Homemade Pizza Sauce

Looking for the BEST homemade pizza sauce? You’ve come to the right place! Sautéed minced onion and garlic combined with dried herbs, sun-dried tomatoes and wine in a thick and robust tomato sauce. This recipe yields 1-1/2 cups in about 30 minutes.

Making my own pizza sauce from scratch used to mean opening a can of tomato sauce, sprinkling in a little Italian seasoning, a pinch of sugar, garlic powder and maybe a pinch of red pepper flakes. Until one day when I opened up my pantry to start making pizzas and I realized I was out of tomato sauce.

Story of my life.

However I did have was tomato paste, and when you have tomato paste anything is possible. I just had to get creative. I scoured my entire kitchen, including the pantry and fridge – Chopped-style – and whipped up what has become my family’s favorite pizza sauce. It’s so perfectly robust and delicious that I put it in my cookbook.

What makes this homemade pizza sauce so special?

Two things: sun-dried tomatoes and wine. Both give a depth of flavor that you can’t find in jarred or no-cook pizza sauces. The rest of the ingredients are pretty typical, like: fresh garlic and onion, dried oregano and basil, salt and black pepper.

To Make This Homemade Pizza Sauce You Will Need:

• light olive oil
• finely diced white onion
• fresh garlic
• sun dried tomatoes
• dried oregano
• dried basil
• tomato paste
• sugar
• water
• kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Start by heating up a 10-inch skillet over moderate heat. Once hot, add in a tablespoon of olive oil and 1/2 cup finely minced white onions. For a smoother sauce, you could pulse the onion in a mini food processor.

The moment the onions have softened, add in 2 cloves of garlic. You can either mince, grate or squeeze them through a garlic press. Sauté the garlic for about 30 seconds.

To the garlicky onions, add in 2 tablespoons minced sun-dried tomatoes, 2 teaspoons dried oregano and 1-1/2 teaspoons dried basil.

Stir and let the heat and oil soften the dried herbs for a little bit.

Next, pour in 2 tablespoons of white wine. Use a wine you like to drink – preferably a dry white and not a sweet white wine. If you’re avoiding alcohol, just up the water to 1 cup plus the 2 tablespoons and add it in later on after the tomato paste.

Let this simmer until the wine is absorbed.

Then add in 6 ounces of tomato paste.

And then add 1/4 teaspoon sugar and pour in 1 cup of water. Reduce the temperature to medium-low to low and let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Lastly, season with 3/4 to 1 teaspoon kosher salt and a few grinds of black pepper.

This sauce is thick and luscious and is absolutely amazing!

Besides pizza, this sauce can be used as a spread on sandwiches, filling for pizza rolls or as a dip for mozzarella cheese sticks. The options are endless!

There’s pizza sauce and then there’s homemade pizza sauce and homemade is the best!

How To Store Homemade Pizza Sauce:

Allow to cool before transferring it to a jar or container with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate or freeze (using a freezer safe container).

How Long Will Homemade Pizza Sauce Last?

If store properly, pizza sauce will last for up to 1 week in the refrigerator or  6 months in the freezer.

Enjoy! And if you give this Homemade Pizza Sauce recipe a try, let me know! Snap a photo and tag me on twitter or instagram!

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Yield: 6 servings

Easy Homemade Pizza Sauce

Looking for the BEST homemade pizza sauce? You've come to the right place! Sautéed minced onion and garlic combined with dried herbs, sun-dried tomatoes and wine in a thick and robust tomato sauce. This recipe yields 1½ or 6 (1/4 cup per serving) in about 30 minutes.

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

Cook Time: 20 minutes mins

Additional Time: 5 minutes mins

Total Time: 30 minutes mins

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup minced white onion
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press
• 2 tablespoons minced sun-dried tomatoes, packed in olive oil
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1½ teaspoon dried basil
• 2 tablespoons white wine, like Sauvignon Blanc
• 6 ounces tomato paste
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar, optional
• 1 cup water
• kosher salt, to taste
• black pepper, to taste

Instructions 

• Heat a large 10-inch skillet over moderate heat. When hot add in olive oil, minced onion with a pinch of salt and sauté until soft.
• Add in the garlic, and cook for 30 seconds.
• Add in the minced sun-dried tomatoes, dried oregano and basil and stir, cooking for 1 minute. The oil and the heat of the pan will soften up the dried herbs.
• Pour in the white wine and let that simmer until absorbed.
• Add in the tomato paste, sugar and the cup of water and stir until combined. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the sauce for 10 to 15 minutes before seasoning with kosher salt and black pepper.

Notes

How to Store Homemade Pizza Sauce:

Allow to cool before transferring it to a jar or container with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate or freeze (using a freezer safe container).

How Long Will Homemade Pizza Sauce Last?

If store properly, pizza sauce will last for up to 1 week in the refrigerator or  6 months in the freezer.

Nutrition Disclaimer: All information presented on this site is intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information shared on SimplyScratch.com should only be used as a general guideline.

Serving: 0.25cup, Calories: 45kcal, Carbohydrates: 4g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 3g, Saturated Fat: 0.4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Sodium: 18mg, Potassium: 121mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 79IU, Vitamin C: 6mg, Calcium: 25mg, Iron: 1mg

Author: Laurie McNamara

Course: condiments

Cuisine: Italian