Tomato sauce recipe?

I am a darned good cook and I truly enjoy cooking. However, I am never satisfied with my tomato sauce. Would you mind sharing your sauce recipes so that I can finally make one that I genuinely enjoy? Thanks in advance.

Re: Tomato sauce recipe?

Do you like meat sauce? Thick, chunky or more of a thinner sauce?

My mom gave me her recipe and I tweeked it a bit and made it my own and it is AMAZING if I do say so myself, plus it is always made with love as the secret ingredient.

I make a BIG batch to freeze and the seasoning is not measured and should be added as you like but here goes:

1 large can of tomato sauce (usually Contadina brand for all the sauces)
1 large can of crushed tomato
2 large cans of tomato puree
1 10 oz (? - not the smallest, one size up) of tomato paste
2 cans (what I use to measure) of water
1 lb of 85% fat chopped meat
1 lb chuck steak
1 large onion chopped
at least 4 tsp minced garlic (we love garlic)
basil
oregano
salt/pepper
italian seasoning
a few dashes of crushed red pepper
1 tsp of sugar

brown meat
brown onions and garlic
add sauce, paste and water
add seasoning
stir it all up
get it to a simmer
simmer for at least 3 hours (pref 4 hours)
stirring every 25 min or so

Viola!!!! Or should I say Mangia!!!!

Message edited 12/15/2012 11:13:28 AM.

Re: Tomato sauce recipe?

I make different sauces (some add meat, some add wine), but for a very basic marinara sauce, I really like Giada De Laurentiis's Quick Marinara Sauce recipe from her "Giada's Family Dinners" cookbook. It's simple, and very fresh tasting, and you don't have to have it simmering on the stove all day. I like a smoother marinara sauce (as opposed to thick and chunky), so this fits the bill, and you could use it as a base for other sauces and dishes, which she does in her book.

Here's the recipe:

Makes about 1.5 quarts (6 cups)

2 28 oz cans of whole tomatoes in juice
1 bunch fresh basil, stemmed
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 small onions, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon sugar
salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a blender [I use my immersion blender], puree the tomatoes with their juice and fresh basil until smooth. Set tomato puree aside.

Heat oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and saute until very tender, about 12 minutes. Stir in the tomato puree, oregano, and sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Decrease the heat to medium and continue simmering until the sauce thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Season the salt to taste with salt and pepper.

[I like it very smooth, so I really mince the onion and garlic, or I sometimes use my immersion blender to puree the sauce again at the end. Like all tomato sauces, this can be made in advance, frozen, etc.]