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This Easy Pasta Sauce Recipe can be made in just 30 minutes! It is so much better than store-bought and will taste great on any type of pasta – it’s great for a quick dinner when jarred sauce just won’t do.
This homemade easy pasta sauce is a classic recipe and it is almost as easy as opening a jar of marinara sauce! I constantly find myself using this recipe on pasta recipes, for pizza sauce, to dip breadsticks in, or as a meat sauce!
My secret to the perfect pasta sauce: I always add a bit of honey into my sauce to counter the acidity of the tomatoes – it makes all the difference.
Can you make a homemade spaghetti sauce recipe in 30 minutes? Yes you can – this one is the perfect recipe for an easy weeknight meal.
How to make Easy Pasta Sauce
- Always sauté a diced yellow onion in some extra virgin olive oil and add minced garlic when the onion starts to get translucent. These make your sauce taste like it cooked all day.
- Use good quality Crushed Canned Tomatoes, like San Marzano Tomatoes, a really good brand of plum tomatoes. These will add the perfect tomato flavor.
- Chicken Stock makes it taste like it slow cooked all day.
- Honey adds a touch of sweetness that balances out the acidity! My all-day tomato sauce recipe uses carrots for natural sweetness but this cooks too fast for that.
- I always add salt and pepper, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes! You can also add dried oregano or use fresh herbs, like fresh basil and fresh parsley.
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Expert Tips
- Use a wide skillet instead of a dutch oven or pot and your sauce will cook faster.
- Before you serve it, check for seasoning. If needed, add additional salt and pepper, to taste.
- Many people will make sauces with fresh tomatoes, but using canned crushed tomatoes is just so much easier and taste great because they are canned at their peak.
30 Minute Pasta Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ medium onion diced
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- 28 ounce can (794g) crushed tomatoes
- 8 ounce can (227g) tomato sauce
- 1 cup (237ml) chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon (21g) honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Add olive oil to a large frying pan (3 quart or larger saucepan can also be used). Heat over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook 2 minutes, then add garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and chicken stock. Stir.
- Add the honey and spices to the tomato sauce, stir to combine. Bring to a boil, lower the temperature to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve over pasta.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to one month.
Recipe Nutrition
Step-by-Step Photos
Love love love this quick and easy pasta sauce recipe. It taste like I cooked it all day ! My husband loves meat in his pasta sauce so I added 1 lb of lean ground beef to it. It was very good as well.
Love all your recipes! They come out perfect the first time. 👍👍