My family’s best Marinara Sauce Recipes have a short list of ingredients, very easy to make and tastes incredibly incredibly! This homemade sauce is fresh, bright and tastes very tasty!
Our family has passed through a lot of pasta, so this homemade marinara sauce recipe is perfect for our favorite recipe! It tastes much lighter and fresher than anything you can buy in the store.
I use this marinara sauce as a building block in many recipes about inspired flavors. Use it to make spinach lasagna, baked spaghetti, this spinach and artichoke grilled jiti (so good!).
Important ingredients
Olive Oil: I use a generous amount of olive oil to make this sauce flavorful and give it a nice texture. Garlic, Onion, Carrot: Slice the garlic, chop the onion, grated the carrots to add texture. Tomato: I use canned tomatoes, but I can use fresh tomatoes (see recipe tips). When using canned tomatoes, I grind them by hand before adding them to the pan. Bay Leaf and Basil: Add a deeper look to the sauce and stir in basil at the end for a fresh flavor.
How to make marinara sauce
Use this homemade marinara sauce as a building block for many dishes. Throw it with pasta or add it to fish and meat dishes. To make it creamy, stir with heavy cream. For the spicy version, add crushed red chili flakes. Or, for the Briny version, add olives or capers.
I first cook garlic, onion and carrots in grated olive oil. Grated carrots are a great hint of this marinara-like sauce. By grinding them, the carrots are mostly blended into the sauce, which gives them a sweet taste, but there’s no big bits of carrots.
When the vegetables are tender and sweet, you can add tomatoes. I use canned tomatoes and I like to grind them first. I use my hands, but the potato masher works too. The same is what you see when you see your Italian grandmother making tomato sauce.
After the simmering time, the sauce is ready for a handful of fresh basil, giving it a light and fresh taste. Then you’re ready to use in your favorite pasta recipe!
Our favorite marinara sauce
Preparation
10 minutes
Cook
35 minutes
total
45 minutes
I use canned tomatoes to make this homemade marinara sauce, but I can use fresh ones. If you’re using fresh tomatoes, please see the Tips section below the recipe. I’m pretty generous with the basil in this sauce. Add as much as you like, or a little!
Make 6 cups
You will need it
1/4 cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, slice thinly
Half-onion, finely chopped (1 cup)
Medium carrot, peeled and grated (1/2 cup)
2 (28 oz) cans of whole skin tomatoes, see fresh tips
1Bay Leaf
Almost chopped fresh basil leaves
Fresh ground black pepper with salt
direction
1Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-raw heat. Add the onion and garlic and stir until occasionally soft, until brown, 5-8 minutes.
2Stir in the grated carrot and a pinch of salt. Cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the carrots are tender.
3While the vegetables are cooking, open cans of tomatoes and pour them and their juice into a large bowl. Use your hands or potato masher to grind the tomatoes. Leave it a little thick.
4Add crushed tomatoes, juice and bay leaves to the pan. Stir in the sauce and bring to a boil. Then gently simmer the heat, simmer the covered stew and cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5Season and season with salt and pepper. (If the sauce appears to be too acidic, add a pinch of sugar to balance the flavor.)
6Remove the bay leaves, discard them, then stir in the chopped basil.
7The sauce is ready for immediate use, can be refrigerated for up to a week or frozen for up to six months.
Adam and Joan tips
Fresh Tomatoes: Use 4 pounds (1.8kg) of fresh tomatoes. Peel them off for a smooth sauce. Cut “X” into the bottom of each tomato and add it to boiling water for about 1 minute. Then you will plunge into the icy water. The skin should come off easily. Nutrition facts shown below are estimates. I was expecting 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
Nutrition per meal
Serving size
1 cup
/
calorie
134
/
protein
3g
/
carbohydrates
12g
/
Dietary fiber
6g
/
Total sugar
8g
/
Total fat
10g
/
Saturated fat
1g
/
cholesterol
0mg
/
sodium
517mg
author:
We are Adam and Joan, who have been passionate about cooking and sharing trustworthy recipes since 2009. Our goal? To encourage you to enter the kitchen and cook fresh, flavorful meals with confidence.
