This Easy Pomodoro Sauce Recipe is thick, smooth, and delicious. It takes amazing over pasta, but is versatile enough to be used in so many other dishes.
For other tasty Italian recipes, you should try our Margherita pizza and quick spaghetti and meat sauce.
Easy Pomodoro Sauce
This Easy Pomodoro Sauce is the perfect recipe to have on hand. Smoothly textured and thick with deliciously fresh ingredients, this tomato-based sauce is perfect with so many dishes. While it’s traditionally used over pasta, you can also repurpose it for things other than pasta. This Pomodoro sauce recipe can easily be made to work with meals throughout the week, making dinner prep so much easier. Flavorful and fragrant, it is easy to make and store. You’re going to love how convenient this yummy sauce is.
What is it made of?
This Pomodoro sauce is made with fresh, flavorful ingredients. For this recipe, you will need Extra virgin olive oil, Garlic cloves, Yellow onion, a can of Whole peeled tomatoes, Sugar, Kosher salt, and Basil leaves.
Pomodoro Sauce vs Marinara
Pomodoro sauce may have similar ingredients to marinara, but the big difference is in their textures. Marinara is more liquid and runnier, and it is often chunky. Pomodoro is thicker and smoothly textured.
What is the Difference between Pomodoro and Bolognese Sauces?
A bolognese means “meat sauce,” so for this sauce, the meat is the center focus. For a pomodoro sauce, the tomatoes are the star. So the main difference between them is that the bolognese has meat and the pomodoro doesn’t.
What texture to look for
Pomodoro sauce isn’t really chunky; it’s thicker. The ingredients are minced and cut small so that the sauce has a smooth texture, though it’s not thin or liquidity as marinara is. This is because it is not made with tomato paste or sauce, but rather with pureed tomatoes.
How to make it
- Prep the onion and garlic. Chop half a yellow onion and mince the garlic cloves.
- Cook them. Place the minced garlic and onion in a pan with extra virgin olive oil. Over medium heat, stir the ingredients until the onion turns translucent.
- Blend the tomatoes. In a blender, pulse the whole peeled tomatoes until they are pureed, about 5 pulses.
- Add the tomatoes. Pour the pureed tomatoes into the pan and stir over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes.
- Season the sauce. Add the sugar, salt, and basil leaves. Cook for another 5 minutes and then serve hot.
Is Pomodoro Sauce Vegetarian?
A classic Pomodoro sauce recipe is vegetarian, vegan even. There are no meat ingredients in Pomodoro, separating it from other sauces, like the bolognese.
Can I make it ahead of time?
Yes, you can definitely make it ahead of time. Once you’ve followed the recipe and allowed the sauce to cool, you can then store it in your refrigerator for up to a week. Just reheat it in the microwave or on the stovetop when you are ready to serve it.
Does it freeze well?
This easy Pomodoro also freezes really well. Just place the cooled sauce in ziplock freezer bags and lay them flat in your freezer. Then when they are completely frozen, stand them up to save room. If you want to make a double batch to have on hand, you can freeze the extra, then defrost it in the fridge before warming it for serving.
What to make with leftover sauce
- Pizza- Add the extra sauce in place of marinara on homemade pizza or flatbreads.
- Soup- There are so many tomato-based soups that you can easily repurpose this sauce to be the base for a vegetable soup or one with pasta or rice.
- Dip for grilled cheese- Warm this sauce up and use it as a dip for grilled cheese sandwiches.
- Other pasta sauces- If you want to add meat or other ingredients, you can use your extra sauce as the base and create an entirely different sauce for your pasta dish.
Full Recipe Instructions
Easy Pomodoro Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 small yellow onion
- 2 garlic cloves chopped
- 28 oz canned whole peeled tomatoes
- 1/4 tsp granulated sugar
- 1/4 kosher salt or to taste
- About 5 basil leaves
Instructions
- Chop up 1/2 a small yellow onion and mince up 2 garlic cloves.
- Then add the onion and garlic to a pan filled with 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil over medium heat.
- Stir the onion and garlic until the onion becomes translucent.
- Now add 1 (28 oz) can of whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes into a blender and pulse it into the tomatoes are puréed. About 5 pulses.
- Now add the puréed tomatoes to the pan and stir over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes.
- Now add 1/4 teaspoon of sugar, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and 5 chopped basil leaves.
- Cook for an additional 5 minutes and serve over hot buttered pasta.
Notes
- Pizza- Add the extra sauce in place of marinara on homemade pizza or flatbreads.
- Soup- There are so many tomato-based soups that you can easily repurpose this sauce to be the base for a vegetable soup or one with pasta or rice.
- Dip for grilled cheese- Warm this sauce up and use it as a dip for grilled cheese sandwiches.
- Other pasta sauces- If you want to add meat or other ingredients, you can use your extra sauce as the base and create an entirely different sauce for your pasta dish.
Nutrition
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Leona So says
Easy and delicious sauce , I made this sauce exactly like you said .it came out so rich and flavorful it could not be easier thanks as always your faithful reader.
Dina says
Thank you, Leona 🙂 So happy that you loved this pomodoro sauce! Always thankful for your support and feedback! 🙂
Mari says
Hi Dina! I really want to make this sauce and I’m wondering if I need to drain the tomatoes. It looks delicious!!
Thanks!
Dina says
Hi Mari, no need to drain the tomatoes. I hope you love this recipe! 🙂
Joy Panem says
Keep up the good work
simplyhomecooked says
Thank you Joy! 🙂