Marinara Sauce from Tomato Paste

Here’s a delicious recipe for making marinara sauce from tomato paste that is both economical and quick. Sure, buying a jar of marinara sauce off the shelf is quick too, but don’t we buy enough prepackaged foods as it is?

You’ll love making this easy homemade pasta sauce for spaghetti, penne, well any type of pasta really!

Can You Make Marinara Sauce Using Tomato Paste

The short answer is yes! You can most definitely make a delicious Italian pasta sauce from just tomato paste and no other tomato products. It’s easy and we’ve done it here in our household many times.

Recipe History

In my Italian family when growing up we never used tomato paste in our sauce. We used canned tomatoes. However, my husband’s Italian family did. One day when I wanted to make sauce and upon discovering that we didn’t have any canned tomatoes on hand, I complained to my husband.

It was a complete surprise when he said, “No problem, just use tomato paste.”

What?! I thought it would be the worst marinara pasta sauce I had ever served over my pasta. But I was wrong, very wrong.

I’m happy and eager to share with you my recipe so you can also use canned tomato paste to make a delicious sauce!

Recipe Summary

With this recipe we’re creating a smaller batch that can provide enough sauce for two meals for a family of four.

Making sauce with tomato paste will give it a slightly different flavor than a can of tomatoes, but that’s okay and not a bad thing. Tomato paste can be slightly bitter, that’s why I add in the sugar to help offset the bitter taste. 

You won’t need much sugar, this recipe calls for only 1 tsp. When you make the sauce, taste it before you add the sugar and afterwards, and you will be able to taste the difference.

How Long Does it Take to Cook the Sauce?

Rest assured, you do not need to cook this sauce all day. Since this recipe uses 3 1/4 cups of water (which equals about 26 oz. of liquid), it cooks much faster than a large pot of sauce.

Once all the ingredients are blended and there are no clumps of tomato paste lurking around, the sauce only takes 45 to 60 minutes to cook. If you’re happy with the flavor sooner, you can cook it for even less time.

I recommend bringing the sauce to a boil, then letting it simmer on low for an hour for the best depth of flavor.

Tips to Know

1. Make sure the onions are fully soft and translucent, as they won’t have hours to cook like in a traditional sauce.
2. Fully incorporate the tomato paste with the water. Don’t take short cuts. See my Pro Tip in step 4 below.
3. Bring the sauce to a boil first, then lower it to a simmer.
4. Stir frequently to prevent sticking or burning if any of the paste should settle.

Ingredients

This recipe uses 5 pantry staples.

• Tomato paste
• Olive oil
• Onions
• Garlic
• Sugar
• and of course water

Recipe Instructions

Here are the step by step instructions. You’ll see how easy this pasta sauce from tomato paste really is to make. For exact measurements, see the recipe card below.

Step 1. Heat the olive oil over low/medium heat in a medium size sauce pan.
Step 2. When hot, add in the diced onions and simmer for approximately 5 minutes until they start becoming translucent and tender. Do not let them brown.

Step 3. Add in the garlic, give a stir and make sure not to let it burn, and let it simmer for about 3 minutes or until you can smell the garlic.

Step 4. Add in the tomato paste and water, and stir until blended.

Pro Tip: I like to mix the tomato paste in a separate medium bowl with a little water, about 1/2 cup, to make it more loose and runny. This helps it break down and more easily incorporate when you add the water.

Step 5. Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil.

Step 6. Once it starts to boil, lower to a simmer and stir.

Step 7. Cover with a lid (you can have it off center so it lets steam out too if you want).

Step 8. Let sauce cook for about 45 minutes to an hour, stirring every once in awhile.

Step 9. Add in the sugar and stir as this helps the sauce not taste bitter due to the paste.

Step 10. Add in a pinch of salt if you like – we don’t since we try to cut out salt when possible – plus it will be in the cheese.

Step 11: Taste the sauce. Once it’s ready, serve it with your favorite pasta and a sprinkle of grated Italian cheese.

Recipe Video

Here’s the video to show how easy it is to make.

Recipe Card

Here is the printable recipe card with measurements. See more of my special tips further below!

Marinara Sauce From Tomato Paste

Learn how to make a delicious marinara sauce using tomato paste.

5 from 3 votes

Print Rate

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: Italian

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour

Total Time: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Servings: 26 ounces

Calories: 421kcal

Cost: $3

Author: Liz

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Ingredients

• ▢ 2 6 oz. cans Tomato paste
• ▢ 1 clove garlic
• ▢ 1 small onion
• ▢ 3 Tbsp olive oil
• ▢ 1 tsp sugar
• ▢ 3 1/4 cups water

Instructions

• Heat the olive oil over low/medium heat in a medium size sauce pan.
  3 Tbsp olive oil
• When hot, add in the diced onions and simmer for approx. 5 minutes until they start becoming translucent and tender. Do not let them brown.
  1 small onion
• Add in the garlic, give a stir and make sure not to let it burn, and let it simmer for about 3 minutes or until you can smell the garlic
  1 clove garlic
• Add in the tomato paste and water, and stir until blended.

  PRO TIP: I like to mix the tomato paste in a separate medium bowl with a little water, like a half cup, to make it more loose and runny. This helps it break down and more easily incorporate when you add the water.
  2 6 oz. cans Tomato paste, 3 1/4 cups water
• Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil.
• Once it starts to boil, lower to a simmer and stir.
• Cover with a lid (you can have it off center so it lets steam out too if you want).
• Let cook for at least 45 minutes to an hour, stirring every once in awhile.
• Add in the sugar and stir as this helps the sauce not taste bitter due to the paste.
  1 tsp sugar
• Add in a pinch of salt if you like – we don't since we try to cut out salt when possible – plus it will be in the cheese.
• Taste the sauce and when it's good, you are ready to serve along with some grated Italian cheese.

Notes

Nutritional data are estimates based on API calculations.

1. Make sure the onions are fully cooked and tender before adding the water and paste. Since this is a quick sauce, we need to make sure the onions are fully cooked. 
2. Make sure the tomato paste is fully blended into the water.
3. If the sauce seems to be too watery as it’s over half way cooking, then slightly raise the temperature and leave it uncovered so it can cook off. 

Nutrition

Calories: 421kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 42g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 31g | Sodium: 58mg | Potassium: 135mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 32IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 1mg

Can Tomato Paste Marinara Sauce be Used for a Meat Sauce

We’re looking to create a marinara sauce with these cans of tomato paste, not a heavy, thick, meat based sauce.

Technically, marinara is a meatless sauce with minimal ingredients. That’s how my recipe is structured. We keep the ingredients simple, yet there is still lots of flavor.

If you’re looking to keep it as close to a marinara sauce as possible, then you need to avoid not only meat, but also too many varying herbs that complicate the flavor.

In this recipe we are keeping things simple, however I provide tips on what other herbs you can also add.