# I have meatballs in sauce. Ideas beyond spaghetti? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 13, 2011, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061 "2011-12-13T19:26:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/21 "2011-12-14T04:02:46Z")
> [@chiroptera](#): > > Eggs in Purgatory is an intriguing suggestion. > > Instead of pasta, **use spaghetti squash**? Gives a whole different character to whatever you’re using for sauce and spaghetti squash ought to be plentiful right now. This. Give it a try. Although, I found that spaghetti squash wasn’t really very much different from actually using spaghetti. Just a little bit different. I cooked up a veggie mixture of lentils, quinoa, chopped tomatoes, herbs and spices (cumin, garlic, italian seasoning, onion, whatever), and discovered that it made fine spaghetti sauce, and hence, fine spaghetti squash sauce. (I’ll leave it as an exercise for the reader to figure out the amounts of everything and other cooking instructions, just like I did. I never made it quite the same way twice anyway.) ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/22 "2011-12-14T04:31:00Z")
Subs and pizza would have been my first choices but they’ve already been mentioned. You could chop up the meatballs, mix in some cooked rice, stuff some green peppers and then bake them. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/23 "2011-12-14T04:40:32Z")
> [@Push\_You\_Down](#): > > Over rice—that’s what my family does from time to time. Seconded. Consider brown rice too. ---
**Author:** ![papergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aca169/32.png) [@papergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/papergirl)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/24 "2011-12-14T12:27:44Z")
Such good ideas! I ended up with a sort of meatball casserole, lasagna-type. It was really good but I was the only one who ate it. The kids had gone out with their Dad and had ice cream whilst I was slaving away over my…well, mostly-pre-made dinner. I guess my friend and her kids will have the rest for dinner tonight, so it’s all good. Now I want stuffed peppers and lentil-tomato sauce! And brown rice. Mmmmm. ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/25 "2011-12-14T15:18:32Z")
Soup? Try quartering them and adding them to this soup, [Italain Chicken Soup](http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/09/italian-chicken-soup/). I can verify the recipe makes a good soup. ---
**Author:** ![papergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aca169/32.png) [@papergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/papergirl)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/26 "2011-12-14T16:45:40Z")
> [@howye](#): > > Soup? > > Try quartering them and adding them to this soup, [Italain Chicken Soup](http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/09/italian-chicken-soup/). I can verify the recipe makes a good soup. On the menu for Sunday! It looks gorgeous. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/27 "2011-12-14T17:04:27Z")
I once recycled meatballs (when I heard the family say, “Oh no, not spaghetti AGAIN!”) - I had a dozen in sauce in a pot, so I picked them out of the sauce (there was quite a bit of tomato sauce, which I saved and froze in a baggie), gave them a quick rinse in the colander, heated up in brown gravy, and served over mashed potatoes. They loved it! ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/28 "2011-12-14T17:15:57Z")
Use the above suggestion, only mix the meatballs with some BBQ sauce and sauteed mushrooms and serve over egg noodles. Bachelor chow extraordinaire! ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/29 "2011-12-14T18:10:25Z")
Bachelor chow? Either over mashed taters or egg noodles is one of my daughter’s favorite meals. Prep the meatballs ahead of time and it is a quick family dinner. ---
**Author:** ![papergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aca169/32.png) [@papergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/papergirl)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/30 "2011-12-14T22:03:49Z")
> [@howye](#): > > Soup? > > Try quartering them and adding them to this soup, [Italain Chicken Soup](http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/09/italian-chicken-soup/). I can verify the recipe makes a good soup. Even though this would not sound like my type of recipe (don’t like ditalini, sweet peppers in soup, cream added at the end, etc) I made this today. I followed the recipe pretty closely except for adding a can of red beans (because I add beans to everything). Mmmm! Good soup! Thanks for the link and inspiration! ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/31 "2011-12-14T23:17:53Z")
When I make spaghetti sauce in our house, it almost invariably goes on ravioli or tortellini instead of actual spaghetti. Just thoughts. You can get some pretty decent ones in both the refrigerated and frozen section at the grocery store. ---
**Author:** ![fighting\_ignorant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ac8455/32.png) [@fighting\_ignorant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fighting_ignorant)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/32 "2011-12-14T23:26:16Z")
> [@tr0psn4j](#): > > SAMMICHES! > **Come on** , bread, meatballs, sauce, provolone. It’s warm gooey goodness. I’m not sure I find your first step very palatable :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2011, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/33 "2011-12-15T17:11:29Z")
> [@fighting\_ignorant](#): > > I’m not sure I find your first step very palatable :eek: I’ve been told it helps if you pan-fry it. ---
**Author:** ![Oly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oly/32/8255_2.png) [@Oly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oly)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2011, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061/34 "2011-12-16T13:39:44Z")
Meatball pie [http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Meatball-Pie](http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Meatball-Pie) Or if you’re really amBitious, a timpano [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-meatballs-in-sauce-ideas-beyond-spaghetti/606061.md?page=1)