Quick Marinara Sauce
This is my go-to when I want to whip up a quick marinara sauce for everything from pasta, chicken parmesan, meatballs, lasagna roll ups, and more!
Marinara Sauce
Also great with baked pasta recipes, eggplant parmesan, french bread pizzas or when I need a quick dipping sauce for zucchini sticks, mozzarella sticks or anything you like to serve with sauce.
I’m really picky with the brand of tomatoes I use, I always get the best results with Tuttorosso
(green label), but if you have a favorite brand you are loyal to, feel free to use it.
Quick Marinara Sauce
Total Time: 30 mins
This quick marinara is my favorite go-to recipe when I need to whip up a quick sauce.
Ingredients
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed
- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes, I like Tuttorosso
- 1 small bay leaf
- 1 tsp oregano
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil
- salt and fresh pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a medium pot, heat olive oil over medium heat.
- Add garlic and saute until golden, being careful not to burn.
- Add crushed tomatoes, salt, pepper, oregano, and bay leaf. Stir and reduce heat to low.
- Cover and let simmer about 15 - 20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add fresh basil.
Nutrition
Serving: 1/2 cup, Calories: 53kcal, Carbohydrates: 9.5g, Protein: 0.1g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 0.1g, Sodium: 282mg, Fiber: 0.2g, Sugar: 4.5g
Freestyle Points: 0
Points +: 1
Can I freeze this?
Sure.
I dont like chunks/pieces of tomato. What would be a better substitute tomato sauce or tomato puree?
Perhaps it was just me, but I found this to be incredibly bland.
Sounds like you used a different brand of tomatoes. The tomatoes are crucial here.
Best and simple sauce. I took it up a notch with 2-3 cloves garlic and some red pepper flakes. My family is Sicilian and we always have fennel in our sauce so added some. I stopped eating meat several year ago. My grandmother’s sauce had neck bones, short ribs and meatballs cooked in the sauce. Took hours, simmering on the stove. Good memories
Delicious sauce, ready before the pasta is ready to eat! Can’t beat it! Also, it’s very forgiving, as you can make without measuring spices and still comes out great. I used dried basil as I didn’t have fresh.
I’m confused. I love this sauce and thought it was 0 WW points but when I put it into their calculator it’s 2
points for 1/2 cup.
Great, quick, and the best ever marinara! This is definitely a keeper…
gracias por esta maravillosa receta.Esta salsa me sirve para la lazaña mil gracias nuevamente.Muchos existos
How long can I keep this in the refrigerator for?
I seriously make this sauce like every two weeks. My BF loves it!
I did make this and could hardly believe how tasty and easy it was. Definitely will make again.
Don’t the crushed tomatoes have points by themselves?
No it’s 0
I am new to cooking so I get really perplexed when the recipe calls for salt and pepper to taste. I wouldn’t even know where to begin so…… how much do you put in the recipe so I can just follow suit.
This marinara sauce is delicious and quick! I used it in the chicken Parmesan Lasagna- also delicious! I used the Tuttorosso brand of crushed tomatoes as the recipe suggested. It is not my usual brand but I was happy I chose this brand as it is thick and rich with tomato. Almost like a thick purée compared to some other brands which can be watery. The price point is on the lower end too! The thickness of the Tuttorosso also allows you to skip tomato paste which is often added to sauce recipes. She has a similar recipe in one of her other cookbooks that uses 5 cloves of garlic- I went with the 5 cloves because we like lots of garlic.
What if I don’t have fresh basil? How much of the dried would I use?
Gina, Can we use our Instant pot to make this recipe?
Great quick marinara!
Could fresh tomatoes be used instead of canned?
I think it would be too watery. My guess is that if you use fresh you would need to add tomato paste and cook it longer to cook off some of the water.
Hi Gina! LOVE all your recipes. A few people already asked, how long would this keep in the fridge? I made Tues and want to make chicken parm tomorrow (Fri)? I know i could freeze, but being there’s no meat, I’m assuming it should keep several days at least???
Thanks!
Should be fine!!
Can I do this in the instant pot?
I have made this recipe many times to use with other dishes and my family loves it. In fact, I have made recipes that call for marinara with both this recipe and store bought and my family can tell the difference! They always choose the homemade over the store bought. I do add a lot more garlic than the recipe calls for but that’s just because I love garlic.
Gina it’s all your fault I am addicted to this sauce lol I love this sauce one time I used jar sauce and my family asked me what happened to the sauce lol
Today was a double first for me: 2-ingredient pizza crust and this DELICIOUS Marinara Sauce. I need a bit more practice on the dough, but this sauce made the pizza a hit and better than anything that I’ve could have ordered for delivery. I have a little more than a pint of sauce left and have already decided on low-point chicken parm for tomorrow night. Next time I’m making a double batch. Thanks!
You’re welcome!
Thoroughly enjoyed this. Even better t day!!!
love to know some other ideas I can use this sauce with. I made the zucchini rollups yesterday. I have about a jelly jar full of left over sauce. Used it for a pita pizza today.
The sauce is delicious!!
We used this with Alton Brown’s chicken Parmesan Meatballs last night and zoodles and wowza! 💋👌🏻
Could you use fresh tomatoes?
This was the best sauce and the simplest to make I have ever eaten. But I used butter nut swash because it was all we had , and cheddar cheese all we had lol , I didn’t even use meat , but wow it was awesome 5 stars by far
So easy and tasty! I used a store brand crushed tomatoes and minced my garlic. I added a 1/4 tsp of sugar to cut some of the acidity of the tomatoes. Thanks Gina! I have yet to try a recipe of yours that I don’t love! ❤️
How far in advance can the sauce be made and kept in the refrigerator? Trying to see if this could be made on Sunday for later in the week. It’s wonderful!
Could this recipe be canned?
Simply amazing. So easy and delicious. Maybe it’s the Tuttorosso tomatoes!
This sauce is amazing. Question.. I’m one person and it’s a lot, but I don’t use it everyday. How long do you think it will keep in the refrigerator?
I would think the sauce would freeze and be ready to pop in a pan to cook the next time.
you can absolutely freeze sauce. It comes out just as good if not better next time.
This marinara turned out amazing. I used hunts petite diced tomatoes and threw them in the blender for a few seconds. The consistency was perfect for me.
I love having marinara sauce on hand.
I like to making big batches. Is their an Instant Pot Conversion for this recipe? Also I love adding a ton of chopped up veggies to mine to make it a chunky sauce. It helps to fool my brain that I am eating more food in a way.
Hi. You never answered the question about the smashed garlic. If the cloves are still somewhat intact after being sauteed and simmered do you remove them or break them up into the sauce?
I keep them in the sauce, but we love garlic.
Made the quick marinara sauce. When I put it in WW app the points value is not 0, it’s 2 pts per serving.
Are you using the recipe builder?
I love this sauce. However, when I put the nutritional information that you provided into my WW freestyle calculator, it says 2 points. Can you clarify how you reached the 0 freestyle points? Thanks! I love your website and use it almost daily.
The SmartPoints® calculator isn’t meant for recipes and will often give you the wrong points (usually higher) because it’s counting 0 points foods such as eggs, chicken, fruits and vegetables. So if you see a recipe with a SmartPoints® value that’s different from what the calculator tells you, that is why.
The only accurate way to determine any recipe’s SmartPoints® value is to plug the ingredients into the recipe builder on the Weight Watchers website (Click on “My Foods,” select “Recipe,” and click “Create a recipe.”)
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This was so easy and delicious! I won’t be buying store bought any longer, thank you!
So easy and good!
This is the best marinara recipe I’ve ever made! And it’s so simple and quick to make!
No reason to ever buy jarred, insanely salty sauce!! Thank you so much!!
Have you upgraded your recipes for the new WW freestyle. Lots of new zero points
Yes, all recipes are updated.
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Yum! This is a really yummy sauce, adding basil into the sauce was a really nice fresh flavor. I changed nothing! It was a really good and simple sauce.
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I am a 3rd generation Italian American who learned to cook from my Nonna and my Father. Just a few things from my perspective; Oregano is NEVER used in Marinara Suace…it is for Pizza Sauce. Just use Fresh Basil at the very end. Bay Leaf is more for Meat Sauce, but OK. San Marzano Crushed are wonderful! Never Paste, Sauce or Purée. NEVER Sugar….Tomato is a fruit! Bon Mangiare.
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I am making this today with fresh tomatoes from my garden. One question: oregano-dried? ground? fresh? Can’t remember what I used last time I made this.
Dried is fine.
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Just one other note, I entered the nutrition info into the WW calculator and it’s actually 2 SP per serving.
The only accurate way to determine any recipe’s SmartPoints® value is to plug the ingredients into the recipe builder on the Weight Watchers website (Click on “My Foods,” select “Recipe,” and click “Create a recipe.”) which does not count fruits and vegetables in recipes in the calculations as they are now 0 points.
The SmartPoints® calculator isn’t meant for recipes and will often give you the wrong points (usually higher) because it’s counting the fruits and vegetables. So if you see a recipe with a SmartPoints® value that’s different from what the calculator tells you, now you know why.
This sauce is AMAZING! I made it Sunday night for with panko breaded zucchini sticks then used the rest on both pulled pork and chicken breasts. I’ll definitely be making it again.
Great quick marinara sauce! Used San Marzano plums, minced onions with the garlic and just a pinch of sugar.
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Gina- you should add a Whole30 tag to this! It was so easy and I didn’t have average to make any substitutions! Awesome!! Thanks!
done!
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Can this be used on a thicker pizza crust?
Sure
Made this tonight along with the zucchini sticks for guests including three young children…it was all gobbled up in 15 minutes!
Great!
Is this really 0 points? Even if the serving is 1 1/2 cups? Every other Marinara sauce I look up on the WW app is 3 points.
Yes, because the only points-adding ingredient is the teeny amount of olive oil… which becomes distributed through the entire portion of the recipe.
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If you have leftovers how long will the sauce keep ok in the fridge?
This is so easy and so yummy!! It freezes so well too:) I've used it with just pasta but also tastes so good with your Chick Parm recipe too.
I followed the steps exactly and used Tuttorosso. I never made sauce before but it had an acid taste to it. What could I have done wrong? Any tips?
Where's the basil?
This sauce is fabulous. Can't wait to add it to the Spaghetti Squash Lasagna!
Can this be canned?
Delicious! I've used this recipe several times and it is always a winner.
just made this- can't wait to try it tonight with my whole wheat pasta. It smelled delicious- added some crushed red pepper as it simmered!
Thank you for the recipe. I made this last night and even my most picky eater LOVED it. It is such a versatile sauce that can be used for many things. Thanks again.
Gina, I saw some questions regarding the smashed garlic. I googled what that meant and saw that some people smash it with the hand on the knife technique, then actually mince that and smash it with the flattened knife blade. Do you just smash it once and add it to the sauce, removing it when it is done? I'm going to give it a go here for dinner tonight and was just wondering how you do it. Love your site!!
I think I'm going to use my tomatoes from the garden to can this sauce. If I do, I'll send you the link to my blog! 🙂 Thanks for this great recipe and many, many others!! Your work and site makes eating healthy and clean a little easier.
This is great and so easy! I added a little onion powder for extra flavor. Thanks!
For anyone who wants to make this to preserve, just make the recipe as written then add warm sauce to sterilized jars and top with Ball Fruit Fresh. Process 45 min in water bath canner. I have also used this method successfully with her Filetto di Pomodoro sauce.
Thanks, good to know canning this sauce was a success for you. I'll try it next week.
I was a little skeptical of making my own Marinara and the ingredient list seemed so short. I made a couple of days in advance to use for the Baked Spinach and Sausage Pasta. Sooo good! And good for clean eating as well. I will be making a much bigger batch to freeze next time.
Just curious about something. Is there much of a taste difference between your marinara sauce and your filetto di pomodoro sauce? The ingredients are quite similar.
Where can you buy the Tuttorosso tomatoes?? I can't wait to try it!
I find them in my supermarket, if you can't find them I would play around with a few brands until you find one that works for you.
this was amazing!!! ate it w/ ur spaghetti squash and cx recipe and i will definitely make it again.
I've only looked at this recipe. Do you normally include sodium in the nutritional information? I have to watch my sodium intake and was just wondering. I'm going to try the spaghetti squash lasagna. Sounds yummy!
I love how simple this marinara sauce is to put together; I put it in my CrockPot.
Oops! Just noticed the other posts using fresh tomatoes. Follow-up question: How many fresh medium sized tomatos would you use to make this recipe?
Do you have a scale? I'd weigh out just a bit more than the weight of the 28 oz can.
Is it possible to use fresh tomatoes? I have a large box of a dozen or so, but have no idea how to use them up! This would be perfect, if it works..
Do you use fresh or dried oregano?
I don't think it matter. whatever is best for you1:)
Great recipe! Thanks, used tomatoes from my garden. I had already taken the tomatoes and blanched them to remove the skins and squeezed out excess moisture & seeds, then processed them in my food processor. Wasn't quite sure what to do with them (not enough to justify spending an hour or two canning them) and found this recipe! I will freeze my leftovers! Thanks!! Last night we used some of it for homemade pizza! Delish!!
How long will the marinara sauce last in fridge?
Do you fish out the smashed garlic along with the bay leaf? The recipe doesn't mention removing either, but I'm assuming you need to.
Also – is this a sweet sauce? I could add some splenda if not, though I was intrigued by the post upthread about pureed carrot. Hmmm.
Hi just like m.Lilly, to only use jar minced garlic..I did no what a smashed garlic was. By using the garlic that was wouldn't in just be in one place in the sauce, I just cant imagine the fresh one, all I can see is a lumpiness sauce. Sure hope someone can help.Gina thank you so so much for all the work you must do to run this site, U deserve a medal..Thanks Brenda
If you have a garlic press, it doesn't make your sauce lumpy at all. That's how I smash my garlic – put it thru a press. It's so much easier than mincing it and you get all the oils from the garlic too.
I loved this. Very quick easy & delicious. And I am usually not even a huge fan of marinara sauce. Thanks for the recipe.
I will never buy marinara sauce again. This is amazing!!!
Quick question- what do you mean by smashed garlic? How do I do that? I know that may be a silly question, but the only garlic I usually use is minced. I am making your eggplant parm right now and can't wait to try this sauce recipe over the weekend- I didn't have the ingredients this time.
Thanks for all you do, I absolutely love cooking using your site!
Use fresh garlic. Pull off a clove, leave in the wrapper. Take a chopping knife and put the flat side over the garlic. Give it a good "whack" with your knife and it will crush the garlic and make the peel very easy to remove! It brings the oils out and give all the garlic flavor! You'll never want to use the minced ever again!
Let me clarify. Don't whack it with your knife. You use your palm or fist to hit the knife as it is sitting on the garlic. Don't need any injuries here!
I've been meaning to make this for a while and finally got around to it this week. THANK YOU! It was far better than the jarred sauces. While they're convenient, I started this when I started boiling the water for my pasta and they both finished up around the same time. Perfection. Thanks again for all of the great recipes!
Made this w/the mozz sticks yesterday afternoon as a snack. My mom could not get over how wonderful this sauce was. It was super easy to make even though I picked up chopped tomatoes with the italian recipe. I still added according to this recipe and since I don't like tomatoes I put it in a blender and pureed it. It came out super and better than the italian restaurants in the area's marinara sauce. My mom thought it was even better than the store bought spaghetti sauce in a jar. I will be makin this in the future w/the parmagiana chicken for sure! Thanks for a super recipe that is easy!
How long will this keep if I freeze or refrigerate?
5-6 days?
I was wondering if anyone can tell me how much this recipe makes? I want to use it for 2 lavash flat bread pizzas and the mozzarella sticks? Do I need to double it?
It makes about 3 cups. You'll have enough.
Finally got around to making this, using Tutorroso tomatoes, yum! The perfect, easy go-to sauce.
Hi,
Just came across your blog yesterday through a link somewhere and am addicted! Was wondering if you'd do anything different/ add anything else if it was fresh tomatoes instead of from a can?
Thanks
Yes, I would peel them, and run them through a food mill after cooking.
Hi Gina! I don't know how I missed this recipe before but I'm going to try it tonight. I want to make a lasagna and wanted to whip up a quick & light sauce instead of buying one. I can't wait to make this!
Hi Gina!
Kinda new to your site…brand new to WW PP. I love love your recipes and your site became my "go to" even before joining WW last week. I am confused as to why this recipe equals 1 point. I thought veggies equal zero… is it the oil?
I was wondering how long would the extra sauce keep in the refrigerator? Love your recipes!
Yes, if I plan on using it right away, otherwise I freeze it.
This is delicious! We just got a foot of snow in Denver so I decided to start cooking! This is so easy to make and I had everything on hand. Thanks for all of your great recipes! I get most of our family favorites from your site!
My husband and I loved this recipe! I had never tasted "light" cooked eggplant before. Thanks for sharing.
I'm making this tonight. Sounds delish, thanks for sharing! 🙂
I accidentally put the basil in with all the other ingredients to simmer. It said to put it in last. Will that mess up the taste?
It's fine.
how would i go about using my garden tomatoes for this recipe??
I'll try to post a version using fresh tomatoes.
Gina,
I have a question about points. Why would this be 1 point if veggies are 0. Do crushed tomatoes count for points. Just wondering, still new to WW. Thanks for all the awesome recipes!
Olive oil!
There's only 1 tsp olive oil so divided by 6 is not 1 point, I think when you put it into E-tools it automatically counts the tomatoes or other veggies, I only use about 1/4 cup at a time so I personally count it as 0-PP
This stuff is good. When I want a sweeter sauce I add a packet or 2 of splenda.
Mmm tasty! This sauce is great to be served with roasted peppers! Very healthy it is in my diet
You can refrigerate it about 4-5 days. I like to freeze my sauce in freezer bags so I can lay them flat and toss them when I'm done.
How long can you refrigerate the sauce? Also, if you freeze it, what kind of container do you put it in (I don't want to stain any more Tupperware.
I used dried bay leaf, left it whole to easily remove.
You can use dried basil, but I think fresh is best here.
I LOVE when you post the quick, easy stuff. As a mom with two toddlers, I want to feed them healthy options that taste good, but I need them to be easy, and so many of your recipes fit the bill…thank you and keep them coming! AND I love your pictures!!!
For the bay leaf in this sauce, can I use dried? Do you crush it up and just leave it in the sauce or pull it out?
This looks so wonderful and easy! I need a good go-to marinara sauce recipe and i think you may well have provided it for me 🙂
My Italian granmda-in-law uses this same tomato brand and I swear it makes all the difference. It smells incredible while cooking too!! Thanks for including the pnt value for us. I follow WW.
This is very similar to my go-to tomato sauce recipe. I love using the ground oregano rather than the oregano "flakes". Gives it a much richer taste.
I pump up the fiber in my recipe by adding 6oz of pureed butternut squash (from baby food aisle)…doesn't change the taste. Tried this with pureed carrots – way too sweet for our taste.
I make my marnara sauce exactly like yours except for the oregano…..love all your recipes and made many of them…..thanks
I can't wait to give this a try! Looks so delicious!
I knew there was a quicker sauce than the other one on your site!
This sounds fantastic! Yum!
and we were just talking about this last night.
something the child and I could MAKE so perhaps she'd eat 🙂
THANK YOU
Such a beautiful colour!
sooo colourful…
you are right! It looks so good
Can you use dried basil instead of fresh basil? Thanks! Sandy
Ive been looking for a sauce recipe that I could whip up with ingredients I can keep on hand.
Gina, this sounds delicious, but then your recipes always do/are. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary
Thanks a bunch! I saved this recipe as it is much simpler than the one I had.
Haley, they are great!
Tara, nope, that's how it is straight out of the can.
The big bowl of sauce looks fairly smooth. Did you process the sauce?
Thanks for pointing out the zucchini sticks! I haven't seen those on your site before! LOVE THIS!
Haley @ The Girly Girl Cooks
How would you do this with fresh tomatoes from my garden? I need to use them up! 🙂
I personally don't like the taste of the sauce when I use tomato sauce. Tuttoroso crushed tomatoes is not that chunky and the flavor is so much better.
This is a quick sauce and cookign it in the crock pot would be overkill, but you can certainly make larger batches of this and freeze it to use later!
What a lovely, vibrant sauce.
Just wondering if there would be much difference, other than texture, if I used tomato sauce rather than crushed tomatoes? It's a texture thing for some in the family. I could always run the tomatoes through the food processor or blender first, but why dirty an appliance if you don't have to. Also, have you had any experience making a large batch, maybe even in a crock pot, then freezing portions to be ready to go for later use? I've successfully frozen other sauces, just curious if you've tried it with this? Love the site, BTW, and apprciate you posting the 'old' points as well – some of us still like that plan.
To make the consistency better to suit your family you could probably use an immersion blender to smooth it out~
Try tomato puree. Easy peasy! We also like our sauce smooth.
OMG I love it too! It's great on ANYTHING! I use San Marzano crushed tomatoes. Mmmm 🙂 Simple and tasty.
san marzano is the way to go! My Italian husband will ONLY use those to make sauce!
San Marzano fan here too!!