Easy Italian Spicy Homemade Marinara Sauce

Italian spicy homemade marinara sauce is a super simple sauce that is bursting with rich hearty tomato flavors. Making pasta sauce at home can’t get easier than this. Ditch the store-bought sauce, and make it fresh at home in under 30 minutes.

I’ve used canned tomatoes, feel free to use fresh tomatoes to make the sauce. Oven-roasted cherry tomatoes work great to make the sauce if you like to use cherry tomatoes.

Why does this recipe work?

1. It’s quick, easy to make, rich hearty tomato flavors!
2. The sauce can be made in less than 30 minutes.
3. Best use of bountiful fresh summer tomatoes.
4. This recipe is a keeper! This sauce has so many uses. You can use it for pasta or pizza and as a dipping sauce for crispy pasta chips, baked parmesan crisps, and chicken enchilada tortilla roll-ups. Use it as pizza sauce in zucchini pizza bites and as a base for oven baked eggs.

Ingredients

Variations

• Canned tomatoes can be substituted with fresh ripe tomatoes. To get the best taste, blanch ripe tomatoes in boiling water for 3 to 5 minutes, drain, and allow to cool down for a few minutes. Peel the skin off and chop it as small as you like.
• Yellow (Italian) onions are best, you can also use white onions like I did.
• Love garlic flavors? Feel free to increase the amount of garlic according to taste preference.
• Red chili flakes are optional but I highly recommend it. It adds heat to the sauce that helps balance the tart flavors of tomatoes.

Step-by-step instructions

Using good quality canned tomatoes is the key. Garden fresh tomatoes can be used as well. Blanch, peel the skin, and dice tomatoes first or roast it in the oven then crush it.

Step 1: Heat extra virgin olive oil in a skillet. Saute minced garlic for 5 seconds.

Step 2: Add diced onions and cook for a minute or until onions are translucent.

Step 3: Stir in red pepper flakes, salt, pepper (to taste), and dried oregano.

Step 4: Add crushed canned tomatoes and stir well.

Step 5: Simmer heat, cover with lid partially, and cook for 15 minutes stirring at regular intervals.

Optional step – stir 1 teaspoon of granulated white sugar into the sauce to cut the acidity of the tomatoes.

Step 6: Turn off the heat, and stir fresh chopped basil leaves into the sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning as required.

Allow the sauce to cool completely and store it in an air-tight container covered with a lid. The sauce can be used in pastas, pizzas, or as a dipping sauce. Stir it with spaghetti for a quick weeknight dinner.

Serving Suggestions

Use it with pasta or top it over pizza. It also serves great as a dipping sauce with cheesy cauliflower breadsticks. Dip homemade soft pretzel bites in this spicy sauce, it’s heavenly!
Load up your spaghetti with this rich sauce for a quick weekday dinner.

Useful tips

1. Using quality canned tomatoes to make the sauce is crucial.
2. We like it chunky! Feel free to mash the sauce to adjust the consistency.
3. Garden fresh tomatoes can be substituted for canned tomatoes. Blanch, peel the skin, and dice tomatoes first or roast it in the oven then crush it.
4. Red pepper flakes are optional but I highly recommend it. It adds a kick to the sauce which makes it tastier.
5. Always taste and add seasoning as you go to suit your taste preferences.

Recipe FAQs

5 from 2 votes

📋 RECIPE: Spicy Homemade Marinara Sauce

Jyothi Rajesh

Homemade spicy marinara sauce is super simple sauce that is bursting with rich hearty tomato flavors. Making pasta sauce at home can’t get easier than this. Ditch the jarred stuff homemade is the way to go. It can’t get simpler than this.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Course condiments, sauce

Cuisine Italian

Servings 3 cups

Calories 192

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 tablespoon EVOO
• ▢ 4 cloves garlic
• ▢ 1 small yellow or white onion
• ▢ 1 teaspoon red chili flakes optional, highly recommended
• ▢ Salt & pepper to taste
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ 28 oz can good quality crushed tomatoes
• ▢ 2 tablespoon fresh basil leaves

Instructions

 

• In a sauce pan heat extra virgin olive oil.
• Sauté minced garlic and fine diced onions for about a minute or until onions are translucent.
• Stir in red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to taste and dried oregano with onions and garlic.
• Add canned crushed tomatoes to the pan, stir well.
• Simmer heat, cover pot partially with lid and slow cook tomatoes for 15 minutes. Keep stirring occasionally.
• Turn off heat, stir fresh chopped basil leaves to the sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning as required.
• Optional step – stir in 1 teaspoon of granulated white sugar to the sauce to cut acidity of tomatoes.
• Viola, simple and best homemade marinara sauce is ready to serve.
• Use it anywhere where you need a red sauce – for pastas, pizzas, as dipping sauce.
• Load up your spaghetti with this rich sauce for quick weekday dinner.

Video

Notes

1. Using quality canned tomatoes to make the sauce is crucial.
2. We like it chunky! Feel free to mash the sauce to adjust the consistency.
3. Garden fresh tomatoes can be substituted for canned tomatoes. Blanch, peel the skin, and dice tomatoes first or roast it in the oven then crush it.
4. Red pepper flakes are optional but I highly recommend it. It adds a kick to the sauce which makes it tastier.
5. Always taste and add seasoning as you go to suit your taste preferences.

 

The recipe yields approximately 3 cups. The nutrition values mentioned are for 1 cup.

Nutritional Info – Please remember that the nutritional information provided is only a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.

Nutrition

Calories: 192kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 5gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gSodium: 363mgPotassium: 870mgFiber: 6gSugar: 13gVitamin A: 849IUVitamin C: 29mgCalcium: 121mgIron: 4mg

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