If you want to level up your pasta game, this tomato basil sauce is the real deal. It’s the kind of sauce that you’ll keep coming back to again and again.

What We Love About Homemade Tomato Basil Sauce

Versatile: This tomato basil sauce is a kitchen staple because it’s so easy to make, yet it goes with a wide variety of dishes.
Time-saving: This sauce is great on its own, but you can easily use it as a base for other tomato-based sauces.
Simple ingredients: You’ll be surprised how simple this recipe is since it’s so good. The ingredients are probably already sitting in your pantry right now.

Tomato Basil Sauce Ingredients

Roma Tomatoes – Roma tomatoes are the preferred variety for tomato sauce because they have a lower water content, resulting in a thicker, chunkier sauce.
Aromatics – Yellow onions and garlic help add flavor to the sauce base and are typically added to many Italian dishes.
Fresh Basil – Fresh basil is just perfect for this recipe since it’s light and adds plenty of flavor and a pleasant aroma to the sauce.
Seasoning – Salt, sugar
Unsalted Butter – Even just a little bit of butter added to the sauce makes it smoother and gives it a richer flavor profile.
Olive Oil – The main cooking oil of this recipe.

How to Make Tomato Basil Sauce

Prepare the tomatoes. Lightly score each on the bottom.
Boil the tomatoes. Once done, transfer to an ice bath.
Peel the skin and chop the tomatoes into smaller pieces. Crush any big pieces.
In the same pot, add the other ingredients. Mix well.
Boil over medium high heat. Then reduce and let simmer until the sauce thickens.
Remove the onions. Add the chopped basil.
Add salt or sugar as needed. Taste as you go.

Storing and Reheating Instructions:

To store: Let the tomato basil sauce to cool completely after cooking then transfer to an airtight glass container. If you plan to use the sauce within a week, store it in the refrigerator.
To reheat: Heat the sauce on the stovetop over low to medium heat, stirring occasionally. You can also heat the sauce in the microwave in short intervals.

Tomato Basil Sauce Recipe Variations

Add mashed anchovies: You won’t really taste the anchovies, but it will add some saltiness and a subtle umami flavor to the sauce.
Add tomato paste: Stir in a tablespoon or two of unsweetened tomato paste in case your tomato basil sauce ends up a little too watery.
Use any kind of tomatoes: While this recipe calls for Roma tomatoes, feel free to use your choice of tomatoes, whether it’s stewed tomatoes or fresh tomatoes of another variety.
Add pasta water: To help the sauce thicken, add a cup of pasta water before boiling.
Add chopped celery: If you enjoy adding aromatics to sauces, chopped celery is another good addition to this tomato basil sauce. Add in 1-2 stalks of chopped celery along with the rest of the ingredients.

Fresh Tomato Basil Sauce

This homemade fresh tomato basil sauce is so easy to make and incredible on pasta and pizza. All you need are a couple of ingredients and you have a comforting, quick dinner.

Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 2

Total Time: 2 27

Servings: cups

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Ingredients

Instructions

Score a small 1-inch size “X” on the bottom of each tomato.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Blanch the tomatoes for 60-90 seconds in boiling water.
Transfer the tomatoes in a bowl of ice water.
Peel the skin and chopped the tomatoes.
Add the olive oil, butter, chopped tomatoes, garlic, salt, sugar and onions to a large pot.
Bring to a gentle boil over medium high heat then reduce the heat to medium low.
Simmer for 90-120 minutes or until the sauce is reduced to the desired thickness.
Discard the onions.
Stir in the chopped basil.
Taste and add more salt or sugar if necessary.
Use immediately or allow to cool completely then refrigerate until ready to use.
The sauce can be refrigerated for up to 4 days or frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months.