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    Home » Dinner

    Easy Weeknight Marinara Sauce

    Mar 1, 2016 · by Katie Koteen · Modified: Aug 7, 2024

    Jump to Recipe·Leave a Review

    Marinara is our weeknight go-to. Whenever I make it I always make a double or triple batch. It saves time, effort and money. All good things!

    From my experience, one of the biggest obstacles to saving money is convenience. If you make a little (or a lot) extra when you do cook, it makes for quick, easy and cheap dinners any night of the week.

    So this is my base recipe, and below a few variations and ideas for mixing it up.

    meatballs_06 this recipe

    Variations

    Here are a few ideas to kick this basic marinara sauce up a notch!

    • Add ½ to 1 cup shredded carrots with the crushed tomatoes
    • Add ½ to 1 cup grated zucchini with the crushed tomatoes
    • Add ½ to 1 cup frozen chopped spinach with the crushed tomatoes
    • Add 1 package fake meat crumbles
    • Add 1 package fake Italian sausage, diced small or crumbled. Fieldroast is my favorite
    • Add 1 can white beans, rinsed and drained just about 5 minutes before the sauce is done simmering
    • Add your favorite fresh, frozen or dried herbs.
    • Use extra sauce for vegan pizza or pizza bagel making
    • Pair with our easy homemade meatballs
    Print
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    vegan meatballs

    Easy Marinara Sauce

    5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star No reviews
    • Author: Katie Koteen
    • Prep Time: 10 minutes
    • Cook Time: 20 minutes
    • Total Time: 30 minutes
    • Yield: 4 servings 1x
    • Category: Dinner
    • Method: Stovetop
    • Cuisine: Italian
    • Diet: Vegetarian
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    Description

    Marinara is our weeknight go-to. Whenever I make it I always make a double or triple batch. It saves time, effort and money. All good things!


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 1 onion, diced small
    • 2 tbsp. olive oil
    • red wine (optional)
    • 1 can crushed tomatoes (32 oz)
    • salt
    • ½ tsp. crushed red pepper (optional)


    Instructions

    1. Saute the onion in olive oil until soft. If you have some red wine around, add about a half cup to the softened onions and let it simmer for about 4-5 minutes.
    2. Add crushed tomatoes and salt. Let simmer about 15-20 minutes.
    3. If using, add crushed red pepper and let simmer another 5 minutes.


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    1. SJ

      August 08, 2017 at 4:56 pm

      How long will these last in the fridge and freezer - how do you defrost?

      Reply
      • Katie Koteen

        August 08, 2017 at 7:46 pm

        Hi SJ - in the refrigerator, maybe 5 days. In the freezer the sauce will last about 3 month. I usually defrost in the freezer overnight and warm on the stove (or microwave) before you're ready to serve. Hope that helps!

        Reply
    2. Megan

      May 01, 2016 at 1:49 pm

      Do you freeze the extra portions? If not, how do you store them, and how long do they keep?

      Reply
      • Well Vegan

        May 02, 2016 at 11:27 am

        Yeah, you can absolutely freeze them!

        Reply

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