Pasta Marinara
This easy homemade pasta marinara is absolutely packed with flavor. Skip the jar and rely on this: it's still ready in less than 30 minutes!
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 2-3 sprigs fresh basil plus more for serving
- 8 ounces pasta
- kosher salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Boil a large pot of water and add a generous pinch of salt.
- While you wait for the water to boil, begin making the sauce. Place olive oil and garlic in a cold deep skillet, then place the skillet over medium heat. As soon as the garlic starts to sizzle and smell fragrant, stir in the tomatoes, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Nestle in the sprigs of fresh basil. Reduce the heat to low and let sauce simmer for at least 15 minutes.
- While the sauce simmers, add pasta to the boiling water. Cook for 2 minutes less than the package directions say for al dente.
- After the sauce has simmered for about 15 minutes, remove the basil sprigs and give it a taste. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Add cooked pasta to the sauce and give everything a good stir. (If the timing works out, I like to transfer the pasta directly from its cooking pot into the sauce using a slotted spoon. It’s OK if a little cooking water comes with it. If the pasta is done well before the sauce has simmered for 15 minutes, though, it’s fine to drain it in a colander and transfer to the sauce later.)
- Let everything warm through for 1-2 minutes. Serve with more chopped or torn basil leaves.
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Notes
- Using high-quality tomatoes is important. With so few ingredients, the flavor will really make a difference. San Marzano tomatoes are generally considered top notch; my favorite brands include Mutti, DeLallo, and Muir Glen, which are organic and come in BPA-free cans.
- You can use whole canned tomatoes in place of crushed. Include all juices from the can. Either crush the tomatoes by hand as you add them to the skillet, or blend them with a traditional or immersion blender before adding the pasta.
- Toss veggies straight into this pasta for more of a healthy one-pot meal. Craving greens? Add spinach or arugula to the sauce along with the drained pasta. Have some shredded carrots, minced onion, or finely-chopped bell pepper or zucchini? Add those to the sauce along with the tomatoes and let them simmer in there right along with everything else.
Nutrition Estimate
Calories: 342 kcal, Carbohydrates: 58 g, Protein: 11 g, Fat: 8 g, Saturated Fat: 1 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 5 g, Sodium: 266 mg, Potassium: 726 mg, Fiber: 6 g, Sugar: 10 g, Vitamin A: 435 IU, Vitamin C: 19 mg, Calcium: 93 mg, Iron: 4 mg