Homemade Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce
This is a delicious, vegan marinara pasta sauce recipe handed down through five female generations of a Southern Italian family. It's rich, slightly sweet, and also incredibly satisfying. If you love fried dough, this is the perfect sauce to use as a topping. You’ll want to spoon the sauce right out of the pan and enjoy it immediately!
Servings: 8 cups, approximately
Calories: 120kcal
Ingredients
- 2 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes (Pastene is a popular Italian choice)
- ½ can water
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 medium dried bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt or to your liking
- ½ teaspoon pepper or to your liking
- ½ pound frozen Italian-style veggie meatballs optional
- ½ pound Italian-style veggie pepperoni or sausage sliced into chunks (optional)
Instructions
- Open up both cans of tomatoes. Place your large saucepan or dutch oven over medium high heat. Pour tomatoes and water into the pan.
- Add in the olive oil, bay leaves, and spices. Stir well.
- Bring your sauce to a low simmer and then reduce heat to medium low. Cook (slightly covered) for 1½ hours, stirring every half hour or so (at least).
- If using veggie meatballs, pepperoni, and/or sausage, add them in, stir well, and simmer for another ½ hour.
- When your sauce is done, turn off the heat, pull out the bay leaves, and scoop out the veggie meats onto another plate for serving. Buon appetito!
Notes
- Serving Size: This amount of sauce is enough for 2 meals of 4 people—either with pasta, lasagna, stuffed shells, etc.
- Storing Tips: The finished sauce (and veggie meats) can be refrigerated for up to 5 days. You can also freeze a large portion of sauce in a covered, freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator and heat up in a saucepan on medium or medium-high until desired temperature.
- Vegan Meat Optional: The plant-based, vegan meats are not required to make this sauce. If you do cook the sauce with these foods, the sauce will have a richer, deeper flavor, but it’s still very flavorful without them. My family loves it both ways.
- Bread n' Sauce: When the sauce is just done, try spooning some hot sauce over a slice of fresh Italian bread (un-toasted) and enjoy. If you have a loaf of Scali bread with sesame seeds in the crust, it’s even better!
- Side Suggestions: Serve with a fresh green salad, vegan parmesan cheese or nutritional yeast, and (if you like spiciness), a few shakes of crushed red pepper flakes.
Nutrition
Calories: 120kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 469mg | Potassium: 217mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 26IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 100mg | Iron: 2mg