Sam's Original Sauce Recipe

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and continue cooking and stirring until the onion is very tender and dark brown 15 to 20 minutes more. Add the garlic during the last 3 minutes of cooking.

Transfer the onions and garlic to a bowl and set aside. Turn the heat up to medium high and add the beef cubes. Cook stirring occasionally until browned on all sides about 5 minutes. Drop in the tomato paste and reduce the heat to medium; allow the tomato paste to cook about 2 minutes or until it begins to brown before stirring.

Pour in the crushed tomatoes and return the onions and garlic to the pan. Mix in the parsley basil fennel and salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to low and simmer stirring occasionally until the sauce is thick and the meat is tender 6 to 7 hours.