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This homemade marinara sauce is made ultra-simply from scratch with fresh tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. No cans here, just delicious, fresh from the garden tomato sauce! With hundreds of five-star reviews, you can be sure this homemade tomato sauce will be a hit!

Homemade marinara sauce mixed with spaghetti.
This fresh tomato marinara sauce is my go-to when my garden bursts with more tomatoes than I know what to do with! I keep a jar in my fridge all summer long.
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If it’s the peak of summer, your garden is churning out more tomatoes than you know what to do with, and you’re hungry…I have two words for you: homemade marinara.

More specifically, a homemade marinara with fresh tomatoes (no canned tomatoes or tomato paste here)! Because summer is all about celebrating that garden-fresh produce, and this marinara is the perfect way to celebrate.

Reader rating

★★★★★

“This is THE marinara sauce! When it was finished cooking and cooled, I tasted it and could not believe how delicious! When one of my daughters arrived for dinner I asked her to taste it just to be sure. She did but said nothing. I asked if it was all right. She said she was just savoring the flavor and didn’t want to interrupt that. Other guests said it was the best marinara they had ever eaten.” —Claudette

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A pan of spaghetti with tomato sauce and herbs sits on a green surface with metal tongs, next to a white cloth with blue stripes.

Most recipes will have you blanch the tomato to remove the skin, but I find that it’s unnecessary and takes too much time (plus, the skin has insoluble fiber – double win). Let’s cook!

@liveeatlearn

This homemade marinara sauce is made ultra-simply from scratch with fresh tomatoes, garlic, and herbs. No cans here, just delicious, fresh from the garden tomato sauce! With almost 300 five-star reviews, you can be sure this homemade tomato sauce will be a hit! 🍅 #tomatoseason #tomatogarden #summerrecipe #tomatorecipes #marinara

♬ SUNFLOWER (Beat) – FreshlyRC
A plate of tomatoes, bowls of chopped garlic, herbs, honey, oil, and seasonings are arranged on a green surface. Each ingredient is clearly labeled.
You can use almost any tomato to make marinara sauce from scratch, but the best ones will be the paste tomatoes. These are meatier and have less water content, meaning you need to cook them for less time to get to that nice, thick sauce. Look for Roma or San Marzano tomatoes (and learn about the different types of tomatoes here).

What’s the best texture for marinara?

This homemade marinara sauce recipe is naturally chunky, but you can easily make it into a smooth and silky marinara with a quick blitz in the blender. I prefer to use a handheld immersion blender to puree it right in the pot, but you could also transfer it (carefully – hot!) to a countertop blender.

Two glass jars on a green surface, one labeled Blended with smooth orange sauce, and the other labeled Chunky with a coarser red sauce containing visible vegetable pieces.
I prefer to keep the sauce chunky, but it’s a matter of preference and how you intend to use it!
A plate of spaghetti topped with tomato sauce, chopped herbs, and grated cheese, with a fork and spoon on the sides.
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Homemade Marinara Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes

4.59 from 307 ratings
By: Sarah Bond
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes
Total: 40 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
This homemade marinara sauce is made from scratch with fresh tomatoes, garlic, and herbs—no cans needed! A top-rated recipe with hundreds of five-star reviews.

Ingredients 

  • 1 Tbsp olive oil, 15 mL
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 5 fresh tomatoes, 1 to 1.5 lbs, diced
  • 2 Tbsp fresh basil, finely chopped
  • 2 Tbsp Italian parsley, flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 Tbsp honey, 15 g
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp ground black pepper
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Instructions 

  • Tomatoes: Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until soft and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and allow to simmer uncovered until tomatoes have mostly broken down, about 25 minutes. Stir often to prevent burning.
    Overhead view of a pan filled with chopped tomatoes and onions being stirred with a wooden spoon on a green surface.
  • Herbs: Stir in remaining ingredients. Continue simmering about 10 minutes.
    A stainless steel pan with tomato sauce, chopped fresh herbs, and a wooden spoon sits on a green surface.
  • Serve: You can serve it like this or puree it in a food processor or blender for a smoother sauce.
    A saucepan with tomato-based pasta sauce containing herbs and vegetables sits on a green surface, next to a bowl of spaghetti and a chopping board with chopped herbs.

Notes

For a vegan option, use maple syrup or granulated sugar instead of honey.
Store leftovers in an airtight container or jar in the fridge for up to 1 week.
To freeze marinara sauce, keep it in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. When ready to enjoy, let it thaw in the fridge overnight then reheat on the stove or in the microwave. 

Nutrition

Serving: 0.25cup | Calories: 39kcal | Carbohydrates: 5.6g | Protein: 0.8g | Fat: 1.9g | Saturated Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 151mg | Potassium: 190mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4.2g | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 0.2mg

Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.

did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!

Seasonal Tip

They say what grows together goes together, so why not use the fresh cucumber growing in your garden to make this easy tzatziki sauce? Serve it as a dip with veggies, as a side, or as an appetizer with this marinara!

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4.59 from 307 votes (233 ratings without comment)

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244 Comments

  1. Jennifer K says:

    My husband started growing (bucket loads) of large tomatoes last summer, so I learned how to make fresh marinara. This is the best recipe I’ve found. Only change was to halve the amount of honey (perhaps our tomatoes are bit more naturally sweet). I just made a quadruple batch, and will freeze the extra in quart bags. My son loves this so much he complains when we run out and have to go back to store-bought sauce.

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      Oh my gosh I’m so happy you’re all loving this recipe! Happy almost tomato season! 😀

  2. Walter says:

    5 stars
    This really was as easy as you said. It took about 40 minutes, but you can do a lot else while it simmers. And oh so Good. Thanks

    Reply
  3. RobIn Tawfall says:

    5 stars
    This marinara is delicious and I’ll never use another recipe. I’ve shared the recipe with my kids and they love it too. Thank you.

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      Thanks so much for sharing the recipe, Robin! Enjoy! 😀

  4. Jennifer Rucker says:

    4 stars
    With ample garden tomatoes, I looked forward to making this sauce. While the taste was very satisfying, (added springs of oregano from our garden ), the sauce was watery and after simmering for 45 minutes, was force to add tomato paste. Should I have let the diced tomatoes drain before cooking?
    Love your ideas and recipes!

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      Hi Jennifer! Were you simmering with the lid off? Typically that moisture just evaporates out as they cook.

    2. Jennifer Rucker says:

      Yes, simmered with no lid. I actually had placed diced tomatoes in a colander before putting in pot, and there was maybe 1-1/2 cups of liquid. Since recipe didn’t say “drained,” I added….now, I know better. We loved the flavor, just too much liquid without adding the paste. Thanks and good luck with your cookbook, can’t wait to receive mine. And, a funny, my son actually sent me one of your recipes recently! He’s being gifted a cookbook, too:)
      Jennifer

    3. Sarah Bond says:

      Oh how funny! Can’t wait for you all to receive them! 😀

  5. Lolly says:

    5 stars
    Made this using tomatoes and basil fresh from the garden and served it over spaghetti squash. There were no leftovers! a very tasty summer dinner!

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      So happy to hear it! Happy tomato season! 😀

  6. Karen Stromquist says:

    Very easy to make. I used fresh and somewhat fresh tomatoes. Very good taste and I love that it’s homemade. Can onions be added?

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      Yes! I would cook them before the garlic until they’re very tender and caramelized, then add the garlic and continue the recipe 🙂

  7. Kari Ward says:

    5 stars
    Delicioso! Had some tomatoes and basil needed to use up, but only enough for half a recipe! Honey?! How and why did you decide? It was a BEAUTIFUL addition!

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      It’s great for balancing and rounding out any sour flavors! So happy you loved it! 😀

  8. Abby says:

    Hi! About how many oz of sauce does this make?

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      It really depends on the size and amount of tomatoes you use! It typically makes enough for 8 servings.

  9. Barbie says:

    Keep skins on tomatoes ?

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      I do! If you’re sensitive to textures though you could skin the tomatoes (I have a guide for that here).

  10. bjacobs says:

    peel the tomatoes? In the picture it does not look like they were peeled. If so, do skins break down too?

    Reply
    1. Sarah Bond says:

      I don’t peel them, but you can! The skins don’t break down entirely, so if you want it super smooth you can either peel them or puree the sauce.