Simple Tomato Sauce

This post was last updated on August 27, 2014 to include new images and a recipe video.

this RECIPE

I find that people are often surprised that I make my own tomato sauce.  I think they imagine me spending hours and hours over the stove with tons of ingredients.

Truth is: it's pretty darn easy and only requires a few simple ingredients.

Italian food is one of my many, many, many favorite types of food.  Therefore, I make a lot of it.

To make great Italian food, I think it's pretty important to make your own tomato sauce.

Now, I haven't always thought this way.  In fact, I used to buy pre-made tomato sauces.  [Gasp!]   It wasn't until I tried a recipe for Simple Tomato Sauce by Giada De Laurentiis that everything changed...forever.  [Insert dramatic pause]

Oh my goodness, this sauce is good.  It is delicious in spaghetti with meat sauce, on healthy pizzas, baked with chicken parmesan, on meatball subs and smothered on garlic bread.

As its name suggests, this is a simple sauce.

So, once you get comfortable making this recipe, you can customize it however you want, like adding roasted tomatoes and garlic sauce, four cheese tomato sauce, healthy pesto sauce, etc.

The possibilities are endless...and tasty.

Watch me make this awesome sauce the video below!

Simple Tomato Sauce

Lacey Baier

This is a great basic, easy-to-make tomato sauce that we use all the time.

5 from 4 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Course Sauce

Cuisine American

Servings 8

Calories 155 kcal

Equipment

• Stock Pot or Large Deep Skillet
• Food Processor

*This post may contain affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• ▢ 1 small onion chopped
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic chopped
• ▢ 1 stalk celery chopped
• ▢ 1 carrot chopped
• ▢ 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
• ▢ ½ teaspoon 
freshly ground black pepper plus more to taste
• ▢ 2 cans crushed tomatoes 28-ounce
• ▢ 4 to 6 basil leaves
• ▢ 2 bay leaves
• ▢ 1-4 tablespoon unsalted butter optional

Instructions

 

• In a large pot, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and cook for 5-8 minutes, until sweating.
• Add celery and carrots and season with the salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 8-10 minutes.
• Add the garlic and cook another 2 minutes.
• Add tomatoes, basil, and bay leaves and simmer, covered, on low heat for 1 hour.
• Before blending, remove bay leaves. If using a food processor, add half the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.
• If using an immersion blender (possibly the best device ever!), just blend the sauce right there in the pot.
• Once sauce is completely pureed, return to the pot. Add additional salt or pepper as desired. Add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, to round out the flavors. (I usually wind up adding about 2 tablespoons). The butter will cut some of the acidity of the tomatoes.
• If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and pour 1 to 2 cup portions into freezer plastic bags. This will freeze up to 6 months.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 155 kcalCarbohydrates: 2.4 gProtein: 0.4 gFat: 16.4 gSaturated Fat: 3.7 gCholesterol: 7.6 mgSodium: 100.8 mgFiber: 0.6 gSugar: 1 gVitamin A: 500 IUVitamin C: 2.5 mgCalcium: 10 mgIron: 0.4 mg

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