Beef and Celery Pasta with Tomatoes

These days, it is not the type of sauce that determines the pasta type or choice. Instead, it is how busy your schedule is, that decides the choice of pasta types. Busy people who are always in a hurry are in for bowtie pasta, shell pasta, fusili - pasta that settles with a spoon or fork without splatter worries. Those with a little more time can afford to slurp and enjoy the longer strands - spaghetti, linguine, angel hair - wiping your saucy lips once every 5 feeds.

Ha. I have made a strong sweeping statement. You still typically decide pasta type based on the type of sauce. It is just me, who go with my favorite pasta type and pasta sauce. And sometimes, I just whip up something simple like this.


Beef with Celery and Tomato-Sauce Pasta
>Ingredients: 1/2 tsp minced ginger; 2 cloves garlic, finely minced; 1 small or medium-size onion, finely minced; 2 medium-size tomatoes, sliced to bite-size; 4 stalks of celery, thinly sliced/slivered; about 1/2 lb ground beef; 3-4 shitake mushrooms caps, sliced thinly; pinch of cumin, fennel; 1tsp curry powder; salt and pepper to taste; cooked pasta

Directions: In a lightly oiled pan, add garlic, ginger, onions and fry briskly. Add in cumin, fennel, curry powder to bring out the aroma of the spices. Add in ground beef and fry, breaking up the beef to smaller bits. Dish out and set aside after about 5 minutes or beef has browned on the outside. Add in tomatoes, and celery and fry briskly, simmer for about 5 to 8 minutes till tomatoes softened. Return the beef to the pan, mix well, then add in mushrooms, fry with the rest of the mixture. Add in 1/4cup of water/stock and let the entire mixture simmer at low heat for about 5 minutes. Pinch of salt and pepper to taste. Add in shell pasta and mix thoroughly with the mixture and allow the pasta to absorb the tomato-beef sauce. Serve immediately.



This pasta is for Presto Pasta Nights #166 hosted by the creator of PPN, Ruth of Once Upon a Feast.

How do you determine your pasta choice? Based on Sauce,  Favoritism, or Mood of the Day?

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