Try to make this easy Filipino-style Spaghetti at home! This is a popular pasta food which is commonly served in childrens’ birthday parties, but it can also be a good choice to serve for other special occasions and large gatherings.
Nowadays, the ingredients for this recipe are not that expensive, and it can be made even on normal weeknights and weekends so you can enjoy this pasta anytime you want.
See some tips and some trivia below and learn how to make this Filipino take on Spaghetti and Meatballs.
What is Filipino-style Spaghetti?
The Filipino style or Pinoy-style Spaghetti is a unique adaptation of the famous Spaghetti and Meatballs dish in other countries. It is made of spaghetti pasta which is partnered with a tomato-based sauce.
Contrary to the more popular use of meatballs, this dish is partnered with ground beef or pork, red hotdogs, red bell peppers, and sweeteners such as banana ketchup or evaporated milk. Since this is popular in the Philippines, there are tomato or spaghetti sauces specifically made to be partnered with this sweet style of pasta.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Hotdogs
In this recipe, we use the unique Filipino red hotdogs. This is usually a staple when it comes to Filipino style spaghetti but you can replace it with other types of hotdogs if you want. Alternatively, you can add more meat ingredients for the spaghetti sauce such as cooked ham, or maybe even bacon bits, to add more meaty flavor to the spaghetti. Just remember that a Filipino style spaghetti is a bit on the sweet side if you want to add more seasonings.
Spaghetti Sauce
This recipe also uses ready-to-cook Sweet Style or Filipino Style spaghetti sauce. We think that this gives the right amount of sweetness for the spaghetti. In case you don’t have access to these, you can also try the traditional way by combining banana ketchup, tomato paste, and tomato sauce in this measurements:
- 4 cups tomato sauce
- ½ cup tomato paste
- ½ cup sweet banana ketchup
Alternatively, you can make it a little bit sweeter by replacing that banana ketchup with evaporated milk or condensed milk of the same amount.
Aside from these, we will also be using other regular pantry ingredients like pasta, onion, cheese, salt, black pepper, and cooking oil. If you are filling up your pantry, here’s a handy shopping guide:
Equipment You’ll Need
- Cooking Pot- You will need a cooking pot or casserole deep enough to cook the spaghetti pasta
- Cooking Pan (Kawali)- While you can use a cooking pot to cook the sauce, a regular Filipino kawali is perfect for this.
In need of kitchen tools and equipment? Read this before you buy:
How to Cook Filipino-style Spaghetti
When cooking this spaghetti, you have to think about the recipe being sweet and savory.
To start with this, the first thing you need to do is to prepare the spaghetti pasta. Normally, included in the package of the noodles are instructions on how to cook the noodles, so you can follow that. Just remember that the pasta is firm enough and not too soft when it’s cooked.
Cooking Tip: Wash the pasta with tap water afterwards to avoid it overcooking from the leftover heat.
After that, the next thing to do is to make the sauce. This is done by simply cooking the ingredients one-by-one.
Ground pork is usually the more popular choice when it comes to the meat, but you can also use ground beef. We find that ground beef is much more savory and tasty compared to pork. The cooking time is roughly the same so it really doesn’t matter that much what you choose, but there will be a subtle difference in the flavor of the meat so take note of that.
The preparation of this spaghetti is not like other pasta dishes, wherein you serve them with the pasta and the sauce already mixed. Traditionally, you serve the spaghetti sauce and the pasta in two different containers and then the one who will eat decides how much amount of spaghetti sauce he or she will top the pasta with.
Watch our video below or click on this link: Filipino Style Spaghetti Youtube Video
How to Serve Filipino-style Spaghetti
Filipino spaghetti can be served during lunch, dinner, or as a snack. When serving this on an occasion, it usually served along side other party foods like puto, fried chicken, and lumpiang Shanghai.
You may also add grated cheese on the side in case others like this extra cheesy.
How to Store and Reheat Filipino-style Spaghetti
For leftovers, store the pasta and the sauce separately in clean food containers with lid. You can refrigerate this and extend the shelf life for up to 3 days.
You can reheat the sauce in a microwave oven or in a saucepan over low to medium heat. For the pasta, you can blanch it in boiling water until it goes back to its soft texture.
Other Pasta Recipes
For a quick reference about this recipe, see the recipe table below:
Filipino Style Spaghetti Recipe
Equipment
- Cooking Pot
- Cooking Pan
Ingredients
- 400 grams (14 oz) spaghetti pasta, any brand
- 500 grams (17.6 oz) spaghetti sauce, (sweet style or Filipino style)
- 250 grams (8.81 oz) ground beef (or ground pork)
- 4 pcs regular-sized hotdogs
- 1 pc medium-sized onion, finely chopped
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Grated cheese, any brand like Eden, Quez-O or Cheezee, for topping
- 2 tbsp cooking oil, for sauteing
Instructions
- For the spaghetti pasta, simply follow the package instructions.
- Start by boiling around 6 cups of water. You may season with salt and cooking oil, if desired.
- Add-in the spaghetti pasta. Cook for about 10 minutes (may depend on the package instructions).
- Drain the water and then wash with running water to prevent overcooking. Set aside.
- For the spaghetti sauce, get a large saucepan then pour-in and heat the cooking oil over medium heat.
- Add-in the chopped onion and saute for 1 to 2 minutes or until soft and fragrant.
- Add-in the ground beef or pork then season with salt and pepper.
- Cook until the beef is browned.
- Add-in the hotdogs then stir and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Pour-in the spaghetti sauce then stir and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Pour-in the spaghetti sauce over a plate of the cooked spaghetti pasta, then top with grated cheese.
- Mix together, serve, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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