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An authentic and delicious Italian Tomato Sauce that has been passed down through generations.
This recipe for Italian Tomato Sauce is a recipe that my husband Jack spent years perfecting. For Jack, knowing how to make a great Italian Tomato Sauce is a very personal thing – and it brings back fond memories of his childhood.
To this day, Jack clearly remembers the amazing smells coming from a pot of tomato sauce that was always simmering away on the stove anytime he visited his Italian grandparents. He worked hard to recreate that wonderful recipe in our own kitchen – and this is it!
In fact, ever since posting this Italian Tomato Sauce recipe here on A Family Feast back in 2013, we’ve had so many readers write to us to tell us how much they love this sauce. And, many of our readers have told us that they now consider this their ‘go-to’ Italian tomato sauce recipe. (Note: We haven’t made any changes to the recipe over the years, we just included some updated photos today!)
There are so many different ways to make an Italian Tomato Sauce and depending on whom you ask – and where their family originally came from – you will find many different family recipes. Some use different types of tomatoes, some with or without meat, some cooked for a long time giving the sauce a deep, rich taste and others cooked for just a short time for a light fresh taste. Some families even refer to their Italian tomato sauce as Sunday Gravy or Marinara. (Click on those links – we have our own version of those recipes too!)
What’s the difference between Italian Tomato Sauce, Sunday Gravy, Marinara Sauce and other kinds of sauces?
- For Jack, an Italian Tomato Sauce is a tomato-based sauce that simmers for a long time on the stove so that the flavors really deepen and develop. (This recipe is a delicious example!)
- A Sunday Gravy recipe is a tomato sauce cooked along with a variety of meats including meatballs, spare ribs, sausage, and pork chops, so the sauce picks up additional flavor from the meat.
- Finally, Marinara is also a tomato-based sauce, but it’s a quickly-cooked sauce, yielding a bright, fresh tomato flavor.
- And – since we’re talking about all types of tomato sauces – we also have a Roasted Tomato Pizza Sauce recipe AND an Easy No-Cook Pizza Sauce recipe you might be interested in checking out too. Pizza sauces typically have a bold flavor that is meant to both complement and shine through the flavors of the dough, cheese and toppings on a pizza.
- We also have recipes for Bolognese (a meat sauce that is cooked low and slow with milk), a more traditional Italian Meat Sauce (made with ground beef and Italian sausage), and finally an Italian Meat Ragu (made with shredded beef and other ingredients).
Today’s recipe is originally inspired by a version of Italian Tomato Sauce that Jack grew up with, and he credits his Aunt Mary for this recipe, plus some additional influences from the sauce that Jack’s father (aka Grampa) used to make. If you happen to be growing San Marzano Pomodoro tomatoes in your garden – definitely use those! However, if fresh tomatoes aren’t available, we think some of the best San Marzano Pomodoro canned tomatoes are made by Cento and Pastene – and both brands are readily available at most local grocery stores.
Mangia!
P.S. We freeze our Italian Tomato Sauce in gallon zipper seal bags for long-term storage, laying the bags flat after filling and squeezing out any excess air. Freeze the bags flat on a sheet pan, then once frozen you can fit them more easily in your freezer. For information on how to can a high-acid food like tomato sauce, we suggest that you visit the Ball Canning website here. Here is another interesting link about canning tomato sauce which suggests that the pressure method should be used to ensure safe canning of any homemade tomato sauce.
You may also like these other Italian family classics:
- Marinara Sauce
- Nanny’s Italian Stuffed Peppers
- Classic Lasagna
- Sunday Gravy
- Grandma Gennaco’s Beef Braciole
We love seeing what you made! Tag us on Instagram at @afamilyfeast or hashtag #afamilyfeast so we can see your creations!
Italian Tomato Sauce
An authentic and delicious Italian Tomato Sauce that has been passed down through generations.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 4 crushed garlic cloves
- 3/4 cup chopped onion (optional)
- 1 teaspoon fresh chopped oregano, divided, or 1/2 teaspoon dried
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil, divided, or 1/2 tablespoon dried
- 1 teaspoon fresh chopped mint, divided
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 28–ounce cans of whole tomatoes or two quarts of freshly canned garden tomatoes
- 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesano Reggiano cheese
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Instructions
- Before you begin, pour your two cans of tomatoes into a bowl and crush with your hand. Don’t break them up too small, you want large chunks.
- In a large heavy bottomed pot with a lid, on a burner with no flame, pour in olive oil and add red pepper flakes, garlic, onion, most of the oregano, basil and mint (save a little bit of each for the end), sugar salt and pepper. Turn on the burner and slowly bring up to hot. (See Notes below.) When the onions and garlic start to cook, stir and heat for five minutes.
- Remove the pot from the burner and place a heat diffuser over the burner. Place the pot over the heat diffuser and add the tomatoes. Turn burner to medium high and stir until they start to boil. Then reduce to simmer, partially cover and simmer 90 minutes.
- After 90 minutes, remove from heat and add the reserved herbs and Parmesan cheese. Add the butter to round out the flavors. Stir again and serve.
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Notes
An important first step to note when making this sauce is to bring the olive oil up to temperature very slowly with the garlic, herbs, and spices, and cook for about five minutes to brown the garlic. This is a step that Jack has seen referenced in a number of great Italian cookbooks and although not clearly stated why, we believe this slow heat-up process allows the oil to be infused with the seasonings providing a really delicious base to your sauce.
The old saying about the sauce tasting better the next day reheated is true. It gives the flavors a chance to blend and mellow out.
I have made your family sauce several times and we love it. I would like to pressure can instead of freezing it (we have run out of room in the freezer!) Could you please tell me the amount of time needed for your recipe in the pressure cooker? I just received the canner and can’t find this information.
Hi Edithann – We’ve never canned this ourselves so I’m afraid I don’t know – we’ve also never pressure canned. I’d suggest contacting Ball Canning or the company that made the canner you bought. Sorry we can’t be more help. Safe canning is more than just time in the canned – you’ll also need to make sure that the acidity of the sauce is high enough for safe canning and experts like Ball might be able to guide you best.
Hi Martha,
I am in the process of cooking down the sauce as I type! This looks SO delicious!!
Curious about canning this sauce – Do you know if I need to add citric acid/lemon juice to this in order to can safely?
Thank you!
Hi Chari – We aren’t experts on canning but know that you’d need to test the acidity of the sauce to ensure that it is safe to can. I’d suggest reaching out to Ball Canning…they have a customer service line that might be helpful in giving you specific canning guidance. Sorry we can’t be more help – we freeze our sauce as a safer alternative.
Italian Tomato Sauce.
Clearly one of the best recipes after trying various over many years. I use fresh tomatoes and the sauce is full of flavour. I use a lot of fresh herbs from my garden, but the mint and the parmesan (v. Italian!) add another dimension. I made some last year for the freezer and it lasts incredibly well and I could enjoy the summery taste on my pasta, pizzas and as an additional sauce throughout the winter.
Thank you so much Penelope! So glad you are enjoying the sauce!
Can this be canned to store over winter?
Hi Kerry – For safe canning, you’ll need to know the acidity level of the sauce and adapt the recipe accordingly. Since we aren’t food scientists or canning experts, we freeze our sauce instead.
What weight of tomatoes should be used? I just see that it calls for two quarts, but I’m unsure just how many tomatoes that equates to…mine are right off the vine and not canned.
Hi Chris – You’ll want to use 3 1/2 to 4 pounds of tomatoes…and you’ll want to remove the skins before adding them to the sauce. Also, depending on your tomatoes, you might consider adding some tomato paste to the recipe (if needed) to deepen the flavor of the sauce. Hope that helps!
Amazing sauce. I omitted the parmesan and it still tasted great but will add the next time I make it. I slow cooked ribs in the oven with the sauce and then added spaghetti. You could taste the fresh herbs and it had so much flavour. It is my go to sauce now. Loved it! Thank you!
You’re very welcome Terri – so glad you enjoyed the sauce!
This was wonderful as is. We’ve also added about a cup of heavy cream to make an orange sauce, which is a nice variation.
Great idea Carrie – sort of like a vodka sauce without the vodka!
Hello! Would I be able to jar this and serve it 4 or 5 days later without freezing it?
Thank you!!
Hi Leah – Four or five days in the refrigerator is probably the absolute longest that it would be safe to serve. If it were us, we’d freeze it for a day and thaw a day or so before we planned to eat it.
Terrific recipe thanks for sharing
Thanks Brent! You’re very welcome.
I made the sauce and it turned out wonderful! Only changes I made were additional sugar, salt and basil. I also left out the mint since I was serving over chicken Parmesan and wasn’t sure how that would work. Thank you so much for the wonderful recipe!
You’re welcome Mary – glad you enjoyed the recipe!