School cafeteria spaghetti brings back memories of standing in line at the school cafeteria, pushing your tray along the track, and waiting for the lunch lady to serve you that warm rich spaghetti with lots of ground beef and topped with cheese.
Can you smell it? Those childhood memories are so comforting and so is this spaghetti recipe!
If you love spaghetti as much as my family does, I hope you’ll try our TikTok spaghetti, Mexican spaghetti, million dollar spaghetti, and baked spaghetti next!
School Cafeteria Spaghetti Ingredients
- Ground Beef: I use 20% fat ground beef
- Onion: I use yellow or brown onions
- Dry Spaghetti Sauce Mix: This seasoning can be found at most grocery stores
- Canned Whole Tomatoes: Any kind but I prefer Marzano tomatoes for a deep flavor
- Tomato Paste: Any brand will do. Tomato paste always adds more depth to the sauce.
- Sugar: There are many opinions on added sugar. Adding a little really makes a difference in the sauce, which takes the edge off the acidity from the tomatoes and brings out the sweetness.
- Worcestershire sauce: A staple in most homes, this ingredient transforms the dish from good to great!
- Italian Seasoning: You can purchase already mixed or make it yourself! If you already have these items in your pantry, here are the proportions: 1 ½ t. Oregano, 1 t. Thyme, ½ t. Basil, ½ t. Rosemary, ½ t dried Sage, and 1 t. Marjoram.
- Basil: dried
- Garlic Powder: Yes, use the powder version for authentic school spaghetti flavor.
- Black Pepper: Fresh cracked black pepper.
- Spaghetti: Dry pasta in the box
- Parmesan Cheese: This school cafeteria spaghetti and meat sauce calls for shredded parmesan, but for that nostalgic taste, use the Kraft grated cheese!
School Lunch Spaghetti Tips
As explained, Marzano tomatoes are the gold standard. Try to find authentic Marzano tomatoes from Italy in a can. You can purchase whole, diced, or crushed tomatoes.
The recipe calls for whole, but you are welcome to save some time and use diced or crushed.
Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This in The Fridge? Once cooked and cooled, your school cafeteria style spaghetti will last up to one day in the fridge. The pasta will not be al dente, so leftovers will not be the same as freshly made.
- Can You Freeze This? I do not recommend freezing because the pasta will not have the same texture. You can make the sauce (Step 1 through 5) and freeze it, adding cooked pasta and cheese after reheating the sauce.
- Make-Ahead: You can prepare the sauce ahead of time. Then, continue with adding the cooked pasta and cheese (Step 6).
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this for spaghetti sauce and leftover spaghetti pasta.
Serving Recommendations
We adore this school lunch spaghetti with garlic bread or Olive Garden bread sticks. For something fresh and crispy, we love a simple green salad with our easy-peasy balsamic vinaigrette or our fully loaded Mediterranean salad works perfectly as well.
If you prefer a cooked veggie we like this with roasted green beans with shallots and pancetta, simple roasted peppers, or Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta and Sage.
How about my classic tiramisu or strawberry tiramisu for dessert!
How To Make School Cafeteria Spaghetti
- Cook the ground beef and onions.
- Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, Worcestershire sauce, herbs, salt and pepper.
- Stir well.
- Add tomato mixture and dry spaghetti sauce mix to the cooked meat.
- Slowly boil and simmer until the sauce thickens.
- Stir the cooked pasta in.
- Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.
- Serve and enjoy.
***See the full instructions below.
More Delicious Spaghetti Recipes
- Spaghetti Recipe With Ground Beef
- Super Easy Chicken Spaghetti
- Crock Pot Spaghetti
- Taco Spaghetti
- Chicken Spaghetti Bake
- Crack Chicken Spaghetti Bake
- Baked Spaghetti with Cream Cheese
- Spaghetti Pie
- Spaghetti Meat Sauce
- Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meatballs
Tried This Recipe?
Leave a review, I love hearing your feedback! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
School Cafeteria Spaghetti
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/4 cup yellow onions minced
- 1 package dry spaghetti sauce mix
- 2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes, undrained
- 2 (6-ounce) cans tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 16 ounces spaghetti
- 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium heat, brown and crumble ground beef (1 pound) with minced onions (1/4 cup) until there is no longer any pink in the beef. Drain excess fat.
- While meat is cooking, prepare tomatoes by dicing them. (*You can substitute crushed tomatoes, but I prefer the texture of the whole tomatoes diced instead.)
- Add diced tomatoes with their juice (2 cans), tomato paste (2 cans), sugar (1 tablespoon), Worcestershire sauce (1 teaspoon), Italian seasoning (1 teaspoon), basil (1 teaspoon), garlic powder (1 teaspoon), salt (1 teaspoon), and pepper (1/2 teaspoon) to a large bowl. Stir well.
- Add tomato mixture and dry spaghetti sauce mix (1 package) to cooked meat.
- Bring to a slow boil. Allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes or until sauce thickens.
- Meanwhile, prepare spaghetti (16 ounces) according to package directions and drain.
- When sauce is thickened, stir cooked pasta in.
- Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. Serve and enjoy.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- As explained, Marzano tomatoes are the gold standard. Try to find authentic Marzano tomatoes from Italy in a can. You can purchase whole, diced, or crushed tomatoes. The recipe calls for whole, but you are welcome to save some time and use diced or crushed.
Nutrition
Lunch lady here! This is way fancier than any school lunch spaghetti. I’m only allowed to put heated canned sauce over the spaghetti noodles, no meat.
This is so good, my kids loved it so much! I sprinkle extra extra cheese like they always want 🙂
Hey Nina! I’m happy your family likes this spaghetti! Extra cheese is always a good idea 🙂