Homemade Pizza Sauce

How to make a homemade pizza sauce recipe that’s sure to make pizzas taste so much better! This sauce is quick and easy to make, freezes well, and has zero mystery ingredients. 

Say hello to a nice and thick homemade pizza sauce. I so wish you could smell this sauce through the screen right now.

It’s warm, hearty and is the perfect sauce to use on homemade pizzas. Making homemade pizza sauce isn’t difficult and it doesn’t have to be time-consuming either. My recipe makes a large batch that you could use it on 3-4 pizzas depending on your sauce preference. I go light on pizza sauce (heartburn is so real at 33) so it usually lasts me for closer to 5 pizzas. Keep in mind though that it all depends on how long you simmer the sauce. The longer you simmer it, the more concentrated it’ll be.

Homemade pizza sauce recipe is…

• Vegan-friendly
• Gluten-free
• Ready in around 30 minutes

What you need to make homemade pizza sauce:

• Canned whole tomatoes: I’ve made this recipe enough times now to have tested it with whole tomatoes, diced canned tomatoes, and pureed tomatoes, and though all three of these work, I still find the whole tomatoes to be the best choice for making pizza sauce at home.
• Olive oil: a generous splash not only helps flavor the sauce, but it also helps cook and bloom all of our aromatics and spices.
• Grated onions: You can grate the onions on a grater box, roughly chop and throw it into a food processor, or you can finely mince the onions for a heartier sauce. I use the food processor for minimum tears!
• Pressed garlic: I use a garlic press to help with this step. It takes seconds and the garlic really works into the sauce that way.
• Dried seasonings: My seasonings of choice are dried oregano, dried basil, and red pepper flakes. Sometimes I’ll cut back on the dried oregano a bit, especially if I’m topping the pizza with tons of toppings. However, this is your call.
• Sugar and salt: The salt and sugar help flavor the sauce. I find canned tomatoes to be on the acidic side, so the sugar helps tame it a bit. You could omit the sugar completely if this isn’t something that bothers you.

Can you swap out canned tomatoes for fresh ones?

That would work. In the summertime when tomatoes are at their best, I like to use fresh Roma tomatoes for this recipe. You’ll need about 1 ½ – 1 ¾ pound of tomatoes. To prep, the tomatoes, score an “x” on the bottom of each tomato using a sharp paring knife. Add the tomato to a pot of boiling water and allow them to boil for 1-2 minutes. Remove the tomatoes carefully and place them on a plate or in a bowl. Allow them to cool. Then, peel the skin away from the tomatoes. Once that’s done, you can follow the recipe as listed.

How to make pizza sauce from scratch:

1. break down the tomatoes: Using your hands squish the tomatoes in a bowl, or use kitchen shears to breakdown the tomatoes into smaller pieces. You could also just use an immersion blender and just pulse it so the tomatoes are smaller.
2. cook the aromatics: In a saucepan over medium heat, add the grated onions, and the dried seasonings. Allow the oil to cook the onions for around 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently so nothing sticks or burns. Then, add the garlic and continue to cook for another 30 seconds. 
3. simmer the sauce: Add the tomatoes along with the sugar and salt and allow the sauce to come to a simmer, then lower the heat and allow for it to cook for 30 minutes. You can taste the sauce and adjust with additional seasoning or salt as desired. You could also simmer the sauce for longer should you find it needs to be a little more concentrated for your taste.

Can you freeze pizza sauce? 

Yes, you absolutely can! I usually use about half the sauce to make two pizzas, and once cooled, pop the rest into these take out style containers. You could also just place it in zip-top bags if you’d like and freeze it flat. That way you can stack your bags. You can keep the sauce in the refrigerator for about a week, and it lasts for 3 months in the freezer.

Ways to use homemade sauce:

• On freshly made homemade pizza dough
• As a sauce for my cheesy garlic pull-apart bread
• On my Detroit-style pizza (a family fave!)
• As a sauce for my pull-apart garlic roll wreath 

Other homemade sauces to make and try:

• Homemade pesto
• All-purpose meat sauce
• Arrabbiata sauce
• 2-minute Caesar salad dressing
• Homemade Nutella

Recipe originally posted:  March 2015, updated with new text and pictures in April 2020.

*Post contains affiliate links.

We are a participant in both the RewardStyle and Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, which are affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com and through RewardStyle.