Easy Tomato Pasta Sauce

Name: Easy Tomato Pasta Sauce
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 0.5 onion (diced); 2 garlic cloves (crushed); 2 tbsp fresh basil (chopped); 1 tsp dried oregano; 250 g passata; 1 tbsp Balsamic vinegar; 1 pinch sea salt and black pepper

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When you want something quick and simple for dinner, this Easy Tomato Pasta Sauce stirred through some spaghetti is about as simple as it gets. No need for any extra ingredients, although a little parmesan and black pepper on top goes a long way. A herby passata pasta sauce with a splash of balsamic vinegar that freezes well too.

A plate of tagliatelle in an easy tomato pasta sauce.

One of the things I have learned from my trips to Italy is that everyone outside of Italy really over complicates Italian food, and I am definitely guilty of this too.

You only have to look at how many toppings we put on our pizza, or how many different ingredients we add to our pasta dishes to see this. In Italy, their food tends to be much more simple, and I think it is tastier because of it.

We have kept this pasta sauce really simple with just a good quality passata, some fresh and dried herbs, garlic and a splash of balsamic vinegar.

There are plenty of other ingredients you could add to it, like vegetables, or meat, but if you want something quick and simple then this is a great base.

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Why should you try it?
What you will need
Step by step
It this healthy?
What is passata?
FAQs
Extra tips
More sauce recipes
Recipe

Why should you try it?

Super simple sauce with very few ingredients
Just 70 calories a portion
Healthier than a jar of pasta sauce
Easy to adapt and add other ingredients
Can be frozen for a quick and easy dinner.

What you will need

Passata - A good quality passata is definitely required for this recipe. Cheaper ones can be a bit watery and tasteless. As this is a tomato sauce, you really want to taste the tomatoes.
Onion and garlic - The base of the sauce. Use shallots if you would like a little sweeter taste.
Basil and oregano - For that authentic Italian flavour.
Balsamic Vinegar - Gives a lovely sweetness to the sauce and brings all the flavours together.

Step by step

One: Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the onion and garlic. Gently cook until softened, about 3-4 minutes.

A saucepan with chopped onions and minced garlic.

Two: Add the passata, herbs and balsamic vinegar and season.

A saucepan containing chopped onions, minced garlic, passata and herbs.

Three: Stir and simmer for 10 minutes.

A saucepan with a cooked tomato sauce in it.

Four: Stir through cooked spaghetti and add parmesan.

a saucepan containing cooked tagliatelle and tomato pasta sauce.

Watch our web story for a quick how-to of making this Easy Tomato Pasta Sauce.

It this healthy?

This is an easy recipe, but of course it would be easier to just open a jar of store bought sauce. But, next time you are in the supermarket, take a look at the ingredients of some of those pasta sauces. Some (not all - there are some great options out there now) contain so much salt, sugar and unnecessary ingredients.

Making your own pasta sauce means you can control exactly what goes in to it and you can use just a pinch of salt to season it. The splash of balsamic gives it a little sweetness too.

Parmesan shavings on top of pasta in a tomato sauce.

What is passata?

Passata (or tomato puree as it is called in the US), is strained tomatoes (liquid tomato puree). It will come in a carton or tall glass jar and it is a store cupboard essential in our opinion, as it is the base of so many sauces that we make.

Passata is an uncooked tomato purée that has been strained of seeds and skins. If you can't find any passata, then an alternative would be to blend up a tin of tomatoes and then pass it through a sieve.

A plate of pasta in a tomato sauce next to a bowl of salad and a block of parmesan.

FAQs

Can you freeze tomato pasta sauce?

This Easy Tomato Pasta Sauce is perfect for batch cooking. Triple the recipe and then freeze it in portions. Then all you need to do it get it out the night before to defrost and heat it through some cooked pasta (or use it as a pizza base sauce) for a quick week night meal.

Extra tips

You can use this simply stirred through pasta, as a spaghetti bolognese sauce or as a pizza base sauce.
It freezes really well, so feel free to triple the recipe and batch cook it.
This is a simple sauce, but you can use it as a base and add vegetables or meat to it. Cooking times will vary though.
This is a vegan sauce, but some parmesan or vegan alternative, is really nice sprinkled on top after cooking.

More sauce recipes

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