A beloved staple of upstate New York, Diner Garbage Pasta is much more delicious than the name suggests! It’s essentially a tender and bouncy pasta dish, with savory and beefy hamburger meat added. Where Diner Garbage Pasta kicks the game up a notch is by adding delicious hamburger toppings to the rich tomato sauce (here, playing the role of ketchup) such as sharp cheddar cheese and even sour relish. There’s no trashing a dish as good as this Diner Garbage Pasta!
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1/2 pound small shell pasta
- 4 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 tablespoons hot dog relish
- 2 green onions, optional, sliced
Directions
Step 1 –In a large deep skillet over medium heat, add the onion, the olive oil, and the ground beef and cook, while crumbling the meat, until it is no longer pink and the onion is soft and translucent, about 5-7 minutes.
Step 2 –Drain the excess fat from the skillet.
Step 3 –Add the flour to the skillet and cook, while stirring constantly, until the raw flour smell disappears.
Step 4 –Add the tomato sauce and the beef broth to the skillet and stir to combine and dissolve the flour off the bottom of the skillet.
Step 5 –Add the pasta to the skillet and stir to combine.
Step 6 –Cover the skillet and raise the heat to medium-high.
Step 7 –Bring the pasta mixture to a boil.
Step 8 –Stir the pasta mixture and replace the lid.
Step 9 –Simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is al dente and the sauce has thickened, about 10 minutes.
Step 10 –Turn off the stovetop heat.
Step 11 –Add the shredded cheddar cheese to the pasta mixture and stir until it has melted into the sauce.
Step 12 –Add the relish to the pasta mixture and stir to combine.
Step 13 –Serve topped with the sliced green onions.
