
Simple & Delicious Roasted Tomato Sauce Recipe: Enjoy Now, or Preserve & Freeze!
Tomatoes. Olive oil. Salt. Pepper. No measurements. It really canβt get much more simple than that, can it? Despite the short ingredient list, this roasted tomato sauce is far from falling short in flavor! The process of oven-roasting tomatoes brings out their rich, sweet flavor, introduces a savory punch, and also helps to thicken the sauce. When we are looking to preserve a large amount of homegrown tomatoes from the garden, this is our go-to recipe! We also love to dehydrate them to create sun-dried tomatoes. You can find a tutorial for how to do that here.
Unlike a traditional pizza or pasta sauce, we choose to not add other herbs or spices to our tomato sauce – yet. Instead, this recipe will create a thick, delicious tomato sauce that can be used in a wide variety of ways, not just in Italian dishes! For example, we love to add this sauce to Indian-style recipes, like our madras curry lentils. Or, added to various soups and stews. When desired, it is very easy to doctor up this base sauce with additional seasonings to match the meal youβre making!
Aside from being dang tasty, this tomato sauce is also incredibly easy to make – and preserve! Every summer, we spend an afternoon or two making a large batch of roasted tomato sauce to stock the freezer. Few things are more gratifying than pulling a jar of summery homegrown tomato sauce from the freezer in the middle of winter.
Even if you donβt grow your own tomatoes, I highly suggest making this sauce with fresh local tomatoes while theyβre in season to enjoy later. Go hit up the farmer’s market. Your winter recipes will be so much brighter than using commercially-canned tomatoes!
Ready to get roasting?

INGREDIENTS & SUPPLIES
- Tomatoes – any variety can be used!
- Olive oil, for drizzling (but do NOT use any oil if you intend to hot-bath can this recipe)
- Sea salt
- Black pepper
- Baking or roasting pan
- Large pot
- Blender – we use an immersion blender for this recipeΒ
- Optional: parchment paperΒ
INSTRUCTIONS
Step 1: Prepare & Season Tomatoes
Preheat the oven to 425Β°F
Wash those βmaters, and get to choppinβ! The other beautiful thing about this recipe is that because everything is going to get cooked and blended, size and shape doesnβt matter much here – nor do we need to worry about removing the skins! We also leave the guts, which enhances the caramelization process.
Cut away the firm stem center (if there is one), and then portion your tomatoes into chunks. We typically cut the smaller tomatoes in half, and larger ones into quarters or sixths. You can totally leave cherry tomatoes whole!
On a baking sheet, lay out all the tomato pieces – skin-side down if possible. Lining the baking sheet with parchment paper makes for a much easier clean-up, since the tomato juices tend to stick and crust to the pan while roasting. It is okay to pack the tomatoes in there, but try to keep them in a single layer. **If you find you have more tomatoes than can fit on your pans for the oven, but want to process and preserve them all, check out optional Step 3!
Now, drizzle the tomatoes with olive oil, and give them a sprinkle of sea salt and black pepper.Β Again, omit the olive oil if you wish to can your sauce.


Step 2: Roast the Tomatoes
Here is where the magic happens.
When exposed to high and dry heat, foods take on a whole new complex flavor profile because of the chemical reactions that take place. Namely, caramelization.
According to the Science of Cooking, caramelization is an oxidative reaction that involves the removal of water (as steam) and the breakdown of the sugar. As the the browning process occurs, natural volatile chemicals are released that produce the characteristic caramel flavor. Thus, roasting vegetables can transform their earthy, vegetal, sometimes slightly bitter taste into something sweet, nutty, and toasted instead!
Roast the tomatoes in the oven on 425Β°F for approximately 35 to 45 minutes, until they become soft and lightly browned – or even a tad blackened, like ours! If youβre working with multiple trays of tomatoes, rotate them partway through to promote even roasting.

Step 3: Stew Other Tomatoes (Optional)
For the batch of sauce we made in this example, we filled two cookie sheets and one large glass roasting pan with tomatoes. The oven was full, but we still had gobs on the counter! Rather than roasting them all in multiple batches (no time for that!) we opted to simply not roast some at all. Instead, we stewed the left over tomatoes – and combined them with the roasted ones when they came out of the oven. The flavor is still phenomenal. If youβre in the same situation, try this option!
While the initial trays of tomatoes are roasting in the oven, process your leftovers. Prepare them in a similar fashion as the others: cut away any tough stem portion, and chop them into a few chunks each. Heat a large pot on the stovetop, and add a splash of olive oil followed by the extra tomatoes. Lightly simmer the tomatoes (uncovered) the entire time the others are in the oven – at least 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. They will become soft, wonderfully fragrant, and the liquid will reduce.

Step 4: Reduce & Blend the Roasted Tomatoes
Once your tomatoes are finished roasting, you have a couple of options. If you are using a traditional blender and did not stew any additional tomatoes on the stove, you could transfer the roasted tomatoes directly to your blender. I would allow them to cool slightly first to avoid hot splatters!
However, if you want to reduce the tomatoes even more to create an extra thick sauce (or if you have those other tomatoes already stewing in a pot) transfer the roasted tomatoes into a pot on the stove. Heat and simmer to further reduce the chunky sauce to a thickness of your liking – but keep in mind it will become even thicker once it is blended!

Next, blend the tomatoes until the sauce is a smooth, creamy consistency. Using an immersion blender makes this extremely easy, right in the pot! We love this immersion blender, and use it regularly for many recipes – like this creamy roasted carrot and sweet potato soup! Alternatively, blend your roasted tomato sauce in a classic blender in batches as needed. You could choose to leave it chunky and not blend it at all. But keep in mind the skins will be more noticeable and potentially tough if they arenβt blended.
After blending, assess the thickness. If you want it thicker even still, continue to simmer on medium-low heat to reduce further. Or, if it is all good to go, continue to the next step!

Step 5: Cool, Pack & Store
Now, allow that delicious, hot roasted tomato sauce to cool down a bit. When you package it into your storage containers of choice, the temperature can still be warm – but shouldnβt be hot. To promote rapid cooling, we usually create an “ice bath”, setting the pot surrounded in ice water in a clean sink. Yeah, I used to be a health inspector.
Freezing Roasted Tomato Sauce
To preserve and freeze this sauce, we typically use pint-sized mason jars. Yes, you can safely freeze food in glass jars! However, make sure you get the ones that are marked as freezer-safe. Those are usually only the wide-mouth pint, half-pint, and quarter-pint size. Glass jars with a βshoulderβ are more prone to cracking in the freezer, such as quart jars or curved pints. We freeze in glass whenever possible, though we also have these BPA-free plastic containers for larger quarts of frozen goodies.
Once the sauce is decently cooled, fill your jars up! This can be a bit messy, so we call on the assistance of a canning jar funnel. Maintain at least one inch of head space to allow for expansion in the freezer. Store the jars of roasted tomato sauce in the freezer, and use within one year for the best quality and flavor.

What About Canning?
We prefer the ease and guaranteed safety of freezing tomatoes, but if canning is your thing, be my guest! I wonβt get into detailed instructions on exactly how to can tomatoes, but here are some quick safety notes below. For more detailed canning instructions, check out this guide from Colorado State University. Similar to the freezer option, it is suggested to use canned tomatoes within one year. Only proceed with canning if you didn’t use olive oil in this recipe.
To ensure safe acidity in whole, crushed or juiced tomatoes, add bottled lemon juice or citric acid when processing in a boiling water bath. Thoroughly stir in 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice or 1/2 teaspoon of citric acid per quart of tomatoes. For pints, use 1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice or 1/4 teaspoon of citric acid.
Colorado State University
Processing Time (minutes) for Canning Tomato Sauce | Pints | Quarts |
Boiling Water Bath at Altitudes Of: | ||
0-3,000 ft. | 40 | 45 |
3,001-6,000 ft | 45 | 50 |
6,001-8,000 ft | 50 | 55 |
8,001-10,000 ft | 55 | 60 |
Pressure Canner* | 15 | 15 |
Step 6: Enjoy!
Now you get to enjoy the fruits of your labor, and use this roasted tomato sauce however you see fit! As I mentioned, we often simply dump a jar into homemade soups, curries, beans, lentils, or other saucy meals. Basically, anything that calls for canned tomatoes or paste! We also plan to make a sourdough pizza this weekend and use this as the sauce. We won’t modify it at all, since the flavor is wonderful as-is. Our pizza crust recipe already includes herbs in the dough, and we can sprinkle more fresh herbs like thyme and oregano right on top of the sauce before baking! This sauce would also be the bomb drizzled over our parmesan zucchini fritters.
To transform this sauce into a more classic Italian pasta sauce: Start by sautΓ©ing some diced onions and garlic in a pan until they’re soft and translucent. Then add the roasted tomato sauce, salt and pepper, plus fresh or dried herbs like basil, thyme, oregano, and rosemary – to taste. In the place of fresh garlic and onion, you could even substitute with garlic powder or onion powder! Simmer to combine flavors. VoilΓ ! Delizioso!

I told you we were going to keep it simple! I hope you love and use this recipe as much as we do. Please feel free to ask questions, and spread the tomato love by sharing this post!
Simple & Delicious Roasted Tomato Sauce, to freeze or can
Equipment
- Roasting pan or baking sheets
- Large pot
- Immersion blender, or classic blender
- Jars for storage (wide-mouth for freezing)
Ingredients
- Fresh tomatoes, of any kind
- Sea salt, for sprinkling to taste
- Black pepper, for sprinkling to taste
- Olive oil, light drizzle (skip if canning)
Instructions
- Cut tomatoes into quarters, halves, or leave smaller tomatoes whole and lay out onto baking sheets skin side down. (Lining baking sheets with parchment paper helps reduce a messy clean-up later!)
- Drizzle tomatoes with olive oil, sea salt, and black pepper. Go light on the oil if intending to hot bath can the sauce.
- Roast the tomatoes in an oven pre-heated to 425Β°F for 35 to 45 minutes. If using multiple pans, rotate halfway through to promote even roasting.
- Optional: If you have more tomatoes than will fit in your oven, lightly simmer the remaining tomatoes in a pot for the entire time the roasted tomatoes are in the oven. Choose a pot that is large enough to accommodate the stewed and roasted tomatoes together, once they are added after roasting.
- Once the tomatoes are finished roasting, add to a pot over medium low heat or combine with the tomatoes simmering on the stove top and simmer to reduce to your desired consistency.
- Blend the tomato mixture with immersion blender directly in the pot, or add mixture to blender in batches, and blend until creamy and smooth.
- Once the roasted tomato sauce is blended and reduced to your desired thickness, remove from heat and let the sauce cool.
- Pack the sauce in freezer safe containers (such as wide-mouth jars) for storage in the freezer, or use fresh within one week.
- To hot-bath can the sauce, add and thoroughly stir in either 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice or 1/2 tsp of citric acid per quart of tomato cause. For pint jars, half that amount. Follow the canning times based on jar size and elevation in the chart provided in this article.
If you enjoyed this article, I think you’re going to like these as well:
- Preserving Tomatoes: How to Make Herb Sun-Dried Tomatoes in a Dehydrator or Oven
- Preserving Garlic: How to Make Homemade Garlic Powder
- The Besto Pesto: Lemon Walnut Basil Pesto Recipe
- Madras Curry Lentils Recipe
- Easy Parmesan Zucchini Fritters Recipe with Healthy Yogurt Dill Sauce
- Creamy Vegan Roasted Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup
- Easy Refrigerator Pickled Peppers Recipe
- Preserving Onions: How to Make Onion Powder



55 Comments
Kelly
The name of this recipe says it all – simple and delicious! I have made this sauce a couple times and each time its been great!
Amanda
This turned out so good! I used all cherry tomatoes and filled up about 2 sheet pans. It made 5 jars of sauce with about 1.5 cups of sauce in each jar. Such an easy recipe!
Teri
I want to can this with herbs, onions, and garlic. Is that safe?
Aaron (Mr. DeannaCat)
Hi Teri, you should be fine canning the sauce with the additional herbs and garlic as long as your follow safe canning procedures. You will need to acidify the jars with lemon juice or citric acid. Good luck!
Riley Bianchi
Such an easy, versatile way to use and preserve garden tomatoes! Now, I just need my tomatoes to hurry up and ripen already! I live in Utah so our tomatoes are just starting out this year and none of them have made it inside yet π
Nicky
This is going to be my new way to make tomatoes sauce. Simple and delish. I did add basil to my mix and pressurize for a later date. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Audrey
This recipe was simple and delicious. I have 250 tomatoes currently ripening on the vine and had a whole basket in the kitchen. I didnβt end up using any oil at all since I was going to can the finished product. Now I have a simple, flavorful sauce that I can add herbs and spices to whenever Iβm ready to use it! Thanks for another great one Deanna!
Brandi
Superb and super simple recipe! Only complaint is on myself because I should have made MORE! Thanks so much β€οΈβ€οΈβ€οΈ
Christine Russo
Sounds great! Cannot wait to try!! Could I freeze in freezer bags? I’m just worried about freezer space…
DeannaCat
Hi Christine – Absolutely! Whatever you prefer and have room for! I would just take into consideration how much sauce you’d want to have defrosted at a time, freezing it in manageable/useful portions. Enjoy!
Colleen Barbosa
Roasting the tomatoes really brings out the flavours. It was outstanding! Thanks for the idea. Will be making more batches of this sauce soon once I have harvested my next batch from my yard.
DeannaCat
Oh good, I am so glad you enjoyed it! Yes, roasting is like magic on flavor!
Kimberly
This recipe was so simple, yet so rewarding!! I didnβt know what to do with my overwhelming amount of home grown tomatoes so I decided to give this a try! I added a few garlic cloves, fresh basil, and onions to roast with the tomatoes. WOW! So much flavor! I cannot wait to make more!! Keep the recipes coming Deanna!