First, we must make the sauce. Heat a large saucepan (I use my enameled cast-iron casserole) to medium/medium-high. Pour in enough olive oil to barely coat the bottom of the pan. Add the onion and sauteé until it starts to become translucent (around 2-3 minutes). Toss in a pinch of salt, then add the garlic and stir until fragrant (another minute or so).
Add the ground turkey to the pan and stir well. Add a generous pinch or two of salt, a few turns of pepper, and a couple of teaspoons of garlic powder. You need to season the meat well before it browns so that the meat has a good flavor on its own and isn’t totally dependent on the sauce later. Brown the meat until almost all of the liquid in the pan has evaporated. If you’re used to ground beef, note that turkey won’t get nearly that dark, so don’t keep on cooking forever because it will get very dry.
Once the turkey has browned, turn the heat down to low and add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, and dried oregano. Add an extra cup of water or so, and stir until it’s all combined. You may need to go after the tomato paste with the flat side of your spoon a bit, so it’s not a lurking mass. Add in the soy sauce and brown sugar and stir well.
Cover and simmer for 5-10 minutes. This is also a good time to get a large pot of water boiling for the pasta. Then comes my favorite part: testing! I usually have to adjust the amounts of soy sauce and brown sugar until it tastes right. It should be just slightly sweet with a fairly strong savory flavor. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Nurmm… Anyway, you can let it simmer gently until you are ready to eat.
Once you’ve got your sauce tasting just right, start cooking the pasta. It should take around 7-8 minutes, but check it regularly to make sure you pull it when it is al dente. I hate mushy pasta, and as fabulous as this sauce is, it cannot make up for watery, pasty noodles.
Notes
*Spaghetti note: While we will, on occasion, pair this sauce with penne rigate, I must say that turkey meat sauce just belongs with spaghetti. The two go together perfectly. It’s only slightly larger than regular spaghetti, which works 98%, as well as the thick variety (according to me), so really, you can use whichever pasta you wish.Once your pasta has reached the al dente stage, it’s all quite self-explanatory: strain it out, plate it up, and spoon some sauce over the top. The parmesan is optional. Eat up!