How to Make Homemade Tomato Sauce

Two jars filled with homemade tomato sauce sit on a wooden surface, accompanied by three fresh tomatoes placed around them. The jars have golden lids with decorative designs on top, and the tomato sauce inside appears rich and chunky.
4 from 78 votes

Learn how to make homemade tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes. This tomato sauce is easy to make and all you need is a few basic ingredients and some patience. You can use this homemade tomato sauce for pasta dishes, pizza, gnocchi, meat recipes, chicken recipes and more.

Two jars filled with homemade tomato sauce sit on a wooden surface, accompanied by three fresh tomatoes placed around them. The jars have golden lids with decorative designs on top, and the tomato sauce inside appears rich and chunky.

How to Make Homemade Tomato Sauce

4 from 78 votes
Prep Time 1 hour 30 minutes
WORK TIME 30 minutes
DIFFICULTY Easy
Cuisine Italian
Servings 6 yields

Ingredients
 

  • 3 kg 6.5lb Plum/Roma tomatoes
  • 2-3 tablespoons Olive oil
  • 1 large onion
  • 3 garlic loves
  • Salt to taste
  • 1-2 teaspoons Oregano optional
  • 7-8 Basil leaves
  • 2 tablespoons Lemon juice/vinegar if canning use ¼ cup

Instructions
 

  • DIRECTIONS
    1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Meanwhile prepare an ice bath. Core out the stems from the tomatoes and slice a shallow "X" in the bottom of each tomato.
    2. Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water for 30-60 seconds, then transfer to ice bath. Remove the skin from the tomatoes.
    3. Chop the tomatoes into small chunks and set aside.
    4. In a large pot heat olive oil. Add chopped onion and sauté over low heat until golden, about 7-8 minutes. Add crushed garlic and sauté for 2 minutes more.
    5. Add chopped tomatoes to the pot, season with salt, oregano and basil. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 60-90 minutes, until reaches desired consistency (until almost all the liquid has evaporated and the tomatoes are reduced to a thick, jam-like consistency). Stir frequently. At the end add the vinegar, stir and turn the heat off.
    6. If you prefer smooth tomato sauce, puree the sauce using a hand blender. Transfer to a jar.
    Notes:
    • The best tomatoes for making homemade sauce: there are many types of tomatoes, I would recommend making homemade tomato sauce with Roma tomatoes, Plum tomatoes, San Marzano or a combination of serval kinds. It is important to use ripe tomatoes.
    • Onion, garlic, basil and oregano are just optional additions. You can omit them all or use some of them.
    • Canning: Pour into sterilized canning jars and twist on sterilized lids until very secure. Place jars in a pot of boiling water for 30 minutes. Let cool completely on the counter. Make sure that the lids have sealed completely. If the lid pops up when pressed, the canning process did not work properly. Store in your pantry for up to one year!
    • How to store tomato sauce in the fridge: transfer the sauce to a sterilized jar and keep in the fridge up to 2 weeks
    • How to store tomato sauce in the freezer: let the sauce cool completely, transfer to a jar/can or container and freeze up to 2-3 months.
    Recipes you can make with homemade tomato sauce:

Video

YouTube video
Nutrition information is automatically generated and thus we can not guarantee it is 100% accurate.

3 Comments

  1. Quick question. In the fall we blanched and froze a bunch of tomatoes, but not sure exactly how much. How many cups would 6lbs of tomatoes be? Approximately.
    Thanks!

    May 1, 2021
  2. Well I am a first time canner of sauce. I found this recipe was so easy to follow and I canned 11 pints of tomato sauce using Roma’s. Well the taste was different than what i thought it would be, it was soooo much better. Will continue to use this recipe and tweak as I go along. Thank you!

    September 9, 2022
  3. 6 what? Quarts? Pints? Servings?

    June 1, 2024
4 from 78 votes (78 ratings without comment)

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