This super easy simple homemade marinara sauce can be made in advance and frozen to have on hand for dipping goodies at your next get-together or game night!
Simple Homemade Marinara Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 dried Thai pepper, optional
- 4 cloves garlic, minced (4 tsp)
- 4 cups fresh tomatoes, cubed
- 2 cups water
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tbsp sugar or to taste
Instructions
- Heat oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and dried Thai pepper..
- As soon as garlic sizzles (don’t let it brown) pour in tomatoes and water. Add salt, basil and sugar.
- Turn heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for 1½ ro 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes break down and sauce thickens. Use a fork to break up tomatoes during cooking.
- Remove Thai pepper and discard.
- Use a blender or immersion blender to smooth the sauce if desired. Press sauce through a mesh colander to remove the seeds if desired.
- Total yield: 2 cups sauce.
- Hack: 2 15-oz cans of diced tomatoes can be substituted for fresh tomatoes.
- Hack: Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or freeze in serving-sized portions for up to 6 months.
- Hack: If you have leftover tomatoes that are becoming over-ripe and don't have time to cook, simply puree them in the blender and freeze the fresh puree in sealed freezer bags or containers to use in recipes at a later date. No need to core, peel or seed ‘em...just toss ‘em right in. Run the puree through a mesh colander if you want to remove the seeds.
Tomatoes are a nutritional powerhouse while being low in calories and carbs! Check out the facts here!
Suggestion: Serve this with easy cheesy sausage balls or Italian meatballs!
