Roasted Tomato Sauce: So Easy and Flavorful

Name: Roasted Tomato Sauce
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: 3 - 4 pounds ripe tomatoes (cored ); 3 shallots (roughly chopped (about 3/4 cup)); 1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves (divided, reserve 1/2 cup for blending); 1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves (or use 2 - 3 teaspoons dried); 6 large garlic cloves (peeled); 3/4 cup olive oil (extra virgin but no need for your best EVOO); 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar; 1 teaspoon kosher salt; 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper; 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

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Roasted tomato sauce will wow your taste buds without leaving you standing in the kitchen for long! Whether you use the best seasonal heirlooms or off-season tomatoes, this roasted tomato pasta sauce delivers deep and delicious flavors.

Love tomatoes? Try this blistered tomato and arugula salad as well!

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Close up of roasted tomato pasta sauce in a white bowl with fresh basil on top and tomato print linen in the background.

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Why you will LOVE oven roasted tomato sauce
Ingredients and substitutions
Let's make roasted tomato sauce step-by-step!
Beth's expert tips and shortcut suggestions
FAQs about roasted tomato pasta sauce
What to serve with this sauce
Roasted Tomato Sauce

Why you will LOVE oven roasted tomato sauce

Huge flavor with minimal effort - toss the ingredients in a roasting pan with aromatics and some oil and vinegar, roast the heck out of it, cool and blend! That's it. But it tastes like you worked on it for hours.
Freezes well - save some summer flavor for later.
Great way to use sumptuous summer tomatoes from the farmers' market or your own garden's bumper crop. But this recipe also makes out-of-season tomatoes taste shine as well!
Slather your pasta with this oven roasted sauce but it's versatile -- turn it into a soup or use it for lasagne or chicken parmigiana and so much more!
Your family and friends will be happy when they eat it - sometimes we literally lick the bottom of our bowls!

Ingredients and substitutions

Ingredient shot for roasted tomato pasta sauce showing tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, spices and fresh herbs.

Tomatoes: All tomatoes work - in-season at the height of flavor is obviously a plus but even off season tomatoes will yield a luscious sauce once roasted.
Shallots: No shallots? No problem - just use whatever onion you have instead.
Garlic: More or less as it fits your love of garlic.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Use your everyday oil, not your best finishing oil.
Balsamic Vinegar: Like the oil, use your "every day" vinegar, not a syrupy finishing bottle.
Fresh Herbs: No fresh oregano? Use dried oregano instead. But I really love the fresh basil added at the end so try not to skip that!
Seasonings: Salt, pepper, and hot peppers - to your taste. We love the mellow heat of the red peppers, but if you want it spicier, add more. No spice? Leave them out.

Let's make roasted tomato sauce step-by-step!

(Printable recipe card is at the end of the post with ingredients, measurements and step-by-step instructions. This section includes more and larger pictures and high level explanations of the process.)

Roast the tomatoes

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. If your oven runs cool, try 425 degrees.

2. Place tomatoes in a roasting pan, toss in the shallots and garlic, sprinkle the herbs and then saturate with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Top with salt and pepper and optional red pepper flakes.

Tomatoes and other sauce ingredients in a large roasting pan ready to go in the oven.

3. Roast the tomatoes and herbs for 35 - 45 minutes, or until the tomatoes begin to singe. Remove from oven and let cool.

Roasted tomato pasta sauce done and still in the roasting pan.

Blend the sauce

4. Once cool, pour the contents of the roasting pan into a blender. Add the remaining ½ cup basil into a blender and blend on high for about a minute or until smooth.

Roasted tomato ingredients in the blender ready to blend.

Fresh basil on top of the roasted tomato ingredients in the blender.

Sauce blended and still in the blender but ready to use.

To serve, reheat the sauce and pour over pasta or roasted vegetables and enjoy! (or just eat it by the spoonful). Or package it up in freezer-safe containers and freeze for a rainy fall or winter day!

Oven roasted tomato sauce in a white bowl with basil on top sitting on a tomato-decorated linen.

Beth's expert tips and shortcut suggestions

If you don’t have shallots, use some white, yellow, or red onion - just use a little less because shallots are milder.
No fresh herbs around? Use dried, in whatever assortment you’d like.
Do you have roasted red peppers around? - put some of them in when you put it all in the blender. Or roast some with the tomatoes in the same pan.
Like it a little spicy? Add some crushed red pepper flakes in the roasting stage or blending stage.
Want to make it a meat sauce? - sauté your favorite spaghetti sauce meat and add the blended sauce to it before you put it over pasta.

FAQs about roasted tomato pasta sauce

Will oven roasted tomato sauce taste good with off-season tomatoes?

As with any cooking, it’s all about the ingredients. If your tomatoes are not the tastiest ones in the market, make up for it with the balsamic and olive oil or the herbs that you use. This sauce may taste a little different each time you prepare it. That’s part of the fun. But to be honest, you can’t really go wrong with this technique. And it will please kids and adults. I promise.

Can I freeze this sauce?

Absolutely. Package it up in your freezer-safe container of choice. Be sure to label the date you made/froze it so you remember to use it up, preferably within 3 months or so. (Sometimes I forget and keep my frozen items longer - often they still taste pretty good but flavor does degrade over time).

Do I need to skin the tomatoes before I roast them?

No! I just core them and use skin-on. This truly is quick to put together. I promise!

Roasted tomato sauce in a white bowl on the left side of the photo with fresh tomatoes and basil on the right hand side.

What to serve with this sauce

The first time I made this, I created a delicious meatless meal by serving this sauce over pasta with some tasty roasted vegetables and my vegetarian cousin was so happy. She doesn’t even like to cook but she went home to Florida and really did prepare the sauce all by herself. Here are some other ideas:

Try my lemon garlic chicken but finish it with this sauce instead
Baked eggplant
Gluten free chicken parmesan
Something unexpected - polenta fries
Are you a pizza maker? This sauce would be delicious

White bowl of pasta with roasted tomato sauce on it and basil and broccoli.

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Roasted Tomato Sauce

Beth Lee

Roasted tomato pasta sauce will wow your taste buds without leaving you standing in the kitchen for long! Whether you use the best seasonal heirlooms or off-season tomatoes, this recipe delivers deep and delicious flavors.

5 from 7 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 45

Total Time 55

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Servings servings

Calories 293 kcal

Equipment

1 roasting pan
1 blender

Ingredients

3 - 4 pounds ripe tomatoes cored
3 shallots roughly chopped (about ¾ cup)
1 ½ cups fresh basil leaves divided, reserve ½ cup for blending
¼ cup fresh oregano leaves or use 2 - 3 teaspoons dried
6 large garlic cloves peeled
¾ cup olive oil extra virgin but no need for your best EVOO
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes optional

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Core the tomatoes, coarsely chop the shallots, peel the garlic cloves (leave whole), and tear 1 cup of the basil and all the oregano from their stems.
Combine all ingredients in a roasting pan and saturate with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, top with salt and pepper, optional red pepper flakes, and mix well.
Roast the tomatoes and herbs for 35 - 45 minutes, or until the tomatoes begin to singe. Remove from oven and let cool.
Once cool, pour the contents of the roasting pan into a blender and add the remaining ½ cup basil as well.
Blend on high for about a minute or until smooth.
To serve, pour over pasta or roasted vegetables and enjoy! (or just eat it by the spoonful)

Video

Notes

1. If you don’t have shallots, use some white, yellow, or red onion - just use a little less because shallots are milder.

1. No fresh herbs around? Use dried, in whatever assortment you’d like.

1. Do you have roasted red peppers around? - put some of them in when you put it all in the blender. Or roast some with the tomatoes in the same pan.

1. Like it a little spicy? Add some crushed red pepper flakes in the roasting stage or blending stage.

1. Want to make it a meat sauce? - sauté your favorite spaghetti sauce meat and add the blended sauce to it before you put it over pasta.

Nutrition

Calories: 293kcalCarbohydrates: 11gProtein: 2gFat: 27gSaturated Fat: 3gSodium: 401mgPotassium: 514mgFiber: 3gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 1925IUVitamin C: 27.9mgCalcium: 70mgIron: 1.7mg

Keyword pasta sauce, roasted tomato sauce

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