Best Ever Homemade Spaghetti Sauce: Easy Marinara Recipe (2024)

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Looking for the best ever homemade spaghetti sauce recipe? This amazing sauce goes great with your favorite pasta when you’re craving Italian food.

Hi everyone! I’m Ashlyn, and I blog over at Belle of the Kitchen. I’m so excited to be posting here today on Kenarry and am sharing one my family’s favorite recipes for homemade spaghetti sauce. Whenever I make this, the house smells amazing and everyone gobbles it up come dinner time.

Family Homemade Marinara Sauce Recipe

This recipe comes from my mother-in-law, and it is one that I have kept and used ever since she first made it for us. I love that it is so easy to make, has a deliciously rich flavor, and uses real ingredients. It’s better than any jarred sauce you can find at the store, and there is always plenty left over to freeze for another meal or two in the future.

What are the best tomatoes to use in a homemade sauce?

Try to use good quality tomatoes if you have access to them. My favorite brand of tomatoes is Tuttorosso tomatoes, but I haven’t found them anywhere out here in Hawaii where we live. When we lived in Kansas, my mother-in-law used to ship them to me in care packages! Might have to ask her to do that again. 😉

Lately, though, I’ve been using either Muir Glen or Pomi tomatoes. I like the Pomi tomatoes because they come in a box rather than a can, which is nice if you’re looking to avoid BPA.

The best spices for homemade spaghetti sauce

This is the part where your personal taste will have the most power. How do you and your family like a spaghetti sauce to taste? Do you like it spicy? How about sweet?

WHAT you need:

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My recipe uses both sugar and spice for a sauce that make you eat each bite slowly, enjoying every level of flavor.

• Cutting Board
• Chef’s Knife
• Measuring Cups and Spoons
• Liquid Measuring Cup
• Dutch Oven

INGREDIENTS NEEDED:

• Ground Beef or Pork Sausage
• Onion
• Green Pepper
• CannedDiced Tomatoes
• Tomato Paste
• Water or Beef Broth

These are the spices I always use in my marinara sauces:

• Garlic Cloves
• Brown Sugar
• Dried Oregano
• Dried Basil
• Dried Thyme
• Bay Leaf
• Salt

Do you have a favorite brand of tomatoes, or do you prefer to use fresh? I LOVE fresh tomatoes, but have to admit that I have never grown my own. My grandma and my parents have always grown tomatoes though, so maybe someday I can channel all that family-green-thumb energy and plant some. We shall see. 🙂

There is truly nothing better than homemade spaghetti sauce! Looking for other homemade recipes? Check out these 11 DIY Sauce and Condiment Recipes For When You Run Out. They are so much better than what you can buy at the store.

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4.50 from 8 votes

Best Ever Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Looking for the best ever homemade spaghetti sauce recipe? This amazing sauce goes great with your favorite pasta when you're craving Italian food.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time2 hours hrs

Total Time2 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Course: Dinner, Main, Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Bolognese, Meat Sauce, Spaghetti, Spaghetti Sauce

Servings: 8

Calories: 274kcal

Author: Ashlyn Edwards

Ingredients

• 1 ½ pounds Ground Beef or Pork Sausage
• 1 Onion Large – Chopped
• 1 Green Pepper Large – Chopped
• 2 cloves Garlic Minced
• 3 cans Diced Tomatoes 15 oz Cans
• 1 can Tomato Paste 6 oz Can
• 2 teaspoons Brown Sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons Dried Oregano
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• ½ teaspoon Dried Basil
• ½ teaspoon Dried Thyme
• 1 Bay Leaf
• 2 cups Water or Beef Broth

Instructions

• In a dutch oven cook meat, onion, green pepper, and garlic till meat is browned and vegetables are tender. Drain off fat.

• Stir in undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, brown sugar, oregano, salt, basil, thyme, and bay leaf.

• Stir in the water or beef broth. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 1 ½ to 2 hours or till sauce is of desired consistency, stirring occasionally. Remove bay leaf. Serve over hot cooked spaghetti.

Notes

*Sometimes I sub beef broth for part of the water. If I don’t have any beef broth on hand, I just stick with the water though and it tastes great!

Nutrition

Calories: 274kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 60mg | Sodium: 740mg | Potassium: 786mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 566IU | Vitamin C: 32mg | Calcium: 86mg | Iron: 4mg

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Want a sweet ending to your yummy dinner? Check out my recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Pie!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Pie

I would LOVE for y’all to come by and visit me at Belle of the Kitchen sometime! Drop in anytime, it would be a pleasure to have you.

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Easy Dinner Ideas

While you’re here be sure to check out these easy dinner ideas on Ideas for the Home by Kenarry® –

• Macaroni and Cheese with Ham and Broccoli
• Buffalo Ranch Chicken Pasta Recipe
• Skillet Lasagna Recipe

Originally published September 2014. Updated September 2018. Updated with nutritional information March 2020.