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–+ servings
Fresh homemade tomato sauce with basil in a black pot.
Victor Eskew

Marinara Sauce

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Marinara is the ultimate batch component — it takes 10 minutes of actual work and an hour of passive simmer time. That's pure Netflix batch cooking. The secret most people miss is that good marinara starts with blooming your garlic in olive oil low and slow until it's fragrant but not brown. Burned garlic turns bitter and there's no fixing it. Use San Marzano tomatoes if you can find them — they're sweeter and less acidic than regular canned tomatoes, which means less sugar needed to balance the sauce. Crush them by hand right in the pot instead of using a blender. You want texture, not baby food. A pinch of sugar isn't cheating — it's correcting acidity, and every Italian grandmother does it whether they admit it or not. This freezes beautifully in quart bags for 3-4 months. Lay them flat so they stack like files in a drawer and thaw in 15 minutes under warm water. One batch gives you the base for pasta night, pizza, chicken parm, baked ziti — that's four dinners from one Sunday simmer.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 8
Course: Sauce
Calories:
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Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Marinara Sauce

Equipment

  • Large saucepan
  • Wooden spoon
  • Chef’s knife
  • Cutting Board
  • Measuring spoons
  • Ladle

Method
 

Cook
  1. Heat beef fat in a saucepan over medium heat.
  2. Add onions and sauté until translucent.
  3. Add garlic and cook until tan in color.
  4. Deglaze the pan with red wine, scraping up any flavor on the bottom.
  5. Simmer until reduced by about half.
  6. Add the tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, Italian seasoning, and salt.
  7. Stir to combine.
  8. Simmer on low for 30 minutes.
  9. Serve over pasta, or use as a base for meatballs, lasagna, and other Italian assembly meals.
Disclosure: Nutrition is estimated and provided for general guidance.

Notes

A simple, from-scratch marinara sauce that simmers while you do other things. Make a big batch, freeze in portions, and never buy jarred sauce again.

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