This homemade San Marzano pizza sauce is an easy way to elevate pizza night! Made with San Marzano Tomatoes, lots of garlic, and fresh herbs, it's simple but full of flavor! It's my go-to base for my classic Margherita pizza! It's also delicious served with garlic knots or mozzarella sticks!
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Ingredient Notes
You only need 7 simple ingredients to make this homemade pizza sauce!
San Marzano Tomatoes - I always use San Marzano tomatoes for the best flavor! San Marzano Tomatoes are only grown in Italy and known for their sweet flavor and mild acidity. If you can't find San Marzano tomatoes, a good substitute is Bianco DiNapoli tomatoes.
Olive Oil - You want to use good, high quality extra virgin olive oil for the best flavor!
Garlic - I love a bunch of garlic in my pizza sauce, so you can use less if you prefer.
Red Pepper Flakes - I love adding just a little red pepper for some heat, but you can leave it out if desired.
Fresh Herbs - I love using fresh basil and oregano for this pizza sauce but you can also use dried herbs if that's all you have.
Sugar - This is optional but if the sauce tastes too acidic, you can add in ½ teaspoon of sugar to help balance the acidity.
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Homemade Pizza Sauce
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add in the sliced garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté for 2-4 minutes or until aromatic.
Add in can of San Marzano tomatoes and crush (I just use my hands to lightly crush them). Then add in the salt, reduce the heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the sauce has thickened slightly.
Remove from the heat and stir in the fresh basil and oregano. Taste and add in ½ teaspoon of sugar to cut the acidity if desired.
You can leave it chunky or use an immersion blender to make it smooth!
Use the homemade San Marzano pizza sauce to make your favorite homemade pizza!
Recipe FAQ's
This recipe yields roughly 2 ½ cups of pizza sauce. For a 10 inch personal sized pizza, you need 3-4 tablespoons of sauce. So this recipe makes about 10 servings worth of sauce.
Store San Marzano pizza sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Pizza sauce freezes great! I love making a big batch and then freezing individual portions so that they're easy to pull out for pizza night. I usually freeze 2 portions in 8 ounce deli containers, but any freezer safe container works! Freeze for up to 6 months and then thaw in the fridge overnight before using.
I like cooking the sauce because it thickens the sauce and concentrates the flavor. However, cooking is optional! Instead you can just add all the ingredients to a food processor or blender and blend until smooth!
San Marzano Tomatoes are juicy and sweet with less water content and very few seeds. This means they have a super concentrated flavor that makes them perfect for pizza sauce!
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Homemade San Marzano Pizza Sauce
Special Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- 1 (28 ounce) can San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon fresh oregano
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add in the sliced garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté for 2-4 minutes or until aromatic.
- Add in can of San Marzano tomatoes and crush (I just use my hands to lightly crush them). Then add in the salt, reduce the heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the sauce has thickened slightly.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the fresh basil and oregano. Taste and add in ½ teaspoon of sugar to cut the acidity if desired.
- You can leave it chunky or use an immersion blender to make it smooth!
- Use the homemade San Marzano pizza sauce to make your favorite homemade pizza!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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