Marinara Sauce

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 0

Cook Time 45

Total Time 45

Servings cups

This simple and delicious homemade Marinara Sauce is WAY better than store-bought and ready in less than an hour!

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Then add in the garlic paste and stir frequently for about one minute.
Add in the tomatoes, salt, basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes and simmer for 30 minutes. Occasionally, use a wooden spoon or hand masher to help break down the tomatoes.
Add in the Parmesan cheese rind and simmer for another 15 minutes. Remove the soft rind and enjoy the sauce immediately or store it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

This is my preferred form of garlic because it’s so easy to work with and it’s already broken down (less prep!). You should be able to find the Gourmet Garden brand in the produce section at your grocery store. If you prefer to use fresh garlic cloves, I recommend finely mincing 3 cloves. You could also use 2 tablespoons of minced garlic if that’s what you have on hand. I do not recommend garlic powder or salt for this recipe.
This is the best variety of tomatoes to use for this recipe, so please try and use them! These tomatoes are grown near Mount Vesuvius in volcanic soil which gives them a sweet flavor with low acidity. You can use Cento brand, or if you’re trying to keep the recipe more budget-friendly, try Hunt’s San Marzano Style tomatoes. Both are delicious in this recipe and much more flavorful than standard whole peeled canned tomatoes. If you can’t find these tomatoes, you can use regular but you might have to add a bit of sugar to make up for the sweetness. Add to taste.
This amount of red pepper flakes does not make the sauce spicy, but it does help build on the amazing flavor, so don't skip them!
This sauce only takes 45 minutes to make with zero prep, but don’t try to speed it up more with high heat or food processors. Because while they might help you get the desired consistency faster, you’ll miss out on a lot of flavor if you don’t let it build!