Simple San Marzano Tomato Sauce (5 ingredients)

This delicious San Marzano tomato sauce (also known as pomodoro sauce) is a luscious Italian red sauce using San Marzano tomatoes, which are the perfect balance of sweetness and acidity. Infused with aromatic garlic, basil, and oregano, it's a homemade Italian sauce with big flavor that rivals any restaurant. Whether you're looking to elevate your pasta dishes or enhance your homemade pizzas, this tomato sauce will become your go-to recipe for adding a touch of Italian authenticity to your meals.

When it comes to making a simple tomato sauce, San Marzano tomatoes are considered the gold standard due to their sweet, rich flavor with low acidity, as well as their thick flesh and low seed count.

Combined with aromatics like basil and garlic, this sauce has big authentic Italian flavor and results in a thick consistency that's perfect for pasta, flatbread pizza, or meatballs.

Jump to:

• ⭐️ Why This Tomato Sauce is the Best
• 💬 What is San Marzano Style Tomato Sauce?
• 🤔 What is so special about San Marzano tomatoes?
• 🍅 Ingredient Notes
• 📝 Variations & Substitutions
• 🥄 How to Make San Marzano Tomato Sauce
• 👩🏼‍🍳 Expert Tips
• 🍽 How to Use Your Homemade Tomato Sauce
• 💬 Frequently Asked Questions
• 🍽 Related Posts
• San Marzano Tomato Sauce Recipe

⭐️ Why This Tomato Sauce is the Best

• Using San Marzano tomatoes gives this simple tomato sauce a vibrant and well-balanced flavor that's the perfect balance of acidity and sweetness with a thick and rich consistency.
• It's a versatile Italian sauce that can be used on pasta, pizza, with meatballs, or your favorite Italian dish. Need to use up cherry tomatoes? Try my roasted cherry tomato pasta sauce!
• Healthy tomato sauce that's naturally vegetarian, dairy-free/vegan, and gluten-free
• Quick and easy recipe that's just 5 simple ingredients
• Customizable recipe so you can make it spicy, add a Parmesan rind, or use your slow cooker.

💬 What is San Marzano Style Tomato Sauce?

This classic flavorful sauce uses San Marzano tomatoes, which are grown in the volcanic soil near Mount Vesuvius in Italy. These tomatoes are renowned for their unique balance of sweetness and acidity, as well as their low seed count and thick flesh, making them perfect for creating rich and thick tomato sauce.

To create San Marzano style tomato sauce, authentic San Marzano tomatoes are simmered with aromatics such as garlic, and herbs like basil and oregano. The sauce is slowly cooked to allow the flavors to meld together and the tomatoes to break down into a thick and rich consistency.

The resulting sauce has a vibrant red color, a slightly sweet taste, and a balanced acidity. It's perfect to use in your favorite Italian dishes like pasta and pizza!

🤔 What is so special about San Marzano tomatoes?

In order to be authentic, San Marzano tomatoes must be grown in the volcanic soil near Mt. Vesuvius to earn the D.O.P. (Denominazione d'Origine Protetta) seal on the can. In fact, it's the rich volcanic soil that gives this tomato variety their sweet, rich flavor with low acidity.

Their reputation for quality and taste has made San Marzano tomatoes a sought-after ingredient in Italian cuisine, and they are often considered the gold standard for tomatoes used in sauces, pizzas, and other dishes.

🍅 Ingredient Notes

• San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes - These perfectly balanced tomatoes are grown in acidic soil in Italy and considered the gold standard of tomatoes.
• Extra-virgin olive oil - Use a good-quality brand of olive oil since only a few ingredients are used in this recipe.
• Garlic - Fresh garlic is a must here to get the best flavor. Aromatic garlic helps to balance the acidity of the tomatoes.
• Fresh basil - Fresh basil really makes a difference here, so I encourage you to use the fresh stuff if you can. If not, 1 tsp. of dried basil will work.
• Dried oregano - This dried herb adds more complex savory flavor to your sauce.
• Red pepper flakes - These are totally optional, but I love adding a pinch of red pepper flakes to my tomato sauce for a nice pop of heat.

📝 Variations & Substitutions

• Make it in a slow cooker: To do this, saute garlic in a pan for 1 minute first, then add all of the ingredients into your slow cooker, and cook on low for 6-7 hours.
• Add a Parmesan rind. Don't throw away that Parmesan rind! Add it to your simmering sauce for deeper flavor (you can also add it to soups and stews for more complex flavor).
• Herbs. Although classic tomato sauce typically uses basil and oregano, you could swap them out for other Italian herbs like fennel, marjoram, or rosemary. Or make your own homemade Italian seasoning!

🥄 How to Make San Marzano Tomato Sauce

Carefully pour the San Marzano tomatoes (and juices) into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to desired consistency (I like to leave my tomatoes a bit chunky since they fall apart even more as they cook). Set aside. **If you don't have a food processor, you can use your hands to rip up the tomatoes when you add them to the pan.

Pour olive oil into a large skillet over medium-low heat and let it warm to a shimmer, about 1-2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Add the chopped tomatoes, dried herbs (*if using fresh basil, wait and add it at the very end), salt, and pepper, and stir to combine. Adjust the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring frequently.

When your sauce is done simmering, add fresh basil and red pepper flakes, if using, and season to taste with additional salt and pepper. Serve with your favorite Italian dishes.

👩🏼‍🍳 Expert Tips

• Storage: Once your sauce has cooled, transfer it to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
• How to freeze: This sauce freezes really well! Make sure your sauce is cooled completely, then pour it into quart-sized freezer bags. Freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, place it in the fridge overnight.
• Use fresh basil. I highly recommend using fresh basil for the best flavor, and make sure you add it at the end of your cooking.
• How to reheat sauce: Pour sauce into a skillet over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until heated through.
• Thicken it up. If your sauce turns out too watery, read my post on how to thicken tomato sauce.
• Choose the consistency. Chop tomatoes to your preferred texture. The tomatoes will break down as they cook, so I recommend leaving them quite chunky.
• Use high-quality ingredients. Since this is a recipe with just 5 ingredients, each ingredient should be of the best quality.

🍽 How to Use Your Homemade Tomato Sauce

Add this versatile sauce to your favorite one pot pasta, flatbread pizza, or Impossible meatballs; use it to make vegetarian lasagna; or dip rosemary focaccia in a big bowl of sauce. For more ideas, read my recent post on how to use leftover pasta sauce!

💬 Frequently Asked Questions

🍽 Related Posts

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