My family’s beloved San Marzano Tomato Sauce. This luscious red sauce is simmered for several hours to develop the richest taste. It’s filled with fresh herbs, authentic Italian flavors, and the most inviting aroma. Easily the best tomato sauce I’ve ever had! From my family to yours.
This Italian tomato sauce (also known in Italian as “Pomodoro sauce”) is unique from all my other recipes because it was the first recipe my mom ever taught me how to make. It was the very beginning of my love for food. For years, this sauce has brought my loud, bold, and very loving family together and has been a part of many memorable family dinners.
When you make this homemade pasta sauce, you will find the results are luscious, rich, and developed in flavor. It is the perfect sauce to complement your favorite Italian dishes! Although tomato sauce is quite simple, using quality ingredients matters. And letting your sauce cook low and slow for hours will give you the most beautifully rich and savory sauce you’ve ever had.
The first steps for making this sauce are to put on some Frank Sinatra, grab a glass of vino, and enjoy the sweet aroma of simmering tomatoes & garlic. ‘Cause, that’s Amore!
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Ingredients Needed
You’ll need just a handful of pantry items and fresh herbs to make this recipe happen. Here’s the full list: canned San Marzano plum tomatoes, garlic cloves, quality tomato paste, olive oil, salt & black pepper, and fresh herbs – basil and oregano.
These tomatoes are not just a staple in my family’s recipes, but are considered to be the best tomatoes in the world to use in sauces!
San Marzano tomatoes are grown in Southern Italy, between the cities of Naples and Salerno. The one key factor contributing to San Marzano tomatoes famous taste is the potassium-rich volcanic soil they’re grown in.
When it comes to the taste, these tomatoes are set apart from others because of their rich, sweet flavor and lower acidity. There is no need for adding sugar to your sauce if you use these tomatoes! They also have a thicker consistency than other canned plum tomatoes, and you’ll find they have less seeds too (making it ideal for cooking).
Pro tip: to know you are using certified San Marzano tomatoes, the can should say “Pomodoro San Marzano dell’Agro Sarnese Necorino D.O.P.” This ensures the tomatoes are grown in the authentic region.
Brands we like to use that are authentic and D.O.P. certified: Sclafani, Rega, La Fede, and Strianese. Your local grocery store also might have some other great options!
Brands we like to use that are quality but not D.O.P.-certified: If you do not care about using a D.O.P.-certified brand of tomatoes, I recommend at least using a tomato that is a product of Italy! The brands we like are Cento, Bella Terra, and Delallo (they have D.O.P and non-certified tomatoes). Just to name a few, there are many more quality tomato brands you can use!
How to Make San Marzano Tomato Sauce
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1
Sauté the garlic. In a large sauce pot, sauté the minced garlic in oil for about 30-60 seconds (stir constantly to avoid burning the garlic).
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2
Add the tomatoes and simmer low and slow. Once the garlic is fragrant, add the canned tomatoes with the paste and salt, then partially cover the pot with a lid. Let the sauce cook on the lowest setting for 4-6 hours. Stir occasionally to prevent any burning.
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3
Add the herbs last. When the sauce is finished cooking, add the chopped basil and oregano. Taste, season with any additional salt if needed, then serve!
Tips for Success
- Use quality San Marzano Peeled Tomatoes: to make a perfect tomato sauce you need San Marzano. These tomatoes give your sauce a thicker consistency and are sweeter, richer, and less acidic in flavor. I grew up with my mom always using Cento, but I also love using D.O.P-certified brands and preferably organic tomatoes. Be sure that whatever tomato you do use, is a product of Italy to ensure its top quality!
- Use Amore Sun-Dried Tomato Paste: Rather than using regular tomato paste as a thickener, my family loves to use this sun-dried tomato paste for a richer taste. If you do not have this available to you, no problem, swap it for regular tomato paste!
- The best herbs for tomato sauce – traditional Italian tomato sauce always calls for fresh basil or oregano – or a combination of both! Sometimes you’ll see thyme thrown into red sauces too. Using fresh herbs is key for authentic flavor. I do not recommend using dried herbs in a lot of my recipes, especially when it comes to homemade tomato sauce.
- Add a Parmesan cheese rind: When you purchase a block of Parmesan cheese – save/freeze your cheese rind for recipes like this! It’s a unique ingredient that instantly adds flavor. The rind won’t melt (though it will get soft); it will just sit in your sauce or soup and infuse it with extra umami and savor. Add the rind during the simmering time of the sauce, then use a utensil to carefully remove it before serving.
- Achieve rich flavor by using lots of garlic! As a born and raised garlic lover, I encourage you not to shy away from the number of garlic cloves listed. So much flavor in red sauces comes from the aromatics (garlic, onions, etc.). We use lots of garlic in this sauce to create a complex flavor! It will not taste “garlic-y”- but wonderfully balanced and rich.
Make Your Sauce Smooth in Seconds
Our favorite hand-held blender
I love a sauce with texture – but if you prefer a smooth sauce consistency we love using this hand-held immersion blender to make this happen in seconds! It's much safer than transferring hot sauce to a blender and is the easiest tool to use. The blender is one of my moms favorite kitchen tools! It's great for creaming sauces, soups, and hot drinks.
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How to Avoid an Acidic Sauce
Add a carrot to simmer in the sauce: my mom always did this when she made sauce, and it’s a little-known secret many Italians use to balance the acidity of sauces. The sweetness of the carrot releases its flavor and naturally absorbs any acidic flavors from the tomatoes. How to: Remove the stem, peel the carrot skin off, and place the whole carrot into the sauce to simmer. Then, remove and discard the carrot once the sauce is finished.
Use a stainless steel pot: When making tomato sauce, choosing the right pot is essential. My top recommendation for sauce is stainless steel. Other pots, such as non-stick or cast iron can cause the acid in the tomatoes to mix with the metal and result in an unpleasant metallic taste.
Can I add meatballs to cook with the sauce? Of course! We love cooking our Italian meatballs with this sauce. If the meatballs are about 2 inches in size, after being browned in a pan or baked, you can add them to the sauce to cook for the last 60-30 minutes. If they’re much bigger, let them simmer in the sauce for 2 hours. Stir the sauce gently to prevent breaking the meatballs, and ensure you use a large enough pot!
Can this sauce be made with fresh tomatoes? Yes! We love to make tomato sauce with fresh garden tomatoes. Use our fresh tomato sauce recipe for this process! This recipe will take less time, but the flavor is equally as delicious.
Can I make this in a slow cooker? Of course! I recommend first sauteing the garlic in a pan. Then add the garlic to a slow cooker with the rest of the sauce ingredients, and set it on LOW for 5 hours. Stir a few times throughout the cooking process. Add the herbs at the end.
Why does this recipe call for no onions? This was the way my mom taught me how to make tomato sauce, just with garlic as the aromatic. Many traditional tomato sauce recipes only call for garlic, so it’s common to see onions not included. But we have tried it with onion, and it’s delicious too! If you want to add onion, dice it small and saute the onion (before the garlic) for about 3 minutes. Then add the garlic!
Do I need to chop the tomatoes before adding them to the sauce? Only if you want the sauce to be very smooth, with no texture/chunks of tomatoes. San Marzano tomatoes are so tender that they will naturally break down as they cook, especially in this recipe since it calls for a longer simmering time. So no, they do not need to be chopped before cooking!
Can this sauce be canned? Yes, homemade sauce like this recipe can definitely be canned. Although I’ve never canned this recipe, we’ve had many readers have great success with it!
Tips for Storing Leftovers & Freezing
Store & keep fresh: Let sauce cool to room temperature, then store in an airtight container or glass jars. Chill in the refrigerator for up to 5-7 days.
How to freeze: First, let the sauce cool to room temperature – then store it in an airtight container or freezer-friendly ziplock bag. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Our Favorite Ways to Serve it Up
The best way to serve this tomato sauce is with your favorite Italian dishes! Some of our favorites are…
Lasagna. We love layering this sauce in our vegetable lasagna, spinach lasagna roll-ups, and Italian sausage lasagna! For a healthier take on lasagna, we also love making our zucchini lasagna or eggplant lasagna too.
Baked pasta. This sauce is always the perfect addition to our baked ziti or baked rigatoni! And we can’t forget our baked cauliflower ziti too.
Meatballs. Make my family’s Italian meatballs with this sauce, or try it with our vegetarian zucchini meatballs or eggplant meatballs – so yummy!
Eggplant & Chicken Parmesan. My mom has always made this sauce with her famous chicken parmesan. And I love to serve it with this classic eggplant parmesan!
Rollatini. We love making zucchini rollatini or eggplant rollatini with this sauce as well.
Pasta noodles. You can also keep it simple, and serve this red sauce with your favorite Italian noodles such as penne, rigatoni, fusilli, spaghetti, or shells! And whatever you serve this sauce with, don’t forget to add crusty rosemary garlic bread on the side for dipping.
I hope you love this homemade tomato sauce as much as we do! It’s a staple for complimenting my favorite Italian recipes – especially around the holidays.
More Tomato Sauce Recipes
If you love this sauce, you might also like our fresh tomato sauce, Italian meat sauce, authentic Italian Bolognese Sauce, or spicy arrabbiata sauce!
Got Pinterest? Pin this recipe to your Pinterest boards!
San Marzano Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
- 8 garlic cloves, minced
- 3-4 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4-5 28oz cans San Marzano Peeled Tomatoes (with juices)
- 2-3 Tablespoon amore sun-dried tomato paste (or use regular tomato paste)
- 1/2 teaspoons (each) salt & black pepper
- 3 Tablespoons fresh basil (for dried basil – 1 Tbsp)
- 2 teaspoons fresh oregano (for dried oregano – 1 tsp)
Instructions
- Cook garlic: In a large stainless steel pot on LOW-MEDIUM heat sauté garlic in olive oil for 30-60 seconds. Stir constantly to keep garlic from burning.
- Add tomatoes and simmer: pour canned tomatoes with juices in with the garlic. Add tomato paste, salt, and black pepper. Mix ingredients together, partially cover with lid – but not completely, and simmer on LOW heat for 3+ hours. Stir every so often to avoid burning. Note: if using a parmesan rind, add it in this step and let it simmer with sauce until finished. Remove and discard rind when ready to serve.
- For smooth sauce: when sauce is finished cooking, use a hand immersion-blender to puree. Note: If you prefer a chunkier/thicker sauce (like I do), you can skip this step as the San Marzanos naturally break down while cooking.
- Add herbs: when sauce is finished, mix in chopped fresh herbs. Season with additional salt & black pepper if needed and serve!
Video
The description says, “A famous family recipe – San Marzano Tomato Sauce also known as ‘Italian gravy.'” I thought Italian gravy was meat based. Is that not correct?
Can I add ground beef or maybe a combination of ground beef and Italian sausage to this recipe?
yes! I would brown the meat in a pan and add them for the last 30 minutes of the simmer.
When simmering should the pot be covered or not?
You can partially cover it – to avoid the sauce from splattering. That way it’s not cooking too fast. Covering the pot fully will trap the heat, cook it much faster, and could accidentally burn it if it’s not low enough or being stirred enough. Hope this helps!
This was amazing! The depth of flavor is just outstanding. I did add the parmesan rind and it did melt which made the sauce creamy which we ended up loving. Will definitely make this again.
Thank you so much, Patricia! I am so glad the flavor was so wonderful. 🙂
I’m in the process of making this sauce now, and my gosh every time I go to stir it (and taste it) it’s better and better. Instead of using 8 cloves of minced garlic, I roasted an entire head, mashed it, and added it in the sauce. I’m just 2 hours into simmering and my gosh, this sauce is like a warm hug on a cold day. I’ve always used crushed tomatoes instead of whole, I’ll never go back! Thank you so much for the recipe!
Thank you, Kathryn! I am so happy to hear it 🙂
Back again. Made the sauce for a 2nd time and it came out a little bitter. I used San Marzanos and followed recipe exactly. I’ve heard of adding a little sugar but would know how to calculate how much or just by taste. Any rules of thumb on that or words of wisdom?
Hi Jon! I’m sorry to hear that. There is a few things that can play a factor in bitterness. Cookware (I recommend using only stainless steal), the tomatoes themselves could be acidic to begin with, or incase burning accidentally happened. But I would try to cut the bitterness with a 1 teaspoon at a time of sugar until you feel it’s just right. A good method that helps (which I will add to this post) is adding a whole carrot to your sauce. It will actually help cut acidity in the tomatoes while the sauce simmers – then you remove it once the sauce is done… Hope this helps!!
Hi! Looking forward to making this. Might be a silly question, but to you simmer covered or uncovered for the 4 plus hours? I normally cover, but you don’t have notes anywhere and wonder if leaving uncovered will make for a thicker sauce. Thanks!
Hi Nicole! good question. So, usually we leave it uncovered on the lowest setting, but sometimes for sauce splattering reasons we will do a partial cover. You can of course cover it completely too! you might just have to stir it more often because it’s cooking a little faster. 🙂 Hope this helps!
My new go to tomato sauce, awesome. Be sure your cans of San Marzano tomato’s have the DOP certification on the label, if verifies they actually came from the region (the soil is very unique due to a volcano, that’s what make them so special).
Thanks so much, Robb! I’m so thrilled to hear it!
I made this about 5 times over the last year or so and it is definitely going to be it for me going forward. No more store sauces. I will jar this up and put it in the freezer whenever I need sauce.
I use the cheese rind tip, its great. I use some cheese cloth now so removing the rind is easy.
Also, I make my own sundried tomato paste with Calabrian chiles. It adds a nice spice and another flavor. Thank you!
Thank you, Mark! So wonderful to hear this. How amazing you make your own sun-dried tomato paste! That is something I will have to try for myself. 🙂
I don’t like the thickness of this sauce. What do you recommend? I will run tomatoes thru blende before adding to pot
Yep, you can blend the tomatoes. If you don’t like a thicker sauce I would skip the tomato paste, simmer for less (the more you simmer the more it thickens). So maybe 3 hours so you aren’t reducing all the water content from the tomatoes! Hope this helps!
When should I toss the parm rind in?
From start to finish of the simmering process! Then remove it before serving.
Loved this so much the 1rst time that I quadrupled it and jarred it the 2nd time! Does it still need to be refrigerated if its stored air tight in Mason jars?
You can refrigerate for up to a week, but I would recommend freezing the sauce for the freshest results!