Grandmom D'Antonio's Sunday Sauce

My grandparent, Angelo and Theresa D'Antonio would have pasta twice a week. Thursdays were store-bought boxed pasta and on Sunday around 1pm they would have homemade spaghetti and homemade sauce. The sauce started around 5:30 Sunday morning before church when Grandmom would sear some meat in a large pot with olive oil before adding the tomatoes. That would simmer for hours bringing the aroma up the cellar steps all through the house. Below is the closest John's been able to recreate her wonderful dish.

Ingredients

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Small pork chop, bone in (or other leftover meats)
3 tablespoons minced onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 (28-ounce) cans imported Italian crushed tomatoes
6 leaves fresh basil, torn into small pieces
Pinch of dried oregano
Salt and ground black pepper

Directions

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat, then add the pork.
Sauté until fat has rendered—about 5 minutes.
Add onion and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes.
Add garlic and sauté just until softened.
Add tomatoes with their juice and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened, about 45 minutes. The longer you simmer it the better it tastes (up to 3 hours)
Add the basil, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 1 minute more.

John's Notes:

I leave out the oregano since I find the flavor off putting, but go ahead and add it if you like the flavor.
If my grandmother didn't have a pork chop she used any meat such as sausage just to give the sauce some flavor.
I also add a cleaned large carrot and a couple stalks of celery. You can either toss them at the end of cooking or do like I do, pour the sauce with the carrot and celery (but not the meat) into a blender and pulse until the carrot and celery disappear. I think this makes a more flavorful sauce.