My go-to meal prep sugo made with canned tomatoes, garlic and olive oil. Makes 2.5 litres in 35 minutes and keeps in the fridge or freezer.
Tomato Sugo (Sauce)
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Category
Dinner
Servings
2.5 L
Prep time
10 minutes
Cook time
35 minutes
Tomato sugo is one of those recipes I keep coming back to because it gives you so much for very little effort. A handful of ingredients, about 35 minutes on the stove, and you end up with 2.5 litres of a rich sauce that forms the base for pasta, stews, baked eggs, ragu and more. I make a big batch on the weekend and it sets me up for multiple meals across the week without any extra effort.
The key to a good sugo is patience with the onions. They need to cook down slowly before the tomatoes go in so they become sweet and soft rather than sharp. The sauce also needs time to simmer and concentrate. Don’t rush either of those stages. Once it’s done, portion it into containers and it will keep in the fridge for five days, or in the freezer for months. I also find the flavour improves on day two once everything has had time to settle.
Ingredient Notes
Olive oil: Use a good quality extra virgin olive oil here. It forms the flavour base of the sauce and that fruitiness comes through in the finished product. A neutral oil will work as a substitute, but the sauce won’t taste as rounded.
Canned peeled tomatoes: I like to use whole peeled tomatoes rather than pre-chopped, and I crush them in the pan with a masher so I can control the final texture. If you can find San Marzano or similar Italian varieties, they are worth using for the extra sweetness and lower acidity.
Garlic: Two full heads might seem like a lot but garlic mellows significantly during cooking, becoming sweet rather than sharp. Finely grate it so it dissolves into the sauce rather than leaving any chunks behind. If you only have pre-minced garlic from a jar, it will work but fresh grated is noticeably better here.
Equipment
- Chopping board
- Chef’s knife
- Large heavy-based saucepan
- Potato masher
- Wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 80ml (⅓ cup) olive oil
- 3 brown onions, finely diced
- 2 heads garlic, peeled, finely grated
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 6 x 400g cans peeled tomatoes
- sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to season
Directions
Heat the oil in a heavy based saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Add the onion and garlic and season with some salt. Cook, stirring often for 8 minutes, until softened.
- Stir in the oregano and cook for 1 minute. Add the canned tomatoes, then add a little bit of water to the cans to collect all the tomato sauce and add this to the pot as well. Using a masher, crush the tomatoes in the saucepan, until broken down. Simmer the sauce for 20-25 minutes, tasting as it cooks for seasoning.
- Give a final season of salt and pepper if needed, then use as the base for your meal prep dishes.
Recipe notes
Chef Tips
Crush, don’t blend
I use a potato masher to break down the tomatoes rather than a blender or stick blender. This keeps some texture in the sauce and gives it a rustic feel. If you prefer a completely smooth sugo, use a stick blender at the end of cooking. Both are good, it just depends on what you’re using it for.
Season as you go
Add a pinch of salt when the onions go in, taste again when the tomatoes are added, and do a final check before you take it off the heat. Seasoning in stages gives you a more balanced sauce than hitting it with salt at the end. Canned tomatoes vary in acidity, so always taste before you finish.
Storage
Store in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 5 days. To freeze, pour into containers or large ice cube trays and freeze for up to 3 months. The ice cube portions are useful when you only need a small amount for a single serve recipe.
FAQs
Can I freeze it? Yes, and I’d encourage it. Freeze in airtight containers for up to 3 months. Freezing it in large ice cube trays is a great trick for having smaller portions on hand when you only need a cup or two.
Can I use fresh tomatoes instead of canned? You can, but canned tomatoes are actually the better choice for sugo. They are picked and preserved at peak ripeness, so they’re consistent year-round and more concentrated in flavour than fresh tomatoes outside of summer. If you do use fresh, you’ll need to cook the sauce for longer to reduce it down.
What can I use this in? I use it as the base for pasta dishes, baked eggs, ragu, soups and stews. It’s the sugo used in the Chicken Ragu with Green Olives and Lemon, Baked Eggs, and Lamb Rigatoni with Vodka Sauce recipes on the site. It also makes a good pizza sauce.
