When first introduced to this pasta sauce, I had no idea it was kind of a big deal. Ed Eats the World posted it to his Instagram stories, and I was intrigued. Making pasta sauce from scratch is my jam, but never with just 3 ingredients! And never with butter. He told me this was the best pasta sauce he has made. Like me, he questioned how good it could really be without herbs and most importantly, garlic. I just had to try it for myself to see what the hype was about.

Tomatoes, onion and butter. That is all that is required for this recipe (other than salt). Talk about simplicity. Because of this simplicity, quality ingredients are essential. Don’t just use any can of whole tomatoes. Spend a couple extra bucks on the San Marzano tomatoes. Don’t use margarine in place of butter. You will only be cheating yourself if you do.

Not only is the recipe simple, it is easy. Throw all of the ingredients in a pot and let it simmer away. Make sure to stir every once in awhile and break up those whole tomatoes with a wooden spoon as they begin to soften. Salt throughout the cooking process as needed. The amount of salt used is really a personal preference.

Once the sauce is done cooking, discard the onions. Or save them and use them for something else. Serve the sauce with your favorite pasta (bucatini is my choice). This pasta just works and is delicous as is. The wonderful sweetness of the tomatoes really comes through. It won’t really need anything extra. Sauce, pasta and freshly greated Parmigiano-Reggiano… that is it. It’s impressive how good this is.

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Marcella Hazan’s Tomato Sauce

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Total Time50 minutes mins

Course: Sauces

Cuisine: Italian

Keywords: tomato sauce, Vegetarian

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 28 oz can of whole, peeled San Marzano tomatoes
• 1 onion, peeled and halved
• 5 tbsp unsalted butter
• salt

Instructions

• Combines tomatoes (with juices), onion and butter in a sauce pan with a couple of pinches of salt.
• Simmer over medium heat, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Stir occassionally and break up tomatoes with a wooden spoon. Add salt to taste.
• Discard onions before using sauce.