Cherry tomato spaghetti sauce is quick and easy to make, requiring minimal effort and resulting in a delicious homemade pasta sauce.
Before You Start
- No need to peel the tomatoes: once everything's simmered and blended the skins disappear completely into a smooth pasta sauce.
- Slice or quarter the cherry tomatoes before they go in the pan - it speeds up how fast they break down.
- This recipe's water ratio is tested specifically for cherry tomatoes, which hold less water than larger ones. Swapping in bigger tomatoes? Start with less water or you'll end up with a thin pasta sauce instead of one that actually coats the pasta.
Right now my garden is overflowing with cherry tomatoes and I couldn't be happier. These little tomatoes are bursting with flavor, especially when simmered to make a homemade tomato sauce for pasta.
There's no need to peel them beforehand a blender will blend everything perfectly. It's in the same family as a marinara - tomatoes, garlic and herbs simmered down with a bit more time before it all gets blended smooth.
This recipe inspired me to make blended vegetable pasta sauce - you could easily be forgiven for not knowing it's filled with veggies.
If you prefer a sauce with a bit more texture you might want to try my bolognese sauce with lentils next - it's rich and hearty.
While we especially love this sauce with spaghetti, it can be used with any of your favorite types of pasta. I like to top it with vegan cashew parmesan sprinkles. Ah, who can say no to pasta?!
Ingredients
The complete list of ingredients with measurements, can be found in the full recipe card below.
Use the ripest cherry tomatoes you can find and slice them in halves or quarters after removing them from the stem. This helps speed up the simmering process.
To enhance the depth and flavor of the cherry tomato spaghetti sauce - simmer fresh crushed garlic cloves, finely diced onion (avoid chunks in this sauce), dried oregano, red chili flakes, salt and black pepper with the tomatoes. I like to add fresh torn basil leaves to preserve the flavor just before serving.
You can use olive oil or water to sweat the onions and garlic.
Simmer, Blend and Serve
I'll visually take you through the steps for how to make cherry tomato spaghetti sauce. Detailed instructions can be found in the recipe card below.
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté diced onion and garlic for 5 minutes until translucent.
- Add cherry tomatoes, herbs and spices (except basil). Simmer for 10 minutes, mashing the tomatoes as they soften.
- Stir in water and simmer for 10-15 minutes, mashing occasionally until the tomatoes break down.
- Turn off the heat. Add torn basil leaves and let sit for 5 minutes. Blend the sauce until smooth and serve over pasta. Use the amount you'd like.
What I Use To Make This Recipe
Buy Now → Janelle's Tips
This recipe yields 3 cups of sauce.
A good rule of thumb for the sauce-to-pasta ratio is 1.5 cups of sauce for every 450g (1lb) of pasta.
Storage
After allowing the cherry tomato spaghetti sauce to cool to room temperature, transfer it to an airtight container or jar and store it in the refrigerator for up to one week. Freeze it for up to six months.
Did you make this? I'd love to know! Leave me a comment below with a ★★★★★ star rating or tag @plantbasedfolk on social media.
Recipe
Cherry Tomato Spaghetti Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tbsps Olive oil
- 1 small-medium Onion finely diced
- 3 cloves Garlic crushed
- 750 g Cherry tomatoes halved or quartered. Please refer to notes.
- 1 teaspoon Dried oregano flakes
- ¼ teaspoon Chili pepper flakes or to taste
- 1½ tsps Salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon Cracked black pepper
- 1 cup Water
- 1 handful Fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- In a skillet over medium heat, heat some olive oil. Add the finely diced onion and garlic. Sauté until they are translucent - about 5 minutes.
- Add the sliced cherry tomatoes along with all the herbs and spices, except for the basil. Stir well and let the tomatoes soften for 10 minutes, occasionally mashing and stirring the tomatoes with the back of your spoon as they soften.Stir in the water and allow the sauce to simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes. Stirring and mashing occasionally. The goal is to break down the tomatoes as much as possible to make blending easier in the next step.
- Once the sauce has thickened, turn off the heat. Stir in the torn basil leaves and let the sauce sit for 5 minutes. Then using an immersion blender blend the sauce until smooth. Serve it warm over spaghetti or your favorite pasta.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
N.B., nutrition info is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. This will vary based on the specific ingredients you use.
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Anna M
Great flavor I will be using this often.
Janelle Hama
That makes me so happy!
Leland
The sauce turned out awesome!!!! put it in a blender and then strained the seeds and skin out of it. Great recipe!!
Janelle Hama
Thank you for making it and sharing your tips 🙂
Ed
This sauce turned out wonderful.
Tod
The timing is perfect, I have many tomatoes ro use up too. Janelle this sauce is great! Rather than slicingthe cherry tomatoes I put them whole in the pan and let them simmer a little longer. It's my laziness.