Simple Marinara Sauce Recipe
An absolutely delicious recipe for a Simple Marinara Sauce that works perfectly with pasta, lasagna, stuffed peppers, pizza, and more! It's easy to make and layered with flavor using just a few simple ingredients.
Prep Time 5 minutes minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes minutes
Total Time 1 hour hour
Course: Main Course, Sauce
Cuisine: Italian
Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan
Servings: 6
- ¼ cup high quality extra virgin olive oil
- ½ small onion, diced (about ⅔ cup)
- 1 carrot, diced (about ½ cup)
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 fresh basil leaves
- Salt to taste (I used ½ tsp)
- Pinch of sugar if needed
Place the olive oil, onions, and garlic in a deep pot with a pinch of salt. Now, turn the heat on to medium high and cook until the onions are translucent, which takes about 2-3 minutes. By starting out with a cold pot you are able to infuse the oil with the flavor through sweating rather than burning the garlic and onions by using too high of a heat.
Next, add the carrots with another pinch of salt. Then cook for 3-5 minutes more until the carrots are soft.
Add the crushed tomatoes, bay leaf, and basil leaves to the pot. Then simmer with the lid cracked for about 45 minutes to an hour until the sauce thickens up a bit.
Next, remove the bay leaf and place the sauce into the bowl of a food processor or blender. Then pulse the sauce until you reach your desired consistency. I like it to be a tad bit chunky in texture. But this is completely up to you.
Now, put the sauce back into the pot. If the sauce is still too thin simmer for a few more minutes with the lid off.
Finally, taste the sauce. If it is too acidic add a pinch of sugar and if it is too bland add more salt. Add the salt a little at a time. You want the salt to bring out the flavors, but not take over. If you do add too much salt just add a little more tomato product and/or olive oil.
This recipe makes about 24oz of sauce, which is enough for a pound of pasta. Leftover sauce can be stored in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for up to 3 months when stored in an airtight container.
Calories: 95kcal | Carbohydrates: 4.9g | Protein: 0.8g | Fat: 8.4g | Saturated Fat: 1.2g | Sodium: 261mg | Potassium: 42mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2.8g | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 1mg
Keyword marinara sauce, red sauce, spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce