Best Ever Arrabbiata Sauce
Learn how to make a homemade spicy arrabbiata sauce. This sauce starts with a few glugs of olive oil, freshly chopped garlic, and red pepper flakes to really kick up the flavor. If you've made my homemade pizza sauce, you're going to love this arrabbiata sauce!
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 8-10 cloves garlic minced
- 1 -5 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 cup yellow onion finely chopped
- 1 28-ounce can EACH: crushed tomatoes AND whole tomatoes (San Marzano, if possible)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons fish sauce omit for vegetarians
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves torn (with hands)
Instructions
- INFUSE: In a large saucepan over low heat, add the olive oil, minced garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté for 5 minutes stirring occasionally so nothing burns but the flavor infuses in the oil and is fragrant.
- SAUTE: Then, kick up the heat to medium-high, add the onions and continue to stir and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, stirring as necessary.
- SIMMER: Add all the tomato products along with the fish sauce, ½ teaspoon of salt, and allow the sauce to reach a simmer before lowering the heat. Take a wooden spoon and gently mash the larger tomatoes to help break them down. You could also do this with a large fork or a potato masher. Allow the sauce to continue simmering for 30-40 minutes over low heat. Add the basil into the sauce around the last 15 minutes. Taste and adjust with additional salt as desired. For a looser sauce, cook 30 minutes for a more concentrated flavor, let it cook for 40 minutes. I prefer it at the 40-minute mark.
- STORING: Use the sauce immediately with prepared pasta or allow for it to come to room temperature before storing in containers. The sauce can be refrigerated for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 3 months.
Notes
- for vegan/vegetarian: omit the fish sauce and swap it with a teaspoon of mushroom powder or better than bouillon mushroom base to produce the same umami flavor. If you don't have either you can simply omit it from the recipe but it does taste better with it!
