This Italian marinara sauce is an iconic Sicilian marinara and a generational recipe that continues even today. My nonna would be proud to know I'm sharing this homemade marina sauce with you. This recipe, combined with quality ingredients, love, and time, is one of the best you'll find and certainly worth saving and sharing.
6cans whole Italian tomatoes14 oz cans of real San Marzano
2tablespoonsugarsubsitute 1 carrot shredded
2tablespoontomato pasteItalian triple concentrate
2tablespoonItalian herbsincrease based on preference
Instructions
Melt the butter and the olive oil in a large heavy bottomed sauce pot.
When all the butter is melted, add the onions and garlic, salt well, and saute over medium heat for about 7 – 8 minutes, until the onion rings begin to lose their shape and soften.
Add the canned tomatoes (with their juices) and bring to a simmer.
When at simmering, reduce the heat and maintain a slow simmer for about two hours, stirring frequently.
Add the sugar, tomato paste and Italian herbs (if using dried herbs add now, if using fresh, add about 10 minutes before blending), stir well, and continue to simmer for about another hour.
Let the sauce cool a bit, then using a hand-held blender, puree until smooth.
Recipe Notes
Tomatoes? Ideally whole peeled tomatoes. I typically use real San Marzano tomatoes. You could just as easily use fresh garden tomatoes.Sugar? Firstly, this is a Sicilian tomato sauce and yes sugar. The small amount of sugar added to this large batch of tomato sauce helps enchance the tomatoes natural sugars and balance the acidity in the tomatoes.Carrots? Yes, you can substitute the sugar for a single shredded carrot.