Easy 1-Pot Marinara Sauce

SO good! Absolutely worth springing for the nutritional yeast, it adds AMAZING flavour.

It was just ok; a bit too spicy. I used diced tomatoes, but i think crushed would’ve been better because the diced were too chunky. If I make it again, I’m going to sauté some onion with the garlic & perhaps double the garlic…

This recipe is fantastic! The flavor is rich and so satisfying. This is a keeper. The San Mariano tomatoes make a nice, thick sauce. Brands from Italy (like Cento) are the best.

Best pasta sauce ever. I was sad to finish my batch.

My grandparents (both sets) are Italian so I grew up with pasta sauce that included pork (or beef). However I want to reduce my meat so thought I’d try this recipe, and wow was I impressed with the flavour!
I like that the oregano isn’t pizza flavour/overpowering, the olive oil adds so much more richness than I realised, and my cooking trick* made the tomatoes taste rich and flavourful in easily half the time stated, with no added sugar (or nutritional yeast, included sriracha for chilli and garlic).
Tips: Find a decent canned tomato brand – here in the UK, Cirio plum tomatoes tasted just as good as the fresh San Marzano’s for half the price. And don’t skimp on the fresh basil! It brought the flavours today, and took it over the top.
*I find cooking the tomatoes liquid down until they’re saucy is what makes them less acidic. Cook time doesn’t matter, but if you use a higher heat than you’ll have to stir it sooner. Still, despite a little babysitting, it didn’t take 30 minutes and didn’t need sugar.
Thanks again for another winner!

So simple, yet really tasty! And, other than the fresh basil, it’s made with pantry staples. I made the recipe using only one 28 oz can of tomatoes, the lesser amounts of yeast and paste, and the called for amounts of the remaining ingredients. I was surprised at how much my husband liked the sauce; he doesn’t usually prefer tomato/marinara sauces, but commented quite a bit on how good this was. Thank you for another solid recipe!

Best tomato sauce I’ve ever made! I didn’t have garlic so used shallots. Used a good quality organic tomato paste at the end. Served it over vegan polenta with sautéed mushrooms and parsley. Delicious! I will be returning to this tomato sauce over and over again. Thank you!!

On a WFPB no SOS (salt, oil, sugar) lifestyle and I made this without the salt, oil or tomato paste. It was amazing. I let it simmer for about 2 hours though.

A really easy and delicious sauce. I have made this many times from this recipe. A couple of things I do: sub one grated carrot for coconut sugar; saute some mushrooms anda chopped Field Roast sausage with the garlic. I love it; thanks for this simple and delicious recipe.

This is my go to base marinara/pizza sauce, and I make it quite frequently. It’s incredibly easy and I haven’t bought a jar in at least 2 years.

I usually halve the recipe as we’re not huge Italian/pasta eaters at my house, and I double the garlic even though I halve the recipe (what can I say, I love garlic). The rest of the listed ingredients I just sort of go by taste.

We’ve used this as a dipping sauce for pizza crusts, a pizza sauce, and as marinara for eggplant rollups, pasta, etc. The only time I deviate is when I make your tempeh bolognaise. Thanks for the household staple!

I love this recipe! I make it at least once a week with pasta and usually double it so we can use it for pizza sauce on Friday nights. It’s so good!! I sometimes add more oregano because it’s a favorite spice for me, and maybe some parsley. Thanks so much for this recipe!!!

Best marinara sauce I’ve made! So delicious, had to stop myself from eating it all before serving it with the vegan meatballs! Definitely will be my go-to sauce from here on out (very hard to find American-style marinara in UK– which is hard when I crave mozzarella sticks!).

Super easy/quick & delicious!!! I was intimidated to make a homemade red pasta sauce (usually I’m a lazy store jar kind of person), but I’m so glad I gave this recipe a try for my first time !!! Will definitely be making this again!!!

This is THE BEST marinara sauce EVER. So easy to make. My chef boyfriend raves about it and says I’ve got him beat now! I can’t take the credit of course – but THANK YOU! I now use this for everything – even the base if I want to add veggies or meat.

very delicious- the long simmer allows it to thicken just right. added tomato paste is also delicious and not much is needed

Really, really, good!

5 Stars! Both me and my husband love this sauce. I didn’t use oil and subbed 28 oz Fire Roasted diced tomatoes, 14 oz crushed tomatoes and 14 oz no salt diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano. I let it cook a couple hours and used an immersion blender to smooth it out. I did add the tomato paste and it added a little thickness which I liked. Won’t be searching any further for a red sauce recipe! YUM!

The BEST marinara – so easy, and I love to add in a lot of red pepper to give it some kick. Just used it for a summer squash lasagna and froze the rest, so easy and fresh!

I’ve made this so many times and it’s a huge hit at my house! Thank you for sharing Dana :)

This sauce was very easy to make and absolutely delicious!!! My husband and I eat a plant-based diet, and I was looking for a pasta sauce recipe that incorporated nutritional yeast. I ran across this recipe and made it last night. I used the sauce over whole wheat penne pasta and added sauteed vegetables as a side. (Sorry, I did not see the request to take a picture of the completed recipe until after we had finished dinner.). I did use 3 Tbsp of tomato paste and 1 Tbsp of nutritional yeast. I did not increase the measurements of any other spices, and the sauce turned out perfectly suited to our palates. Thank you so much!!!

Yummy. Did add a spo of balsamic vinegar. Thank you.
Trina

Even though I only had store-brand diced tomatoes and no fresh basil or garlic, this turned out great. I had one 28-oz. can and one smaller can of diced tomatoes and added a can of tomato sauce (no tomato paste on hand either! I added dried oregano and basil, and roasted garlic from Penzey’s. Added the nutritional yeast as suggested and about half the recommended coconut sugar.
Delicious and so easy! Next time I’ll have all the recommended ingredients on hand first :)

I’d forgotten just how fabulous this recipe was and I’m happy to say that It didn’t let me down this time either. I’ve prepared several times in the past and it’s so easy, so rich, and oh so yummy. I added some of your vegan pesto to the sauce in place of the fresh basil and garlic. Spot on perfect!!

Being of Italian descent, I have eaten a lot of spaghetti sauce. My mother cooked up masses of awesome sauce. This vegan sauce is the best I have ever had. It is very excellent.

Incredibly delicious. I used no oil, just one 28 oz. can of crushed San Marzano tomatos, and kept the simmer very low. I added the denerous full amounts of othe ther ingredients, with a very healthy amount of red pepper flakes and fresh-cut-off-the-plant basil. A fantastically full-flavored dinner that did not leave me craving fat, as I have been doing since it became very cold where I live. Thank you so much for another winner!

My favourite go to recipe for spaghetti sauce.

I just made your marinara sauce today OMG it is super delicious. It is a keeper. Thank you.

I experimented with 5 fresh tomatoes (skin on) from a friend’s garden and maple syrup as the sweetener to whip up this homemade sauce. I simmered for 45 minutes, blended, and then returned for another 15 minutes. The sauce is perfect. Thick. Creamy. Not too sweet. Not too spicy. My batch was small so I’ll use more tomatoes next time!

I just made this recipe for first time. Thank you. Easy and fast. It is lovely. I subbed fresh, peeled organic roma tomatoes and ground garlic as I used all up making hummus last night. I am out of fresh basil so used dried in bottle. I did add some very concentrated tomato paste and nutritional yeast to add depth but it was quite good before adding those. Oh, yes, I had a green bell pepper that need using so sauteed that with onion, in water. Again, thank you. Will be a basic recipe for my recipes using tomato sauce.

Just made this with chickpea pasta for a high-protein vegan noodle dish for my sister and parents. It was SO GOOD. Let me just summarize it with this… I was never a red-sauce marinara person until this recipe. Thank you!!!!!!!

I have made this many, many times. Vegans, plant based eaters and carnivores all love this recipe! My only modification is to use a splash (or two) of red wine as the sweeting agent. LOVE THIS RECIPE!

I was craving meatballs and needed a sauce to go with them, and this sauce fit the bill pefectly!

I made this recipe as stated, using maple syrup for the sweetening agent, and did not add the optional tomato paste or nutritional yeast. It was a home run! Easy to make with fresh ingredients, took less than 40 minutes altogether, and tastes simple and classic. I enjoyed this sauce over spaghettini noodles, and am saving up the rest in mason jars for later this week and month. From now on I’ll be making this recipe from scratch instead of buying pasta sauce!

Great recipe! Turned out wonderfully over some whole wheat pasta and veggies!

What an easy recipe! It tastes so fresh and takes so little time to make and store. Such a big hit in my kitchen! Thanks Dana for sharing such amazing recipes.

This is delicious! Will definitely be making this again…..bit hit with the family :)

Forgot to say that I omitted the coconut sugar. It was it my pantry although I like a more acidic marinara.

Yes I really did make this and it was fantastic! I paired it with sweet chicken sausage and brown rice penne from TJs (Trader Joe’s). I used the max amount of tomato paste, nutritional yeast, and extra fresh basil. My 6 year old loved it and said it’s the best pasta she’s ever had! Literally ate it as fast as she could. This will be a staple in my kitchen over store bought marinara!

I have made it twice and every time it feels like heaven in my mouth. I am never going back to store bought marinara sauce. Of course being an Indian who loves her food to be hot, I added lots of chilli flakes and some ground peppercorn. I love it!

Forgot to rate in my above comment!

Very easy and delicious! Thank you from a pair of grateful vegans in the UK :)

I made this using fresh roma tomatoes from my garden and maple syrup instead of coconut sugar…it was so delicious! So good I can’t stop thinking about it. I’m going to make a huge batch this weekend and jar it. I love the way your recipes automatically adjust the ingredient amounts for the servings that I input. Brilliant!

Rather than opening up a tube or can of tomato paste, I added a few glugs of spent red wine for added depth, and it worked out beautifully.

Loved this sauce!! Put it over some homemade gnocchi and veggies and it hit the spot!! Subbed the oil for water and didn’t add any extra sugar.

Absolutely delicious! For me, a perfect marinara sauce. What did I especially like? Nutritional yeast – and the sauteed garlic. And a good place for my fresh basil and oregano. Oh – and addition of sugar (I used date). Basically, the entire sauce! I added vegan meatballs, and poured over baked spaghetti squash, and used another night over baked chile rellenos (a fabulous old Sunset Gardens recipe).

This turned out great! I started by sautéing an onion and some mushrooms, then added the garlic. I skipped the sugar and upped the quantity of herbs. A quick and easy homemade sauce and I had a large jar left over for the next dinner. My son, who doesn’t often love the healthy meals I make, really liked this sauce :) Thanks Dana for another winner!!

So Good! Munching as I type. I added a bit more garlic ( to chase away the vampires). Amazing as always! Thank you!

Subbed dried basil for fresh and this is still a 5-star marinara recipe! Thanks!

I made this today and it is so yummy. So much better than the stuff in a jar. I used 1/2 crushed tomatoes and 1/2 diced. We like it chunky. I also added a little more pepper flakes because we like spicy. I had everything on hand except basil so I subbed a heaping tablespoon of pesto. Lastly, I had a few Parmesan cheese rinds in the freezer so I added those and fished out what didn’t melt. This sauce will be perfect for tomorrow nights rigatoni. Thanks for the recipe!

I LOVE Minimalist Baker! My daughter went vegan a year ago, and I have been using MB recipes to include in our evening meals and have NEVER been disappointed. I tried this recipe for the first time yesterday—I made it exactly as listed (adding more herbs to our taste), including adding the paste, but not the nutritional yeast. My husband is Italin-while it was too thick for his tastes (I will forgo the paste next time) he LOVED it. I will also skip the coconut sugar—we typically do not add sugar to non-dessert items, but I tried it this time. We all agreed the sugar was distracting.
Thank you, Dana! You make my life easier and yummier!
Anneke

This was a pretty good quick sauce. We are 90 – 95% plant based and follow a mostly traditional Mediterranean diet. In other words, we primarily eat whole plant foods and we eat fish and shellfish several times per month. We don’t eat any land meat or drink any dairy, but we do eat goat and sheep milk cheese sparingly. Given this, I added 3 TBSP of Pecorino Romano to the sauce. Additionally, I used 6 larger cloves of garlic and to mellow the acidity of the finished sauce I added 1/2 cup of neutral flavored soy milk. I also used 3 heaping tablespoons of tomato paste to create a nice thick sauce. For extra depth of flavor I might saute a small, grated onion before proceeding with the rest of the steps next time. I will use the sauce this time to spoon over my almond ricotta stuffed pasta shells which have been a family favorite for many years.

Using your marinara recipe tonight in homemade lasagna. It’s absolutely delicious, and I’m relatively certain our pickiest eater will actually eat it. Thank you!

My carnivore boyfriend and I (vegetarian) made this to go with cheese ravioli and it was absolutely divine. Such depth of flavor! We are continually impressed by your ability to make every recipe 10x more delicious with the inclusion of surprise ingredients.

I make this sauce, starting with one large or two medium onions, coarsely chopped, before adding the garlic to the pan. I use this sauce on pasta, in lasagna, for “meatless meatball” sandwiches – the meatless meatballs coming from Trader Joe’s. Some vegan mozzarella and sauce on a bun with the meatballs make a quick meal. Also, I like to get a package of vegan Italian sausage, cut the links into thin slices, heated up in the sauce and poured over whole wheat penne pasta for another quick meal. This sauce does not last long in my refrigerator because I use it up!