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Turn your frozen homegrown tomatoes into an aromatic, garden-fresh sauce any time of the year with this easy recipe explaining How To Make Sauce From Frozen Tomatoes. No food mill, food processor or any other fancy equipment necessary!
There is nothing quite like a pot of sweet tomato sauce simmering away on the stove with the aroma wafting through the house on a Sunday (or any day of the week).
And, what makes it even more wonderful is being able to use your own homegrown tomatoes YEAR-ROUND to make this sauce.
For all those that have frozen extra tomatoes from their home gardens and are wondering how to best turn them into sauce, this recipe is for you!
This tomato sauce recipe is perfect with Chicken Parmesan, Baked Italian Sausages, Eggplant Meatballs and Pesto Turkey Meatballs and makes the following recipes even better: Sausage Stuffed Cubanelle Peppers, One Pot Italian Green Beans in Tomato Sauce and Stuffed Italian Peppers.
You Can Freeze Fresh Tomatoes?
Yes! I only learned this myself a few years ago from a friend of mine that lives in Italy. But, since I lived in apartments for so many years, I never had the opportunity to grow my own tomatoes . . . until this past summer when I finally became a home gardener! With so many excess tomatoes of all types (and not just your typical sauce tomatoes, like plum, Roma, San Marzano, etc.) and not yet well-versed in canning, I decided to freeze a large amount of my garden harvest.
To freeze the tomatoes, I rinsed them, removed any blemishes, and placed them in gallon freezer bags whole. I cored some of the tomatoes and some I did not. (I’ve since learned that it is always best to core the tomatoes before freezing them as the skins slide off much more easily once defrosted.) Then, I placed the bags in the freezer and forgot about them.
Some people use the freezing tomato technique to stash away fresh tomatoes until they have a large enough amount to can. Since I was not planning on canning, I just left the bags in the freezer until I was ready to make some homemade sauce.
This recipe is very basic, so easy and makes the most aromatic, sweet fresh tomato sugo that you will love with pasta, meatballs, or whatever your palate desires!
For a tomato basil sauce made from canned tomatoes, head on over to my sugo recipe. You can also find an explanation of the differences between sugo, tomato sauce, marinara, ragu and gravy there!
Ingredients for Sauce from Frozen Tomatoes
The ingredients in this easy spaghetti sauce are few but significant and are items that you most likely already have on hand. Choose quality ingredients if at all possible.
- Tomatoes: This recipe was developed specifically for all of us out there that freeze tomatoes in freezer bags from our home gardens’ summer harvest. It takes into consideration the higher water content that the tomatoes have because they are (1) fresh, whole tomatoes and (2) have been frozen, which increases the moisture and water content. Any and all types of homegrown tomatoes can be used in this recipe, regardless of the type.
- Tomato Paste: Since we are using garden tomatoes in this recipe that have a high water content, tomato paste will help to both increase the overall tomato flavor and aroma of the sauce, as well as thicken the sauce a bit.
- Fresh Basil is used at the beginning of the recipe to release its fragrant flavors early in the cooking process so that it can be properly infused into the sauce. In place of fresh basil, use about 1 Tbsp dried basil added to the pot at the same time as the tomatoes to give it time to rehydrate.
- Garlic: A significant flavor builder. I suggest finely chopping the garlic so as to not have any large pieces in the finished dish. And, definitely do not use jarred, pre-minced garlic as it contains additional flavors that are unpleasing. Fresh is best!
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Use a great quality olive oil to sauté the garlic. Substitute half or all of the olive oil with butter for a richer flavor.
- Dried Oregano and Crushed Red Pepper: Additional aromatics that contribute to the overall flavor of the dish. Neither of these should be a strong flavor in this recipe, but rather subtle.
A complete and detailed list of ingredients with amounts and instructions is included in the recipe below.
How to Make Sauce from Frozen Tomatoes, Pro-Tips included!
Here are the main steps for how to make this classic Italian tomato basil sauce:
- Gather and prep all ingredients. Defrost and prepare the tomatoes. Once you defrost the tomatoes, their skins will slide off very easily. Remove and discard all skins and also cut off and discard the cores if the tomatoes still have them.
- PRO-TIP: Going forward, it is best to remove the tomato core before freezing.
- Simply hand crush the tomatoes, which should be very easy to do. DO NOT DISCARD THE TOMATO WATER–Include It With The Tomatoes! It has a lot of flavor to contribute to the sauce.
- In a heavy-bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven, combine the olive oil and/or butter, garlic, basil and crushed red pepper over medium low heat and cook until the garlic has softened (about 5 minutes).
- PRO-TIP: Cover the pot for a couple minutes to speed up the softening process, if desired.
- Move the garlic mixture over to one side of the pot and add the tomato paste. Caramelize it for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Then, add the crushed tomatoes and liquid, salt, black pepper and dried oregano and stir to fully combine everything.
- PRO-TIP: If you prefer a smoother sauce, use an immersion blender to puree the sauce in the pot. Just turn the heat to low or off before doing so.
- Increase stove to medium heat and bring the mixture to a light simmer. Simmer, uncovered, for about 45 minutes, or until the desired thickness is achieved, stirring occasionally. If you have a lot of liquid from the tomatoes, you may have to simmer the sauce longer. That’s it!
- PRO-TIP: Reduce the heat if necessary to keep the mixture at a light simmer. Do not boil the sauce.
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe was developed specifically for fresh tomatoes that were frozen whole at the peak of their freshness. For many of us, they are the tomatoes that we grew in our gardens and consist of a variety of “sauce” tomatoes (plum, Roma, San Marzano, Amish paste, etc.) and “salad/sandwich” tomatoes (beefsteak, cherry/grape/pear, heirloom varieties, etc.). Any and all types of homegrown tomatoes can be used in this recipe, regardless of the type. This recipe takes into consideration the higher water content that the tomatoes have because they are (1) fresh, whole tomatoes and (2) have been frozen, which increases the moisture and water content.
Whole tomatoes will keep in freezer bags for at least six months.
I know that it’s popular for many to add a little sugar to their sauce to sweeten it and offset the acidity and occasional bitterness of canned tomatoes.
But, as a purist (most of the time), I have never added sugar to any homemade tomato sauce, ragu, gravy, sugo or marinara. If I notice that the flavor of the underlying tomatoes is overly acidic, I’ll add a couple of carrots to the simmering sauce, cut into big chunks that can easily be removed. Carrots are naturally sweet and generally have the same sweet result as adding sugar.
Also, garden tomatoes are generally pretty sweet and, therefore, do not have excess acidity.
Yes. In place of fresh basil, use about 1 Tbsp dried basil added to the pot at the same time as the tomatoes to give it time to rehydrate.
I have also used frozen basil in various forms in this sauce. Just like my garden tomatoes that I freeze, I freeze basil either in whole leaves (flattened out between paper towels and stored in a freezer bag) or pureed with a little bit of oil throughout the summer to use throughout the year.
Any and all forms of these basils will work in this recipe.
This depends on how saucy you like your pasta. It also depends on the shape and texture of the pasta, as some shapes and textures absorb more sauce than others.
Having said this, in my humble opinion a good rule of thumb to follow is about 3 cups tomato sauce for every pound of pasta. I have found that one full gallon freezer bag of frozen tomatoes (as shown in the photo above) makes enough sauce for one pound of pasta, approximately.
The recipe below yields about 3 cups tomato sauce or so. This will be more or less based on the type of tomatoes that you use as some tomatoes have significantly more water content than others. You can cut this recipe in half or double it, based on how much sauce you need.
This recipe is not meant for and has not been tested for canning. For more information about preparing tomato sauce for canning, click here.
The tomato water has lots of flavor and it should be included with the tomato pulp and added to the pot together.
However, if you have a very large amount of liquid from the tomatoes and you feel it is just too much liquid, you can hold some back and not include it in the pot with the tomatoes.
My preference is to include all of the tomato liquid in the sauce pot and then just simmer the sauce as long as necessary to reduce it to the desired consistency.
Recipe Variations for Sauce from Frozen Tomatoes
This tomato sauce recipe from frozen tomatoes is a basic and classic, simple tomato sauce. Still, there is always room for a little variety in the recipe. Here are a few ideas:
- Add some fresh parsley along with the basil at the beginning of the cooking process for a more intense herb flavor.
- Sauté one cup diced onions along with the garlic–more aromatics means more aroma, texture and flavor!
- Use half or all butter in place of olive oil. Some say that butter makes everything better. It is hard to disagree with that!
- Deglaze the pan with some dry white or red wine before adding the tomatoes, while scraping up any brown bits (i.e., extra flavor) on the bottom of the pan. The wine will add a nice, well-rounded depth of flavor to the sauce.
- Increase the heat: Double or triple the amount of red pepper flakes or add some Calabrian chile paste at the beginning of the cooking process (or both) for increased heat.
- Make soup instead! Once you prep the tomatoes, use them for your favorite tomato soup recipe as well!
Serving Suggestions and Storage Information
There are so many great uses for this aromatic fresh tomato sauce using frozen tomatoes beyond using it as a pasta sauce.
I use it to make parms and parm subs of all sorts (chicken, eggplant, sausage, meatball), eggs in purgatory, quickly throw together baked ziti, lasagna or eggplant rollotini or, frankly, use it as a dip for crusty bread to create a simple meal on its own.
You can freeze this sauce once made. However, I tend to not freeze finished dishes that contain an ingredient that has already been frozen. One full gallon freezer bag of frozen tomatoes makes enough sauce for one pound of pasta, approximately. So, I will generally take a bag of tomatoes out of the freezer, make sauce, and use the sauce without freezing any.
Having said this, you can freeze the finished sauce in an airtight container for up to three months or hold it in the refrigerator for up to five days.
More Homemade Italian Favorites
Check out these Italian American classics:
- Rigatoni Arrabbiata–a picante tomato sauce with multiple forms of flavor and heat
- Pasta e Piselli (Pasta with Peas)–savory, easy and delicious!
- Pasta with Chickpeas–classic cucina povera
- Greens and Beans (Escarole and Beans)–hearty and nutritious
- Pasta with Broccoli–beloved by all!
More Great Recipes to Try
I hope that you are enjoying Mangia With Michele and all of my Italian and Italian-American recipes!
If you’ve tried this Sauce from Frozen Tomatoes recipe, please let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM to see more delicious food and what might be going on behind the scenes!
How to Make Sauce from Frozen Tomatoes (Very Easy!)
Equipment
- 1 Dutch oven or large pot (see below)
- 1 Large pot or Dutch oven (see above)
- 1 Garlic Press (optional)
Ingredients
- 3 pounds frozen tomatoes, defrosted
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil or butter (or 50/50)
- 2 Tbsp finely chopped garlic (use more or less to your taste)
- ½ cup whole or hand-torn fresh basil, lightly-packed, or 1 Tbsp dried basil
- ¼ tsp crushed red pepper
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 tsp salt (or to taste)
- ½ tsp black pepper (or to taste)
- ½ tsp dried oregano
Instructions
- Gather and prep all ingredients according to specifications above. Prepare the tomatoes: First, defrost the tomatoes–either on the counter at room temperature or in the refrigerator. Once the tomatoes are fully defrosted, their skins will slide off very easily. Remove and discard all skins and also cut off and discard the cores if the tomatoes still have them. (Going forward, it is best to remove the tomato core before freezing.)(Please see the section above in the blog post for Step-By-Step instructions with photos.)3 pounds frozen tomatoes,
- Simply hand crush the tomatoes, which should be very easy to do. DO NOT DISCARD THE TOMATO WATER–Include It With The Tomatoes!! It has a lot of flavor to contribute to the sauce. You should have about 3-4 cups crushed tomatoes at this point.
- In a heavy-bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven, combine the olive oil and/or butter, garlic, basil and crushed red pepper over medium low heat and cook until the garlic has softened (about 5 minutes). Cover the pot for a couple minutes to speed up the softening process, if desired.¼ cup extra virgin olive oil or butter, 2 Tbsp finely chopped garlic, ½ cup whole or hand-torn fresh basil,, ¼ tsp crushed red pepper
- Move the garlic mixture over to one side of the pot and add the tomato paste. Caramelize it for 1 to 2 minutes.¼ cup tomato paste
- Then, add the crushed tomatoes and liquid, salt, black pepper and dried oregano and stir to fully combine everything.1 tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper, ½ tsp dried oregano
- Increase the heat to medium and bring the mixture to a light simmer. Simmer, uncovered, for about 45 minutes, or until the desired thickness is achieved, stirring occasionally. If you have a lot of liquid from the tomatoes, youmay have to simmer the sauce longer. (Reduce the heat if necessary to keep the mixture at a light simmer. Do not boil the sauce.) You should have a sweet-smelling, aromatic sauce that permeates your kitchen!
- Adjust seasonings, if necessary and enjoy the sauce! This recipe makes enough sauce to lightly dress one pound pasta, but it can be used for so many other things! (See Serving Suggestions above.) Buon Appetito!
Notes
- The tomato water has lots of flavor and it should be included with the tomato pulp and added to the pot together. However, if you have a very large amount of liquid from the tomatoes and you feel it is just too much liquid, you can hold some back and not include it in the pot with the tomatoes. My preference is to include all of the tomato liquid in the sauce pot and then just simmer the sauce as long as necessary to reduce it to the desired consistency.
- In place of fresh basil, use about 1 Tbsp dried basil added to the pot at the same time as the tomatoes to give it time to rehydrate.
- I have also used frozen basil in various forms in this sauce. Just like my garden tomatoes that I freeze, I freeze basil either in whole leaves (flattened out between paper towels and stored in a freezer bag) or pureed with a little bit of oil throughout the summer to use throughout the year. Any and all forms of these basils will work in this recipe.
- If you prefer a smoother sauce, use an immersion blender to puree the sauce in the pot. Just turn the heat to low or off before doing so.
- The best part of this sauce is that you can start with this basic recipe and tweak it to your personal preferences of heat, sweetness and thickness. The longer it cooks, the thicker and more fragrant it gets!
- You can freeze this sauce once made. However, I tend to not freeze finished dishes that contain an ingredient that has already been frozen. One full gallon freezer bag of frozen tomatoes makes enough sauce for one pound of pasta, approximately. So, I will generally take a bag of tomatoes out of the freezer, make sauce, and use the sauce without freezing any.
- Having said this, you can freeze the finished sauce in an airtight container for up to three months or hold it in the refrigerator for up to five days.
I love that you came up with a recipe for frozen garden tomatoes; you can’t find that in a cookbook easily. I skin, seed and chop my tomatoes for freezing and measure into two or four cup freezer bags for later use. I also freeze my basil pureed in the food processor with olive oil, so your tips for using that was very helpful. I also added the suggested onion for the sauce and it turned out perfectly. I used 4 cups of frozen tomatoes to make the sauce for lasagna and blended it at the end with an immersion blender. It was the perfect amount of sauce; the taste and consistency were right on point. Thanks so much for the recipe–I will definitely make it again!
I’m so happy that you liked the sauce with frozen tomatoes recipe, Sue! Thank you so much for your lovely comment.:)
I’m going to try this today. But I love how you put thr ingredients below each step that way we dont have to scroll up at every step.
I blended the tomatoes ahead of time to make a smooth sauce. Very nice flavor to this sauce–perfect for making a lasagna. I made a double batch and was able to use up a gallon and a quart-size bag of my frozen tomatoes. I’m so pleased with the results
I’m so happy that you’ve enjoyed this recipe, Alison! Thanks for your comment and recipe suggestions. 🙂
Absolutely fantastic! We loved it. Definitely a keeper. I used an immersion blender and it turned this beautiful orange red colour. We ate it over meatballs.
So happy that you enjoyed the recipe, Serena! My sauce gets that same color when I blend it. Thanks for your comment. 🙂
Extremely tasty!!
I tried your sauce recipe tonight, and did not make any changes, as I can only cook if I have an exact recipe to follow! My husband and I both enjoyed it, and I will definitely make it again.
I do have a question, though. I had lots of water when I defrosted my tomatoes, and you mentioned that I should save that water. Do you add all of it to the sauce? Won’t that make the sauce too watery?
Hi Ann, Thanks for your comment. The recipe indicates to not discard the tomato water, which means that it should be included with the tomatoes and added to the pot, but I will reiterate this in the recipe so that it is more clear. With some tomatoes, there is more liquid than others. So, the simmering time may need to be longer for some tomatoes. The most important thing is to simmer the sauce until it reaches the consistency you desire. The tomato water has lots of flavor, so it’s best to include it. Hope this helps.
I ended up with 8 cups of tomato water off my Romas. Your recipe says to save it but I don’t see where you tell us to add it into the pot to cook.
Hi Jenny, Thanks for your comment. The recipe indicates to not discard the tomato water, which means that it should be included with the tomatoes and added to the pot, but I will reiterate this in the recipe so that it is more clear. With some tomatoes, there is more liquid than others. So, the simmering time may need to be longer for some tomatoes. The most important thing is to simmer the sauce until it reaches the consistency you desire. The tomato water has lots of flavor, so it’s best to include it. Hope this helps.
I haven’t made the recipe. My tomatoes are big with lots of meat & seeds. Do I need an extra steps & run the tomatoes through a food mill?
Hi Rebecca, This recipe will work with any variety of frozen tomatoes. But, if yours are on the larger side with lots of meat and seeds, as you indicated, then you’ll likely need to simmer the sauce longer to get the consistency (not too watery) that you desire. And, I would suggest a bit more tomatoe paste as well. You can always run the tomatoes through a mill if you want to get rid of some of the seeds.
Nothing like fresh tomato sauce made this way! Your recipe is very similar to my 95 year old Italian Mom’s and I love making it. I had the tomatoes in the freezer as well and what a great way to use them up. My adult kids keep this tradition going and it would make my Mom proud if she were still with us. Thanks for the recipe.
I’m so happy that you loved this sauce recipe, Lisa! Thanks for your lovely comment. 🙂
I had some leftover frozen tomatoes from last year’s garden that I didn’t want to lose and I needed the freezer space for this year’s upcoming batch of tomatoes so I found your sauce online. My family LOVED it! They said “Now THAT tastes Italian!” Thank you, it’s a keeper!
I’m SO happy that you and your family loved this tomato sauce recipe, Janet! Thank you for your lovely comment. 🙂
My freezer died with 40 lbs of frozen tomatoes defrosting. This recipe saved them all as I canned them into 14 cars if this sauce. The only thing I added was a tablespoon of lemon juice on the bottom of each jar. Filled jar with hot sauce and Water bathed for 35 min. Thank you.
Oh this makes me so happy, Doreen! I’m so sorry about your freezer dying (what a disaster), but very happy that you found my recipe and that it saved your tomatoes! Thanks for your comment. 🙂
Hi, Michele! I have saved this recipe for several weeks and have finally found time to give it a try…so excited!
Do you have any thoughts or advice on canning this? Or, just business as usual with hot jars and water bath?
Hi Lisa! Thanks so much for your comment. Hope you enjoy the recipe. Unfortunately, I have not canned this sauce, so I can’t give any advice on that. In fact, I freeze tomatoes as an alternative to canning and then make sauce with the frozen tomatoes as needed throughout the year since I don’t have a ton of tomatoes and do have the freezer space. But, I know that lots of home gardeners freeze tomatoes until they have a batch large enough to make for canning. Good luck!
My husband said “This is how you make spaghetti sauce from here on out”. Lol…he LOVED it (so did I).
Hi Erica, I’m so happy that you and your husband loved this sauce recipe! Thank you for your comment. 🙂
Loved this recipe! Made it yesterday, then let it sit for a day in refrigerator & served tonight hot over pasta & homemade meatballs to my husband & Mother-in-Law. It was a total hit for everyone, easy to make, tremendously tasty. will definitely be making again. Thank you!!!
Hi Pam! SOOOO happy that you loved this recipe and will be making it again. Thanks for your comment! 🙂
best sauce recipe I ever made. easy and so flavorful. I added more garlic cuz I love garlic, also added fresh oregano.
Hi Lori–this makes me so happy! Thank you so much for this comment.
this tomatoes sauce recipe was excellent especially that I was able to use up all my packs of tomatoes and it’s going to be my go to future recipe for winter
Hi Gillian! So glad that you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for your comment.
I really needed this recipe as I had frozen lots of tomatoes and wasn’t sure the best way to cook them. Thanks!