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Home » Recipes » Dinner » Homemade Tomato and Basil Spaghetti Sauce

July 22, 2021

Homemade Tomato and Basil Spaghetti Sauce

Published July 22, 2021 | Julia Frey (Vikalinka)

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Do you make your own spaghetti sauce or do you buy it?  This simple tomato based sauce flavoured with only garlic, fresh basil and a touch of oregano is as simple as it is delicious.

For a spaghetti meat sauce, try my Spaghetti Bolognese.

Jar of red sauce next on a wooden table with garlic and basil

I stopped relying on mass produced spaghetti sauce almost a decade ago. All it took was discovering how easy it is to make my own!

I’ve had this recipe for a long time but didn’t think to share it. I guess I always felt like it was so basic that it didn’t deserve space on my blog. How wrong I was!!

Plate of pasta with a jar in the background

I realised that this recipe should be added to this site after seeing how many jars of store-bought sauce are in the average pantry. It used to be me.

Before spending time in Italy, it would have never occurred to me to make my own spaghetti sauce. Every time I tried it ended up tasting like straight up canned tomatoes, harsh and acidic.

Food processor full of red sauce next to fresh basil and empty cans

This changed after watching an Italian friend make regular spaghetti sauce. It blew me away because she made fresh tasting and flavourful sauce while barely using any ingredients.

I’ve learned to love Italian cooking in part because they make the most incredible food with a small number of basic ingredients. I’ve featured many of these recipes in my Italian Recipe Collection.

This recipe is a classic example. It is so good because it is true to the Italian cooking rule that the best food comes from the best ingredients!

Pot with spaghetti sauce and a wooden spoon

Secret to the best tasting sauce

Simple recipes like this make it so important to start with quality ingredients. If the canned tomatoes are not ripe or lacking flavour, the sauce will not be impressive.

The secret to good sauce, then, is the best quality canned tomatoes like the ones that come from Italy, where they use ripe and fresh tomatoes.

Tomatoes from the best quality cans are fully ripe and bursting with flavour, which will all go into your sauce and make it off the scale delicious!

Open jar full of spaghetti sauce with fresh basil in the background

If you can afford it, don’t buy the cheapest canned tomatoes! Be a bit more picky when it comes to your food, go for quality, not quantity and you will discover how much easier cooking is!

Truth is quality ingredients do all the cooking for you for you! It’s truly magical.

White plate of pasta on a blue background

Homemade spaghetti sauce

The sauce I am sharing today is basic, with only 6 ingredients. It’s sweet and fragrant with NO SUGAR added, which makes it so much better than most canned sauces!

So many store-bought causes have added sugar as they don’t use quality tomatoes and have to add sweetness to their sauces somehow. Added sugar is used to compensate, but it’s not a great approach.

I don’t want added sugar in my spaghetti sauce. I want it to come naturally from sun-ripened tomatoes!

Once you have a sauce like this in your cupboard, there are an infinite number of uses for it. It will stand on its own when coating any pasta, or can be used with meatballs, chicken, or anything you want!

Plate of spaghetti covered in sauce and a garnish of basil

More pasta recipes

We have lots more fantastic pasta recipes including:

  • Slow Cooker Beef Bolognese Sauce
  • Layered Italian Baked Mac and Cheese
  • Pasta Cream Sauce
  • Easy Carbonara Sauce
  • Creamy Brie Mac and Cheese (The Veg Connection)
Jar of red sauce next on a wooden table with garlic and basil

Homemade Tomato and Basil Spaghetti Sauce

Quick tomato and fresh basil pasta sauce.
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: spaghetti sauce
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 12 people
Calories: 43kcal
Author: Julia Frey of Vikalinka

Ingredients

  • 4 tbsp olive oil extra virgin
  • 6 cloves garlic minced
  • ¼ cup/ 25g chopped basil leaves fresh
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 3x14oz/400g canned tomatoes good quality
  • ½ tsp salt

Instructions

  • Process chopped tomatoes in a food processor for a smoother texture or use crushed tomatoes or passata. (Alternatively you can skip this step for a chunky spaghetti sauce.)
  • In a large pot heat the olive oil over low heat, add minced garlic and chopped basil and stir for no longer than 10-20 seconds. Do not let them burn or they will turn bitter.
  • Add tomatoes, dried oregano and salt, bring to a boil and let it simmer over very low heat for 7-10 minutes. 
  • Cool and store in a clean jar or divide and freeze for a later use. 

Nutrition

Calories: 43kcal | Fat: 4g | Sodium: 97mg | Potassium: 6mg | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 0.1mg
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About Julia Frey (Vikalinka)

Julia Frey is a London based recipe developer and photographer. Julia founded Vikalinka in 2012 with the main mission to provide her readers with delicious and accessible everyday recipes, which could be enjoyed by everyone.
read more..

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Julia Frey is a London based recipe developer and photographer. Julia founded Vikalinka in 2012 with the main mission to provide her readers with delicious and accessible everyday recipes, which could be enjoyed by everyone.
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