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Marinara sauce in a white-black pot topped with basil leaves.
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Marinara Sauce Recipe (quick & easy!)

Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Servings: 4 cups
Author: Aleksandra

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small onion
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 2 (14 oz/400ml) cans crushed tomatoes, good quality! or one 28-oz can
  • 3-4 large basil leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Cut the onion into small cubes, chop the garlic very finely.
  • Heat the olive oil in a medium pot over medium heat, add the onion and cook for about 3-4 minutes, until soft and translucent.
  • Add the garlic and oregano (and dried basil if you're not using fresh basil leaves), cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant.
  • Add the tomatoes, bring to a boil, partially cover with a lid, and simmer (cook over low heat) for 15 minutes.
  • Add finely chopped basil, blend the sauce with a hand/immersion blender (I'm blending it only partially, not until completely smooth), and season with salt and pepper to taste. If you don't want to blend your sauce, finely chop basil and add to the sauce.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

  • The most important thing for this recipe is to find great tomatoes. My favorite brand of tomatoes is Mutti "Finely chopped tomatoes Polpa" (not sponsored).
  • Do not substitute garlic powder for fresh garlic.
  • You can also add some red pepper flakes to add a touch of heat to your sauce.
  • How to season your sauce: If you feel that your sauce is lacking something in flavor, the usual culprit is not enough salt and pepper. Another reason could be that the sauce is too sour because your tomatoes were not of great quality. If that's the case, try to add 1-2 teaspoons of light brown sugar to the sauce and choose another brand of tomatoes next time!
  • Calories = whole recipe. This is only an estimate!

Nutrition

Calories: 540kcal