Roasting tomatoes gives them a more intense and rich tomato flavor than canned sauce. This simple method is easy to do and works great in the oven. Learn how to make this easy oven-roasted tomato sauce here.
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One of the best ways to utilize fresh tomatoes before the season ends is to make tomato sauce. And, this easy recipe is super simple and packed with flavor because we roast the tomatoes, onions, and garlic in the oven.
Why make this sauce?
- There is nothing better than the taste of fresh tomatoes. I like to peel, deseed and crush my tomatoes. Similar to the canned ones.
- And the sauce can be cooked for as little as 30 minutes or up to an hour to concentrate the tomato flavor.
- Also, this sauce doesn't really need a lot of ingredients. Fresh tomatoes and basil and the rest are pantry staples.
- And the best part is, it freezes beautifully and can be kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. In fact, I like to portion them in flat ziplock bags to occupy less space.
- There is so much you can do with this sauce.
- Use it as is over boiled pasta for a simple marinara pasta.
- You can also thicken this sauce to make a delicious pizza sauce
- Brown some ground beef with a marinara sauce for a quick meat sauce or try my bolognese sauce and serve it with spaghetti to make spaghetti bolognese.
- Or add some mushrooms to make a quick mushroom pasta.
- And you can drop a few meatballs in this sauce to make a quick meatball pasta.
Ingredients and substitutes
- Tomatoes - This a great sauce to use up all the fresh seasonal tomatoes. The sauce is great to can and save for the off-season.
- Tomato paste - Adds a nice color and thickness to the sauce.
- Seasoning - Today, I am using dried rosemary, thyme, and oregano. But, you can also use dried Italian seasoning.
- Onion - I love the flavor of Spanish red onions in my tomato sauce.
- Garlic - Fresh garlic cloves are the way to go. And, we use a lot of it because we roast the garlic making sure the garlic is caramelized which makes it sweet.
Roasted tomato sauce
- Oven - Preheat the oven to 375℉/190℃/ Gas Mark 5.
- Roast - In a large baking tray, lined with parchment paper, layer the chopped tomatoes, onions, and garlic cloves. Then, transfer to the oven and roast for 30 to 45 minutes.
- Process - Next, transfer the roasted veggies to the food processor making sure to peel the garlic cloves and blend until smooth.
Pro tip - Once roasted, the tomato skin can be easily peeled, if you prefer a skinless sauce.
- Combine - In a skillet, combine all the rest of the ingredients. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Simmer - Then, reduce the heat to low. Cover the pan and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes until fragrant. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley.
Pro tip - If necessary, add more water or broth for consistency. - Store - Use this sauce immediately with freshly boiled pasta. Or, you can also store it in the fridge for up to a week or in freezer bags for months.
Tips for success
- Use nice fresh seasonal tomatoes that are ripe but firm. Similarly, use Spanish red onions that caramelize when roasted. Leave the garlic clove with skin on when roasting this will prevent them from burning.
- Also, I like to chop the tomatoes so that all the excess juices are evaporated and the sauce is thick and flavorful.
- And you can also leave the tomatoes whole during roasting.
- Roasting the veggies also gives them a smoky flavor.
- And if you want to make a skinless tomato sauce, leave the tomatoes whole and cut a cross on each tomato so that once baked the skin will easily peel off. Then, just pick the skin off as much as you can.
- I have used dried herbs today but you can also use fresh rosemary, thyme and basil instead.
- And this sauce is great to can as well as to freeze. So feel free to make extra and store for later.
Use this sauce immediately with freshly boiled pasta. You can also store it in the fridge for up to a week or in freezer bags for months
There is so much you can do with this red sauce. For example, use it as is over boiled pasta for a simple marinara pasta or baked ziti, Italian meatballs, or veggies.
Also, you can thicken this sauce to make a delicious marinara pizza sauce
Or, brown some ground beef with a marinara sauce for a quick meat or spaghetti sauce or try my bolognese sauce and serve it with spaghetti to make marinara spaghetti bolognese.
And add some mushrooms to make a quick marinara mushroom pasta.
You can drop a few meatballs in this sauce to make a quick marinara meatballs pasta.
Use it over breaded chicken and top it with cheese to make a delicious chicken parmesan or over-grilled eggplant to make eggplant parmesan.
Pasta sauce marinara - Simmer 2 cups marina sauce, add ¼ cup cream, ¼ cup Parmesan sauce, and fresh basil - serve over boiled pasta.
Pizza sauce marinara - If you thicken the marinara sauce it works perfectly as a pizza sauce. Add some topping and some cheese before baking. See all my pizza recipes here.
Marinara mushroom Pasta - Saute 1 lb mushrooms, then add 2 cup marinara sauce, ½ cup Parmesan cheese, and some fresh basil. Add 1 lb boiled pasta.
Marinara spaghetti bolognese - brown 1 lb of ground beef, add 2 cups marinara sauce, ½ cup Parmesan cheese, ¼ cup fresh cream, and fresh basil. Serve over boiled spaghetti pasta.
Ideally, we love some rustic bread to go with our pasta. Time permitting, I often make one of these homemade bread - olive sun-dried tomato dinner rolls, roasted garlic parmesan bread rolls, no-knead beer bread or whole wheat walnut bread
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Printable Recipe
Roasted Tomato Sauce
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Conversions Used
1 lb = 453 grams, 1 cup = 240 ml, 1 stick = 113g, 1 tbsp= 15 ml, 1 tsp= 5 ml,
Ingredients
- 2 lbs (1 kg) Tomatoes
- 2 large Spanish red onions
- 8 large Garlic cloves
- 3 tablespoon Tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Rosemary (dried)
- 1 tablespoon Thyme (dried)
- 1 tablespoon Oregano (dried )
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon Black pepper powder
- 2 tablespoon Olive oil
- 1 cup (240 ml) Broth or stock (veg or chicken)
- ¼ cup Parsley or Basil (garnish)
Instructions
- Oven - Preheat the oven to 375℉/190℃/ Gas Mark 5.
- Roast - In a large baking tray lined with parchment paper, layer the chopped tomatoes, onions, and garlic cloves. Transfer to the oven and roast for 30 to 45 minutes.2 lbs Tomatoes, 2 large Spanish red onions, 8 large Garlic cloves
- Process - Transfer the roasted veggies to the food processor making sure to peel the garlic cloves and blend until smooth. Pro tip - The tomato skin can be easily peeled once roasted if you prefer a skinless sauce.
- Combine - In a skillet, combine all the rest of the ingredients. Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat.3 tablespoon Tomato paste, 1 tablespoon Rosemary, 1 tablespoon Thyme, 1 tablespoon Oregano, ½ teaspoon Kosher salt, 1 teaspoon Black pepper powder, 2 tablespoon Olive oil, 1 cup Broth or stock
- Simmer - Reduce the heat to low. Cover the pan and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes until fragrant. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley. Pro tip - If necessary, add more water or broth for consistency.¼ cup Parsley or Basil
- Store - Use this sauce immediately with freshly boiled pasta. You can also store it in the fridge for up to a week or in freezer bags for months.
Recipe Notes & Tips
- Use nice fresh seasonal tomatoes that are ripe but firm. Similarly use Spanish red onions that caramelize when roasted. Leave the garlic clove with skin on when roasting this will prevent them from burning.
- I like to chop the tomatoes so that all the excess juices are evaporated and the sauce is thick and flavorful.
- You can also leave the tomatoes whole during roasting.
- Roasting the veggies also gives them a smoky flavor.
- If you want to make a skinless tomato sauce, leave the tomatoes whole and cut a cross on each tomato so that once baked the skin will easily peel off. then just pick the skin off as much as you can.
- I have used dried herbs today but you can also use fresh rosemary, thyme and basil instead.
- This sauce is great to can as well as to freeze so feel free to make extra and store for later.
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Hayley Dhanecha
I made this roasted tomato sauce yesterday, it turned out so well. Taking a couple of jars for my friend.
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Hayley
Laura Arteaga
This sauce has been a staple at home since we tried it first. So good for pasta, lasagnas, shakshuka and other yummy dishes!
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Laura.