San Marzano Sauce (Classic Marinara)
This easy San Marzano sauce is a classic Italian marinara sauce made with fresh or canned Roma tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. It's ready in 30 minutes and can be frozen for later!
Prep Time5 minutes mins
Cook Time25 minutes mins
Total Time30 minutes mins
Course: Meal Prep
Cuisine: Italian
Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Servings: 4 people (½ cup servings)
Calories: 168kcal
- 2 pounds fresh San Marzano tomatoes or 28oz canned whole San Marzano tomatoes or swap other varieties of Roma tomatoes
- 1 cup water
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 7 garlic cloves, diced
- 1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon red chili flakes
- 1 sprig fresh basil, still on stem Or sub ¼ tsp dried oregano, plus more to taste
Yields: ~2 cups marinara sauce.
Pan Size: Some readers have reported that their 12″ pans were too small for the volume of sauce. You may find a heavy Dutch oven works best for you, although I’ve always had success with my 12″ carbon steel pan.
Smoother Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes:
Canned tomatoes are peeled, and will yield a smoother sauce with less texture. If you're using fresh tomatoes and want an extra-smooth marinara, you have two options.
1. Peel the tomatoes first. Use a knife to mark an X on each tomato, and then blanch them in boiling water until the tomato peel loosens (~15-30 seconds). Peel, and then proceed with the recipe. Crush tomatoes with your hands instead of dicing.
2. Blend the sauce. After cooking, add the sauce to a blender or use an immersion blender to blend the peels into the sauce.
Varieties of tomatoes: San Marzano (as well as other Roma or paste-style) tomatoes are less juicy, and result in a thicker sauce. If using juicy tomatoes instead of Roma, core and seed the tomatoes. You may want to omit the added water (or add less water), depending on how juicy the tomatoes are.
Calories: 168kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 599mg | Potassium: 559mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 1926IU | Vitamin C: 33mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 1mg