Last Update: 4/23/2025

NEVER buy a jar of marinara sauce again!

When you come from an Italian family like I do, marinara is one of the first sauces you learn to make. And I learned this authentic Italian marinara sauce from my nonna.

So, when I say that this is the best marinara sauce recipe, yes, I may be biased. But thousands of others agree!

“This Marinara is outstanding and so easy! We could not stop eating it! This will be my go-to recipe!”

— Theresa’s recipe review

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Nonna only shared her recipes with family. And now I’m sharing my family secrets with you!

Traditional marinara sauce with spaghetti. This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a small commission on qualifying purchases at no cost to you.

Why You’ll Love This Italian Marinara Sauce Recipe

It’s Delicious

I was raised on homemade Italian spaghetti sauce and all sorts of traditional Italian dishes. I am super picky about my marinara, and this is my favorite!

Don’t just take my word for it. Our recipe reviews on Pinterest and in the comments below are filled with quotes like these:

”This is the best marinara I have ever tasted.” –LG
”This sauce tastes amazing.” –Ramona
”This was delicious!” –Rob
”I love this recipe!” –Lisa

It’s Easy

It’s a scratch recipe that is surprisingly EASY to make. It is sure to become one of your go-to recipes!

It’s Quick

Impress your family and friends with your rich homemade marinara sauce that you made in less than 30 minutes.

It’s Versatile

This classic Italian sauce is the only tomato sauce recipe you need. It’s perfect for pasta dishes, pizza, chicken, meatballs, and a slew of other Italian dishes!

It’s Authentic

Growing up, there was always a mystery behind nonna’s scratch marinara sauce. The one thing I knew early on as a little girl was that we would never ever have store-bought marinara sauce!

Part of the mystery was that there was no actual authentic Italian tomato sauce recipe—or I should say written recipe. Everything was in my nonna’s head and before that, it was in her mother’s head, and so on, and so on. Which means it really is an authentic marinara sauce from Italy!

It’s Adaptable To Your Preferences

Whether you want to make homemade marinara sauce from fresh tomatoes or canned, chunky-style or smooth, we’ve got your marinara from scratch covered!

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Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce over ravioli — Authentic Italian marinara sauce from scratch over ravioli

Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce Ingredients

I remember being quite surprised that my nonna’s marinara was actually quite quick and easy to make. I was also surprised that it required just a few simple ingredients.

Here’s all you need to make sauce just like my nonna used to!

extra virgin olive oil
garlic
onion
kosher salt
black pepper
dried oregano
tomatoes
fresh basil

The most important ingredient is the tomatoes, so let’s talk about them.

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Marinara sauce in a gravy boat — Marinara sauce from scratch

MARINARA SAUCE FROM FRESH TOMATOES OR CANNED

To be clear, you can make a scratch marinara sauce with canned tomatoes. In fact, you can make authentic marinara sauce from canned tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, or even from tomato puree. It’s all real Italian marinara sauce!

One thing my nonna was a stickler about was using high-quality ingredients (she had many Italian sayings about it).

Do not assume fresh tomatoes will make the best marinara sauce. It really depends on the tomatoes.

Fresh Tomatoes

San Marzano tomatoes are the pride of Italy and the best tomatoes for making the best tomato sauce. Tomatoes that most closely resemble the characteristics of San Marzano are Roma (sometimes called plum tomatoes) or cherry tomatoes.

Canned Tomatoes

If you don’t have in-season, low-acid fresh tomatoes, a high-quality canned tomato, preferably San Marzano tomatoes, will probably taste more like a true Italian marinara sauce than something made from random store-bought tomatoes. The key rule of thumb: Use the highest quality tomatoes you can find.

Correcting for Acidic Tomatoes

Whether fresh or canned, taste your tomatoes. Listen to your taste buds. If they don’t taste good and sweet before you put them in the pot, they will not magically transform while cooking. Then your marinara sauce from scratch may turn out to be bitter and too acidic.

If this happens, you can add a little sugar (start with 1 tablespoon) to balance out the bitterness, and no one will be the wiser.

Authentic Marina Sauce being stirred in a large pot — Homemade Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce from scratch

Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce Recipe

Our base recipe for homemade marinara sauce from scratch uses canned tomatoes and makes a delicious chunky-style sauce. Following this recipe are options for a smooth sauce, and a marinara sauce using fresh tomatoes.

How to make Authentic Marinara Sauce from canned tomatoes

Servings: 12–16

Ingredients

½ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 large onion, diced small
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
56 ounces canned, crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped

Instructions

1. In a deep pan or sauce pot, heat extra virgin olive oil over medium heat.

2. Sautee garlic and onion until onion is translucent.

3. Add salt, pepper, and dried oregano. If you prefer to use all fresh herbs, use ¾ teaspoon of fresh oregano.

4. Add tomatoes, and bring to a boil.

5. Reduce temperature to low heat, and simmer for 5–10 minutes. The longer you simmer, the thicker your marinara sauce will be.

6. Stir in basil and you’re done! I told you it was an easy marinara sauce!

How to make smooth Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce

To make a smooth marinara sauce, you have 2 choices. You don’t need a separate smooth marinara sauce recipe. It just takes a couple of adjustments to the authentic Italian marinara recipe above.

1. Blend the onions before sautéing.

2. Blend the tomatoes before adding them to the sauce, or substitute tomato puree for crushed tomatoes. If you’re blending, you can also use whole tomatoes instead of crushed.

Tomatoes, basil, and garlic — Ingredients to make marinara sauce from scratch with fresh tomatoes

How to make Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes

To make Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce with fresh tomatoes and fresh basil, use the recipe above and substitute 2 quarts of fresh, diced, seeded tomatoes, and 1 tablespoon of tomato paste. I prefer not to take the skin off, so I usually blend the tomatoes before adding them to the pot. I also find this tomato marinara needs an additional 10 minutes of simmering time.

How to use Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce

Once you’ve made this simple marinara sauce, you’ll want to make it again and again.

Luckily, this Authentic Marinara Sauce can be used for any recipe that calls for classic Italian marinara sauce or tomato sauce, like ravioli and lasagna. But it’s much more than a just a pasta sauce recipe!

Two homemade pizzas with homemade Marinara Sauce — Pizzas made with marinara sauce from scratch

Use it on our Chicken Parm Panini (your new favorite sandwich) and Best-Ever Italian Turkey Meatballs. It makes a great dipping sauce and a perfect pizza sauce too!

If you prefer your tomato sauce spicy, once you’ve made marinara sauce, just add some crushed red pepper flakes to taste.

Storing Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce From Scratch

Refrigerator

This authentic Italian spaghetti sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Freezer

This sauce also stores well in the freezer, so don’t be afraid to make a big pot!

If you have a good freezer, this Italian Marinara Sauce recipe can be stored for up to 6 months!

Defrosting

Just defrost the sauce overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

If you need to defrost traditional marinara sauce quickly, you can microwave it on low for short intervals, or put it on the stove top frozen. For both of these methods, defrost slowly and stir often.

Gifting

When I make a big batch of homemade tomato sauce, I also like to put it in mason jars and give it to friends and family.

Homemade meatballs covered in Authentic Marinara Sauce — Homemade meatballs covered with Authentic Italian Marinara Sauce

FAQ

1. What is marinara sauce?

In simple terms, traditional marinara sauce is tomato sauce.

2. What’s the difference between marinara sauce and gravy?

Italian-Americans sometimes call spaghetti sauce “gravy.” This is what my Italian side of the family called it when I was a kid.

However, it’s not that simple. Sometimes “gravy” means the traditional meat sauce from Bologna in the region of Emilia-Romagna. That, of course, is Bolognese Sauce.

3. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PASTA SAUCE AND MARINARA?

Marinara is a specific Italian tomato-based sauce that can be used on many dishes including pasta. But marinar is by no means the only Italian pasta sauce.

Some of the best pasta sauces aren’t even red sauces. One of our most popular Italian recipes is this Bucatini Cacio e Pepe. And one of my all-time-favorite Italian sauces that’s just as versatile as marinara sauce is this Genovese Pesto recipe.

4. Which is better, chunky or smooth marinara?

This is a matter of personal taste, but chunky is more traditional. If you don’t care, go with chunky—it’s easiest!

5. Where Do They Eat Marinara in Italy?

We found marinara-type sauces in every city and region we have visited, including Milan, Lucca, Rome, Bologna, and Naples. However, the special San Marzano tomatoes are a specialty of the Campania Region in southern Italy. So that area (including Naples) is the best place to try it.