Making homemade marinara sauce is so easy to make with just a few ingredients. This recipe is perfect to use for chicken parmesan, meatballs and even for dipping.
My husband taught me how to make this most incredible homemade marinara sauce years ago. This recipe actually comes from his mother’s husband, Papa Mike, whose Italian mother taught him how to make.
Now, coming from a girl who had always popped open that jar of sauce, I was way too intimidated to try to make this sauce myself, especially if mom and Mike were visiting. I didn’t want to have to compare mine to the likes of the Italian mother. No way!
But let me give you all the confidence you will ever need. It is a really, really easy sauce to make!
We usually make a double batch to freeze so that we always have some on hand to use for over these baked chicken tenders for chicken parmesan, meatballs, lasagna, ravioli…..you name it!
It is truly an all-time favorite!
How to Make Homemade Marinara Sauce
Pour olive oil in a large pot.
Add minced garlic and chopped onion in the pot and saute until translucent and soft. Do not brown! This is very important.
Place tomatoes in a blender or food processor and blend about 5-10 seconds until smooth and pureed.
Add in dry ingredients
Bring sauce to a slow boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer for a minimum of 1 1/2 hours, stirring every 15-20 minutes so not to burn the bottom. I prefer to simmer for about 3 hours but it is still yummy if you cook it at the minimum.
Try these other pasta recipes too:
Chicken and Spinach in Feta Cream Sauce
Cod Recipe in Tomato Basil Sauce
Homemade Marinara Sauce
Ingredients
- 84 ounces 28 oz+ cans of Whole Plum tomatoes
- 4-6 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 small onion chopped
- 4 TBSP of olive oil enough to cover the bottom of the pot.
- 2-3 TBSP of dried basil
- 1 tsp of oregano
- 1 tsp of sugar
- pepper to paste
Instructions
- Pour olive oil in a large pot.
- Add minced garlic and chopped onion in pot and saute until translucent and soft. Do not brown!! This is very important.
- Place tomatoes in a blender or food processor and blend about 5-10 seconds until smooth and pureed.
- Add in dry ingredients
- Bring sauce to a slow boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer for a minimum of an 1 1/2 hours, stirring every 15-20 minutes so not to burn the bottom. I prefer to simmer for about 3 hours but it is still yummy if you cook it at the minimum.
Krysta says
This sauce is delicious. It’s what I make every time we need a red sauce! I do not ad the sugar and it’s STILL great! And one batch is enough for a meal for our family of 5 plus enough to freeze another meals worth.
Mark Whitnell says
You really should try another recipe…add anchovies, and the most important item is a dash of cloves. Delete the sugar.
Kay says
How many people does this batch serve? My daughter wants to make fresh pasta for a casual dinner party. Got to have good marinara sauce!
Sherri says
Hi! It makes enough for at least 8-12 servings 🙂 Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Miz Helen says
Your homemade sauce looks fabulous! Thanks so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and have a fantastic day!
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
April J Harris says
There’s nothing like good old fashioned homemade Marinara Sauce! Your recipe sounds delicious, Sherri. Shared. Thank you for being a part of the Hearth and Soul Hop.
Ann says
Love the home-made version of marinara sauce! 🙂 #foodiefriDIY
Bree says
I can’t wait to try this! My husband and I were just talking about finding a recipe for homemade marinara since it’s less expensive, healthier, and yummier than store bought. Will be making this soon 🙂
Carole @ From My Carolina Home says
Looks simple and good. Visiting from Pieced Pastimes Saturday Sparks.
Nicole says
This looks so delicious!! My mother used to make her own homemade maranara sauce and it was so good. Since tasting that the store bought just doesn’t even come close. We will have to give this a try and see how everyone likes it!! Pinning, stumbling, tweeting, and sharing on Google+.
Sherri says
Thank you so much!
[email protected] says
Good recipe! Thanks for sharing with the Thursday Blog Hop!
Lori says
I’ll have to try this. I’ve tried other marinara sacues and haven’t found a favorite recipe yet. This looks delicious!
Cheryl says
Thank you for sharing, this looks so much better than the stuff you buy. Pinning so I can make it later.
Garden-2-Plate says
This sounds like mine except I use fresh tomatoes. I would never want to compare it to an Italian mother in laws that sounds like trouble. Thanks for sharing on Raising Homemakers Link Up.
Debbie says
This looks delicious! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe.
Morgan @ Morgan Manages Mommyhood says
There is seriously NOTHING better than homemade marinara (except, maybe fresh bread to dip in it!). This is such a great recipe to have in your back pocket!
Becca @ The Earthling's Handbook says
I love making homemade sauce! I started when I was around 12 years old and was surprised at how easy it is to make a basic marinara.
I usually use tomato puree so I can skip the pureeing step–it contains only tomatoes, no salt or anything.
A while back, I was writing down how I made every batch of spaghetti sauce because I like to use whatever compatible vegetables we have on hand. I haven’t done that recently, but I have half a dozen variations up (plus some other tips in the “spaghetti sauce” category) if you are interested!
Liz says
Yum! Now I want spaghetti and meatballs at 8:15 in the morning… 😉