Tomato sauce, or marinara, is a staple for many satisfying, family-friendly dishes. Although readily available as fresh or jarred sauces, homemade marinara sauce can be customized for your family (more or less garlic, with or without vegetables, sausage, and other ingredients, including herbs of your choice). Homemade marinara is easy, quick, and delicious.
A basic formula to make tomato-based pasta sauce:
- Heat aromatics (onion, garlic, dried herbs) in olive oil.
- Add tomatoes (fresh, canned, paste) and stock, if using.
- Cook until sauce thickens (15-20 minutes).
- Add final seasonings.
- Use immediately, refrigerate, or freeze.
Marinara beyond spaghetti:
- Dunk grilled cheese sandwich bites into warmed marinara
- Serve on top of steamed or roasted vegetables with grated Parmesan
- Slice and fry polenta, then top with steaming marinara
- Use as a pizza sauce (omit butter from the sauce for pizza)
- Use for any type of pasta – lasagna, manicotti, tortellini
- Add half-and-half or heavy cream for a creamy tomato sauce
- Heat meatballs in the marinara, top with provolone, and serve on rolls for sandwiches
Marinara (Tomato Sauce) Recipe from Sharon’s riff on good recipes from Wolfgang Puck, Patricia Wells, and Mario Batali
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 -2 small onions minced (optional)
- 3-6 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 28-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice or crushed tomatoes in puree
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 8 fresh basil leaves, washed and cut into chiffonade (roll the leaves and cut into very thin slices)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground pepper
Heat olive oil in saucepan, add the minced onion, and cook over medium heat until onions are soft, 5-8 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomato paste, and stir with the onions and garlic. Stir in the tomatoes, then add the chicken stock. Simmer sauce until thickened, about 20 minutes (shorter for crushed tomatoes, longer for whole or diced). After the sauce is thickened, add the basil and stir. Whisk the butter, piece by piece, until fully blended. Season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!
Makes enough for 12-16 ounces of pasta. Easy to double batch and freeze.