Authentic Italian Tomato Sauce

A flavorful, authentic tomato sauce made with surprisingly simple ingredients. This Authentic Italian Tomato Sauce recipe is perfect for spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce, lasagna, or eggplant parmesan. You can quickly put it together, let it simmer, and come back to it and think, “Wow! That was easy, and it tastes awesome.”

I learned how to make this authentic tomato sauce from a cooking class in Italy. One thing I noticed in all the cooking classes in Europe is that they focus on simple, quality ingredients and let the flavors come through and shine on their own. So yummy! They don’t overcomplicate anything–just keep it simple.

For this recipe, it’s important to use the whole basil sprig–leaves and stems–and then you take it out before serving it. Removing the basil and garlic after it has simmered is the traditional way, but I used my immersion blender to crush the basil and garlic to mix them into the sauce. If you like garlic, it tastes so yummy after it has simmered in the sauce.

Say goodbye to store-bought tomato sauce and give this easy and delicious authentic tomato sauce a try! The hardest part is blending up the tomatoes. 🙂

Use this Sauce with these Recipes

Step-by-Step Photos for How to Make Authentic Italian Tomato Sauce

Tips for How to Make Authentic Italian Tomato Sauce

Use good canned Italian plum tomatoes.
It’s very important to use the whole basil sprig–leaves and stems.
Smash the garlic. Do not crush or chop it.
After the sauce is done cooking, you can take the basil and garlic out or use an immersion blender to crush the basil and garlic to mix them into the sauce. It makes the sauce taste so yummy!
You can double or triple this recipe like they do at a restaurant.
Use this sauce for anything you typically use a red sauce for.

Chef’s Tools:

Authentic Italian Tomato Sauce

Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

35 mins

A flavorful, authentic tomato sauce made with surprisingly simple ingredients. Perfect for spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce, lasagna, or eggplant parmesan--anything you typically use a red sauce for.

Author: From a Cooking Class in Italy

Cuisine: Italian

Serves: 4-5 cups

Ingredients

3 tbsp olive oil
2 (29 ounce) cans of good Italian plum tomatoes, blended to a crushed or pureed consistency
2-3 sprigs of basil (very important to use the whole sprig--leaves and stems)
2-3 cloves of garlic, smashed--not crushed or chopped
¾-1 tsp salt

Instructions

In a large pot heat the olive oil.
Add the basil sprigs and the smashed garlic cloves. Sauté for 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Next, add the tomatoes that you crushed and the salt.
Let the sauce simmer for at least 30-45 minutes and up to 90 minutes.
Use for spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce, lasagna, or eggplant parmesan. (Anything you typically use tomato sauce for.)
Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or freeze in a Ziploc bag.