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jars of spaghetti sauce square

Homemade Spaghetti Sauce - Easy Canning Recipe (Video)

Homemade spaghetti sauce is easy to make and this particular recipe can either be made fresh or easily preserved for long term storage by canning.  This recipe tastes very similar to Prego spaghetti sauce, but is much healthier and less expensive of course.  
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Serving Size 32 one cup servings

Ingredients

  • 6 quarts tomatoes
  • 2 onions chopped
  • 4 cloves of garlic chopped
  • 2 tsp. oregano
  • 2 tsp. black pepper
  • 4 tsp. salt
  • 4 tsp. parsley
  • 4 tsp. basil
  • ½ c. sugar
  • 2 quarts of tomato paste 64 oz

Instructions

  • If you're making this for fresh eating, feel free to cut the recipe in half.
  • If using fresh tomatoes, core whole tomatoes and place in roaster, large heavy bottom stock pot or slow cooker.  Do not peel or take the seeds out.  We will blend them up later, and you’ll never know they are in there. 
  • If using canned tomatoes or tomato sauce, just dump them into the roaster, large heavy bottom stock pot or slow cooker.
  • Turn roaster on 350 degrees, crockpot on high or stockpot on medium-high heat to begin heating tomatoes.  I like to put a lid on in the beginning to help them start cooking faster.
  • In a separate skillet, saute chopped onions and garlic in a small amount of fat like butter, olive oil, coconut oil, or even beef tallow.  
  • Cook until caramelized, and then add to the tomatoes.
  • Add all the spices to the tomato mixture.
  • Once the tomatoes are soft, use an immersion blender to blend the sauce well.
  • Add tomato paste and blend again.  
  • Turn the heat down to a low simmer for a few minutes to allow the flavors to blend.  
  • Serve fresh over pasta 

OR

  • Ladle into clean jars using canning funnel and measuring cup
  • Place lids and rings onto the jarred sauce.
  • Process in a boiling water bath canner for 20 minutes.
  • Allow to cool.  Once jars are sealed, remove the rings and store on your pantry shelves.
  • If eating fresh, you can store leftover spaghetti sauce in an airtight container for up to a week in the refrigerator.
  • Makes approximately 8 quarts of sauce.

Notes

Tips

If making this recipe fresh (without canning it), you can use fresh tomatoes, or you can use the same amount of canned tomatoes or canned tomato sauce.  Sometimes it’s nice to have a lot of plain tomatoes canned up in your pantry, then you can be flexible with what you make with them.  Tomato soup, chili, taco soup, spaghetti sauce, etc. and the the list goes on.
You can also freeze the tomatoes if you’re busy during the summertime, and then process them into this spaghetti sauce on a cold winter day.  Just core the tomatoes, and place them in a ziplock freezer bag.  Then thaw them out and they will be ready to make into sauce.
I like to cook the onions and garlic in a separate skillet until they are caramelized.  This really brings out their rich flavor.
The immersion blender used in this recipe makes pureeing the ingredients simple and easy.  If you don’t have an immersion blender you can use a regular blender. 
If you are canning this recipe:
Feel free to make as many batches of this recipe as need be to use up the amount of tomatoes that you have. 
 
 
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