Marcella Hazan’s Tomato Sauce
Updated August 4, 2024
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Simon Andrews.
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
2 cups tomatoes, in addition to their juices (for example, a 28-ounce can of San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes)
5 tablespoons butter
1 onion, peeled and cut in half
Salt
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
6 grams carbs; 38 milligrams cholesterol; 153 calories; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 15 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 287 milligrams sodium; 1 gram protein; 3 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Combine the tomatoes, their juices, the butter and the onion halves in a saucepan. Add a pinch or two of salt.
- Step 2
Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, for about 45 minutes. Stir occasionally, mashing any large pieces of tomato with a spoon. Add salt as needed.
- Step 3
Discard the onion before tossing the sauce with pasta. This recipe makes enough sauce for a pound of pasta.
Private Notes
Comments
Such endless tinkering! My daughter turned me on to this. She said that its simplicity allows the primary ingredients--the tomatoes and the pasta--to shine. The onion is a whisper, not a shout (or, God forbid, a partner with garlic in a mugging). The butter, astonishingly, adds an unctuousness, a luxurious velvety taste and feel that perfectly complement the tomatoes.
If anyone else had told me this, I would have reached for my herb garden, the olive oil. But I trust her, and she was right.
The recipe from the first edition of The Classic Italian Cookbook (1973) calls for 2 lbs of tomatoes, 1/4 lb butter, one medium yellow onion, peeled and halved, salt and 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar. I can't imagine why the amount of butter has been reduced from 8 tablespoons to 5 tablespoons. Stick with the original.
I don't know why you would want to discard the onion. Eating it is one of the highlights of this dish!
I'm with those who don't understand the enthusiasm for this sauce. Love Marcella's cookbook, which I have had and used happily for years, but this sauce, to me, is just bland and blah. Tomato soup-ish, as some have said. Will not be making this one again.
After making this a million times and reluctantly disposing of the onions, I made a huge batch and then made soup from the onions, a couple of carrots and two big russet potatoes. Delicious! I’ll never throw away the onions again!
Tasting this for the first time was a delightful shock. I’ve been making various tomato sauces for 40 years. There’s always been at least onion, garlic and basil. More complex sauces were a mirepoix and half a dozen herbs. But this, nothing changed, nothing added was as interesting and flavorful as any in my repertoire.