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Sunday sauce with meatballs and sausage in a pot.
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5 from 3 votes

Authentic Italian Sunday Sauce

Sunday sauce is an easy recipe. There are no "Italian" secrets. There are no tricks. The only important part of the process is using high quality and fresh ingredients. Sauce tastes good when it's made with the right ingredients. A little time and patience is the only thing require for my not-so-secret Sunday Sauce.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time3 hours
Total Time3 hours 30 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 10 people
Calories: 517kcal
Author: Vincent DelGiudice

Equipment

  • 1 large pot
  • 1 immersion blender or blender

Ingredients

  • 8 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 3 24 oz cans san marzano peeled tomatoes
  • 9 basil leaves
  • 1-2 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 10 meatballs
  • 6 Italian sausages (hot, sweet, or both)
  • 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 lb pasta

Instructions

  • In a large pot, heat extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, stir in the garlic. Stir often for 1 minute. After 1 minute, add tomato paste away from the garlic. Allow the tomato paste to sit while you continue stirring the garlic for 1 more minute.
  • Pour in 3 cans of san marzano tomatoes. Bring the sauce to a simmer. Use the back of the wooden spoon to break apart the tomatoes. It will be easier to do this once they are hot. Stir in the basil and salt and bring the sauce to a simmer.
  • Keep the sauce at a simmer and add your meatballs and sausages typically par-cooked. Allow the sauce to simmer on low for 3 hours.
  • Prepare your choice of pasta. Remove your meatballs and sausage. If you prefer a smoother sauce, now would be the time to pulse the sauce with an immersion blender. Combine sauce with pasta in the pot you cooked the pasta in and serve with fresh parmesan.

Notes

  1. The true secret to the not-so-secret Sunday sauce is time and patience. Tomatoes have to cook to taste good. These tomatoes you are using are (sort of) raw. They have to completely cook through.
  2. Stir often to make sure it's not burning to the bottom of the pot. I haven't seen wrath quite like my mom the time she asked me to stir the sauce while she was out and I forgot.
  3. Add salt to taste periodically. Sunday sauce will need more salt as it cooks. Just add a little bit at a time and taste to see how it is.
  4. When you add the tomato paste, you're letting it caramelize on the pan to release the flavors and break down some of the natural sugars.
  5. Don't add sugar. Cooking the sauce for a long period of time will balance out the acidity.
  6. Always finish with basil to get the final pop of flavor!

Nutrition

Calories: 517kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 61mg | Sodium: 1530mg | Potassium: 755mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 332IU | Vitamin C: 22mg | Calcium: 94mg | Iron: 4mg