American Chop Suey!!

mmmmmmm........

When I was a kid, we didn't have American Chop Suey, we had something my mother called chop suey that was made with these chow mein noodles:
Whatever that dish was, I didn't like it, but I loved those noodles. I would put way more on my plate than I was supposed to! I could ask my mother what it was, but I guarantee she will not remember. She doesn't remember anything from my childhood. It's very strange...

Anyway, today I'm making American Chop Suey in the crockpot. I've never tried it before, but a friend passed along a recipe that cooks it in the crockpot. It's not really different from how would normally make it... you just throw it all in the crockpot and add the elbows at the end. I have high hopes for it though.


1 lb. lean ground beef
5 bacon strips, diced
1 large onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes--any flavor or plain
1 can water (empty tomato can)
6 garlic cloves, chopped
26 oz jar prepared pasta sauce
16 oz package elbow macaroni
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Use a 6 quart crockpot. In a large skillet, brown the beef, bacon, and onion all together until the meat is no longer pink. Drain well and put in crockpot. Add everything else except for the pasta and the cheese. Stir to combine. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for about 4 hours. Stir in the raw pasta and cook on high for approximately 30 minutes or until the pasta is bite tender. Serve with a handful of cheese on each serving.

** I always use ground turkey instead of gound beef and I skipped the bacon, because who has ever heard of bacon in American Chop Suey?? Also, per usual, I added way more garlic. But we're garlic lovers!

I will let you know how it turns out!