been a more helpful cooking device?

    Ok, so maybe the knife is pretty handy. But I think you will all agree that using a slow cooker is one of the easiest ways to create delicious homemade meals.

    Like this off the charts crockpot spaghetti sauce.

    A cutting board with fresh chopped mushrooms, summer squash, zucchini, bell peppers and onions, with a crockpot in the background

    I wasn't kidding when I said this crockpot spaghetti sauce was LOADED with veggies. We filled our crockpot over halfway full of colorful and healthy vegetables.

    To create this yummy pasta sauce, we picked vegetables that would do two things:

    • maintain a texture after being slow simmered for hours
    • provide moisture to the sauce so we didn't have to add much liquid
    Love this recipe? Check these out:
    Country Chicken Cacciatore
    Easy Baked Spaghetti Casserole
    Cinnamon Cherry Crockpot Cobbler

    A crockpot full of fresh chopped garden vegetables

    We used two types of squash : yellow summer squash and dark green zucchini. Yummy! I love squash and zucchini, don't you?

    Diced onions and my favorite sweet red bell peppers really add a lot of vegetable flavor to the crockpot spaghetti sauce. Especially after they slowly cook in the crushed tomatoes.

    If you love mushrooms like I do, add a bunch!

    Crushed tomatoes being poured over vegetables in a crockpot

    Spices and seasonings being added to the spaghetti sauce

    Stir in your seasonings and add your browned meat. We used a combination of sweet Italian sausage and lean ground beef to make our Thick and Chunky Garden Crockpot Spaghetti sauce super thick.

    You can leave the meat out if you would like for a vegetarian version of this spaghetti sauce recipe.

    Look at how thick this crockpot spaghetti sauce is! I'm getting that spaghetti craving all over again. This really is one of my favorite ways to prepare spaghetti.

    A plate of pasta topped with spaghetti sauce, next to pieces of bread and shredded cheese

    Enjoy with shredded Parmesan cheese and your favorite bread. My kind of meal!

    Love this post? Sign up for the Buy This Cook That Newsletter for a weekly email of new content. You can also follow us on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram for our latest + greatest ideas!

    Thick and Chunky Garden Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce

    Slow simmered mushrooms, bell pepper, summer squash and zucchini in an easy spaghetti sauce.
    4.50 from 6 votes
    Print Recipe Email Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 30 mins
    Crockpot time on low 8 hrs
    Course Sauce
    Cuisine Italian
    Servings 10 Servings
    Calories 246 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 pound sweet Italian sausage browned
    • 1 pound lean ground beef browned
    • 56 ounes crushed tomatoes
    • 1 small zucchini diced
    • 1 small yellow summer squash diced
    • 8 ounces mushrooms chopped
    • 1 red bell pepper seeded and diced
    • ½ onion peeled and diced
    • ½ cup water if needed
    • 1.3 ounce packet of spaghetti sauce spice mix
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 1 ½ tablespoon minced garlic
    • 1 teaspoon dried basil
    • 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
    • Salt & pepper to taste if needed

    Instructions
     

    • Prepare ingredients as directed above.
    • Stir all ingredients together in a 6 quart crockpot. Cover.
    • Cook on high for 1 hour and on low for 3 hours, or cook on low for 8 hours.
    • Taste and re-season as needed. (Keep in mind the sausage and spice pack mix will have their own seasonings, you may not need to re-season.)

    Notes

    Nutritional values do NOT include the pasta. 

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1gCalories: 246kcalCarbohydrates: 5gProtein: 17gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 62mgSodium: 480mgPotassium: 554mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 595IUVitamin C: 25.7mgCalcium: 28mgIron: 2.3mg
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

    More Pasta Recipes

    • Savory + Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
    • Learn How to Make Alfredo Meatballs
    • You're Going to Love Crockpot Lasagna Soup
    • Chicken & Cheese Tortellini Soup

    SUBSCRIBE

    for weekly recipes.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. brandidcrawfordgmailcom

      June 13, 2017 at 8:53 pm

      I love coming home to the smell of crockpot heaven too! This looks super easy to make. I must try it.

      Reply
      • Teri

        June 14, 2017 at 9:00 am

        That is the ultimate mom-win moment for me. Walking in and dinner is done!

        Reply
      • Laurie

        December 08, 2021 at 10:13 am

        5 stars
        We are wfpb so I eliminated the meat& the house smells heavenly! Added a little fennel for the sausage flavor

        Reply
        • Teri

          December 26, 2021 at 8:13 pm

          I love fennel...my family, not so much. So I only get to use it when I'm cooking for myself.

    2. fearlessdining

      June 13, 2017 at 11:41 pm

      That sauce looks amazing...total comfort food in a crock pot.

      Reply
      • Teri

        June 14, 2017 at 9:00 am

        I could probably eat just the sauce it is so full of veggies.

        Reply
    3. Renee

      June 14, 2017 at 2:44 am

      This sounds fantastic, nothing better than a big bowl of pasta.

      Reply
      • Teri

        June 14, 2017 at 8:56 am

        Agreed! And with all of these veggies, the recipe was even better.

        Reply
    4. Natalia

      June 14, 2017 at 3:02 pm

      This looks so delicious! I love how you added all those vegetables in this sauce which makes it also full of nutrients. I'm sure kids would love it too!

      Reply
    5. Kaitlin

      June 14, 2022 at 9:04 am

      Now that I have this in the crock pot, I'm freaking out that I did something wrong. The recipe calls for a 5.3 oz packet of spaghetti sauce spice mix. I could only find 1.3 oz packets, so I used a few. Is this right? I'm worried it's going to get too thick and burn because I'm going to leave it and be out of the house. Was that right?

      Reply
      • Teri

        June 14, 2022 at 2:44 pm

        Oh, I had a typo...it is only 1 packet. I don't think it should burn, the extra moisture from the veggies should even it out. Although it may be a wee bit flavorful. You can add some water if needed. I am SO SO SO SORRY for my typo. I try to catch them all but its just me. I'll fix it right now.

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Playoff Ready

    How to Host a Football Party on a Budget

    Ultimate Buffalo Wings | Buy This Cook That

    Ultimate South of Buffalo Wings

    french onion dip, pretzels and chips for snacking

    Sour Cream + Cheddar French Onion Dip

    Reuben Sliders

    Reuben Sliders (Are the Best)

    More Game Day Recipes →

    Salad Recipes

    Delicious Salads That Don't Suck

    Delicious Salads That Don't Suck

    Fried Chicken Salad

    Blueberry + Fried Chicken Salad

    pasta salad

    Bacon Tomato Avocado Salad with Pasta

    winter salad

    Winter Salad with Cranberry Chipotle Vinaigrette

    More Salad Recipes →

    Free Meal Plans

    Footer

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy + Disclosure

    Free Meal Plans

    • Sign Up! for Free Meal Plans

    Contact

    • Contact

    Copyright © 2022 Buy This Cook That