Homemade Marinara Sauce
Seasoned to perfection, this Homemade Marinara Sauce is a great recipe to use in all your favorite pasta dishes!
A DELICIOUS VERSATILE HOMEMADE SAUCE
Not many people can resist a good pasta dish. But what good is pasta if you don’t have a great sauce to go with it? I whipped up this Homemade Marinara Sauce to eat with my Homemade Turkey Meatballs. But there really is no stopping how you can serve this marinara sauce. Put it over spaghetti, in pasta casseroles and as a dipping sauce. There is no wrong way to use this at all! If you want to try a little something special for dinner tonight then ditch the canned sauce and try my Homemade Marinara Sauce Recipe!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Yes! Brown the meat with the onions and then proceed with the recipe as written. The recipe will support about 1-1 ½ pounds of ground meat. Or try my Meatball Parmesan Skillet using this marinara sauce recipe for a fun, meaty recipe!
Fresh herbs are great to add to a Marinara Sauce. Dried herbs are more potent so you’ll use about 2-3 times the amount of fresh herbs. You may also need to simmer longer for the flavors to permeate the sauce.
Simmer the sauce for at least 30 minutes. But it can be simmered for up to an hour or two. Keep the heat low and stir occasionally to make sure the sauce isn’t sticking/burning on the bottom of the pan. Add ½ cup of red wine just after sautéing the garlic/herbs. Red wine provides depth and richness to the sauce.
Absolutely! If you want to double this to serve more people or to save for later, you can absolutely do that.
Cool the marinara sauce to room temperature. Store in an airtight container or a ziptop bag. Sauce will keep in the refrigerator for 4-5 days or freeze in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Defrost in refrigerator before reheating on stovetop.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST)
- olive oil
- onion
- garlic
- dried basil
- dried oregano
- crushed red pepper flakes
- tomato paste
- tomato sauce
- crushed tomatoes
- granulated sugar
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE MARINARA SAUCE:
In a large skillet or Dutch oven, saute onion in olive oil over medium heat until soft and translucent (4-5 minutes).
Add minced garlic, dried basil, dried oregano, and red pepper flakes; saute 1 minute longer.
Add tomato paste, tomato sauce and crushed tomatoes (juice included).
Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover with a lid, and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Taste the sauce and add granulated sugar as needed to balance the acidity in the sauce.
Stir to combine.
Serve over pasta, as a dipping sauce for garlic bread, etc.
WANT MORE DELICIOUS RECIPES?
Homemade Marinara Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced (½-¾ cup)
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 12 ounce can tomato paste
- 29 ounce can tomato sauce
- 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- fresh basil, oregano, and/or parsley for garnish (optional)
- Parmesan cheese, for granish
Instructions
- In a large skillet or Dutch oven, saute onion in olive oil over medium heat until soft and translucent (4-5 minutes).
- Add minced garlic, dried basil, dried oregano, and red pepper flakes; saute 1 minute longer.
- Add tomato paste, tomato sauce and crushed tomatoes (juice included).
- Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover with a lid, and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Taste the sauce and add granulated sugar as needed to balance the acidity in the sauce.
- Stir to combine.
- Serve over pasta, as a dipping sauce for garlic bread, etc.
Notes
- This can be made into a meat sauce, see tips above.
- You can easily double this recipe to make more for guests or save for later.
- This can be frozen.
- This makes 6 cups of sauce.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Keeping this one handy. I make a tomato-basil sauce similar to yours. It really compliments my homemade lasagna perfectly, but I like a sauce with a little more substance and herbs with other pasta dishes and this one looks like a winner.
Thanks Brandie /
Thanks so very much Donna! Hope you enjoy this one as much as your own recipe 🙂
I just made this marinara sauce tonight and it was delicious. This will now be my go to recipe.
hello this is a great recipe. Do You have recipe using fresh tomatoes. I have lots.