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  • My Grandma’s Meat and Macaroni

My Grandma’s Meat and Macaroni

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A beloved dish from ‘small-kid time.’ My Japanese grandma called it “Creole Macaroni”. My cousins and I all loved it.

​I changed it up a little—adding more veggies and swapping American cheese for cheddar, but I think Grandma would be OK with that.
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Ingredients

1  one-pound package of ground turkey (or hamburger)
Splash of olive oil
2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

½ box of elbow macaroni or other similar pasta

1 onion, finely chopped
​
1 can of corn (15.25 oz) or about 3-4 ears of fresh corn
1 red pepper, diced
1 small can tomato sauce (8 oz) or one can of crushed or diced tomatoes (14.5 oz)
3-4 squirts of Heinz catsup
​Pepper to taste

​
Grated sharp cheddar cheese

Optional
2 zucchini, sliced then quartered

What To Do

Using a large saute pan, cook ground meat and garlic in a splash of olive oil. Break up the meat as it cooks.  

Add onions, then corn (and other optional vegetables) and cook. Add tomato sauce and simmer. At the same time, cook macaroni until just done. Add macaroni to the meat/vegetable mixture. Add about 2-3 good squirts of catsup and mix well.

Top with grated cheese.

Notes

  • How in the world did my Japanese grandma know catsup can function like a spice?!  It works here.
  • ​Use a large saute pan, or even a wok when you are cooking the meat. It will seem like overkill, but adding the pasta will expand the volume significantly.

Is Food-Friends With...Christine’s Broccoli Salad or Todd’s Lemon Bars


​Not Quite What You Were Looking For? Try These.

  • Weekday Lasagne
  • Homemade Spaghetti Meatballs
  • Clam and Cannellini Bean Soup

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  • Home
  • Main Meals
    • Chicken and Eggs
    • Pork and Spam
    • Seafood
    • Beef and Lamb
    • Mainly Meatless
  • Sides
    • Salads
    • Vegetables
    • Rice, Bread, and Noodles
  • Treats
    • Dessert and Snacks
    • Breakfast
  • Blog