Pasta With Ground Beef

Hi everyone! Since I was a little girl I have been obsessed with this pasta. In Spanish it is called pasta con carne moleda which translates into pasta with ground beef. It is a common type of pasta made by many Spanish families. Each family can make it different and add in different ingredients. The instructions below is how my mother has taught me to make it. It is fairly easy to make and not time consuming. I would say it should take thirty to forty-five minutes to make. I am not a good cook by any means so this pasta should be fairly easy for any person to make.

Alert: Make sure you defrost your ground beef before beginning. I usually leave it over night so that way it is ready for the next day.

Step 1: Selecting Your Ingredients

Equipment

Oven

Frying Pan

Pan for pasta

Strainer

Spatula

Spoon

FOOD

Shredded Cheese

Ground Beef 1-2 pounds

Sofrito

Full Box of Pasta

Goya Adobo

Goya Tomato Sauce or any sauce that you want

Garlic Powder

1 Packet of Sazón 1 Packet of Chicken Bouillon

Alert: The Spanish ingredients can be found in the Spanish section of any grocery store. If you need help locating the ingredients, you can ask an employee at the grocery store.

Step 2: Cooking the Ground Beef

Warning: You will be working with the stove so make sure you are very careful when cooking to not burn yourself. Also, want to make sure the pink is gone so that you do not get sick from the raw ground beef.

To begin, set the stove to medium so that way you do not burn the ground beef right away. Take the ground beef out of its packaging. Put it in the frying pan. When you hear a sort of sizzling sound, that is an indication that the ground beef is ready to be broken up. With your spatula, break the ground beef and move it around until there is no pink left in the frying pan.

Step 3: Adding Ingredients

Alert: You will be emptying the oil of the ground beef into the strainer which will be in the sink. Have water running when you pour the oil out so that way when the oil goes down the drain, it doesn't clog the sink.

Empty the ground beef out into a strainer and into the sink so that way all the oil comes out. Put the ground beef back into the frying pan. Set the stove to temperature 2 or 3 so that the ground beef stays warm and doesn't burn. Pour about 2 table spoons of sofrito and tomato sauce into the ground beef. Mix it. Pour the 1 packet of sazón and 1 packet of chicken bouillon into the ground beef. Mix it. Sprinkle a little of the adobo and garlic powder into it. Pour enough adobo and garlic powder so that it covers majority of the ground beef. Mix it.

Step 4: Finishing Ground Beef

Cover the ground beef with the top cover of the frying pan so it stays warm. Keep the stove on the setting between 2 or 3 while you make the pasta. This setting is located where you turn the stove on to cook your food.

Step 5: Start the Pasta

Fill your pan with enough water to make a full box of pasta. Set the stove to high and wait for the water to boil. Pour the whole box of pasta into the boiling water. Stir the pasta. Set the stove to medium. Set the timer for 10 to 12 minutes. Stir the pasta regularly so that every piece of pasta cooks evenly.

Step 6: Finishing Touches

Alert: I recommend trying the pasta before you empty out the water into the drainer incase the pasta has not cooked all the way and it needs more time. If the pasta is still a little hard then it needs to sit in the water for a little longer.

When the timer goes off, pour the pasta into the strainer. Uncover the ground beef and pour the pasta into the frying pan with the ground beef. Mix the pasta and ground beef together so that it is even throughout the whole pan. Insert the shredded cheese into the pasta and ground beef. You may put as much shredded cheese in your pasta as you want. Mix it well.

Step 7: Enjoying Your Pasta

When it is all mixed together, you are able to serve it and eat it. There should be enough to serve a family of four. Grab yourselves some plates, cups and napkins, utensils and enjoy!