Italian marinara pasta sauce is not just any tomato sauce.
Italian marinara pasta sauce is not just any tomato sauce. A decent marinara should have the taste of fresh tomato and garlic. It’s texture should be smooth and velvety.
Saucy expectations – breaking with tradition
Every person of Italian heritage has high expectations of a marinara and will insist his or her own recipe is the best. I am of English descent and a bit “cheeky” with recipes. Traditionalists will swear that a true marinara should never have onions, anchovies, butter, wine or tomato paste. It should be made only with fresh tomato, garlic and olive oil. I cook to please my taste buds. Wine and tomato paste are the key ingredients that my marinara rich and luxurious.
Sailor’s sauce – what’s in a name?
The use of the word marinara in cooking can be somewhat confusing. Marinara derives from the Italian word for sailor, marinaro. There are two explanations as to how the sauce came to be named. The ingredients of oil, tomato sauce, and garlic traveled well and didn’t spoil as quickly as meat or fish. Sailors could make the sauce as the pasta cooked. The other explanation is more romantic. Wives welcomed returning sailors with a hot meal of pasta and tomato sauce.
In Italy, alla marinara refers to a sauce made with tomatoes. It compliments pasta, meat or fish dishes. The reference to the sea implies that the sauce has a seafood ingredient. Some cooks add anchovy to a classic marinara. It adds a sweetness and not the fishy flavor that one would expect. In Italy, alla pescatora is a seafood pasta. Outside of Italy, if you find spaghetti marinara on a menu, it will be a tomato-based sauce mixed with seafood.
Low and slow
My marinara gets its character from a slow cooking of 2-3 hours over a low heat. I add extra love with attentive stirring and careful consideration of the moment to declare it’s “perfect”! Try my recipe for Chicken Parmesan to taste for yourself. I hope you find my recipe for Italian marinara pasta sauce as good as what a nonna would make!
Molly’s Marinara
Equipment
- 1 large non-aluminum pot
- Spoon
- Whisk
- Silicone spatula
- 1 cup measuring cup
- ¼ cup measuring cup
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 large garlic cloves crushed and minced
- 8 cups Tomato sauce two 32 oz cans or four 15 oz cans
- 6 oz Tomato paste one small can
- 1 cup red wine
- ¼ cup sugar
- salt Add at the end to taste.
Instructions
- Gather and prepare all of your ingredients.
- Open the cans of sauce and paste and place beside the pot. Pour the sugar and wine into the measuring cups. Crush and mince the garlic. Have the olive oil handy.
- Put olive oil into the pan.
- Heat the oil over medium heat until it shimmers.
- Add garlic and stir to heat through being careful not to let it brown or burn, about 15-20 seconds.
- Add the tomato sauce and paste. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the cans clean.
- Add sugar and wine. Whisk to combine and bring to a boil.
- Immediately reduce the heat to simmer.
- Simmer sauce slowly for 2-3 hours and stir often so that the bottom doesn't burn. The longer the sauce simmers, the more it will cook down. Simmering allows the flavors to meld and the sauce to thicken.
Tips
- Check the ingredients label on the sauce and paste. Most commercial brands add salt. I recommend adding salt to taste at the end of the cooking.
Dietary Restrictions
- Omit the sugar if necessary.
Storage
- Refrigeration: Put sauce in a sterilized jar and seal tightly. I recommend labeling the jar with the date. The sauce will keep up to 10 days in the refrigerator.
- Freezing: Put sauce in a freezer friendly zip lock bag or plastic container. Be sure to add the date.