East German pasta with tomato sauce and Jagdwurst

About this recipe

This East German style pasta pairs spiral noodles with a savory sauce made from tomato paste, ketchup and a light roux. Fried onions and Jagdwurst cubes give the sauce a hearty base. The noodles cook while the sauce simmers, and a little reserved pasta water can loosen the sauce if needed. This four-portion meal works well for an everyday lunch or dinner. Butter and flour thicken the sauce, so this version does not rely on puréed tomatoes. The tomato paste is briefly cooked before water is added, then ketchup supplies sweetness and acidity. Spiral pasta holds the thick sauce particularly well. Jagdwurst is a German cooked sausage; its cubes are browned with the onion before the sauce is finished. Salt, pepper and a little sugar round out the seasoning. This is a practical interpretation of an East German-style family dish, not a claim that one single historical recipe was used everywhere.