Arrabbiata Sauce
If you love spicy sauces, then this Arrabbiata Sauce recipe is for you! Full of heat, this homemade tomato sauce adds a punch of flavor that is missing from a mild marinara sauce. Our favorite way to serve this is in a penne arrabbiata, but this easy sauce is great on any kind of pasta or beans, especially when finished with freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. And, this delicious pasta sauce is vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free, and gluten-free!
Instead of using marinara sauce, try it in your homemade lasagna for extra flavor! Like all our recipes, it’s easy to customize to make it more mild, or even hotter depending on your taste. Want to learn how to customize this recipe? Visit our Blog Comments & Tips below for more details.
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RECIPE
(Check out our Step by Step Instructions below the recipe card.)
ARRABBIATA SAUCE
Ingredients
Instructions
- Mince onion and garlic, and aside.
- Pour both cans of San Marzano whole tomatoes into a large mixing bowl. Squish the tomatoes with your hands, using your fingers to break up and crush the tomatoes. Set aside the bowl.
- Heat a nonstick stock pot (6 or 8 Quart) on medium heat, and add olive oil, and butter (optional). Once oil is hot and butter has melted, add minced onions, and sprinkle 1 pinch of kosher salt over the onions, and sauté until softened and translucent (about 5 to 8 minutes). Add crushed red pepper flakes, and sauté for 1 minute. Then add minced garlic, stir to combine, and sauté for 30 seconds (do not let garlic brown). Stir in remaining kosher salt, and pepper, and immediately add tomato paste, stir to combine, and cook for 30 to 60 seconds. Add red wine and deglaze pan, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and reduce for 1 minute.
- Add dried basil, dried parsley, and stir to combine. Then ladle the crushed tomatoes into the stock pot, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer. Once it reaches a simmer, add lemon juice, and stir to combine. Add bay leaf, reduce the heat to low, partially cover with a lid, and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in sugar, and continue to simmer for another 30 to 45 minutes until thick and bubbly.
- Taste for seasoning (see Notes #1 & #2), and adjust as needed. Just before you are ready to serve, remove from heat, and add torn basil leaves. Stir to combine, and serve!
Notes
- Sugar is often added in tomato sauces, as canned tomatoes can sometimes be too acidic. Allow the sauce to cook down, and then taste for sweetness. If needed, you can always add another ½ to 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar, and continue to simmer for at least 5 to 10 more minutes.
- Once the sauce has finished cooking, adjust seasoning if needed by adding more kosher salt, black pepper, and/or crushed red peppers (to taste).
- Great on pasta or beans with some grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, and more fresh basil. Or cool completely, and store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Recipe can be made ahead.
- Makes approximately 6 servings.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
182.32Fat (grams)
11.59Sat. Fat (grams)
2.54Carbs (grams)
15.66Fiber (grams)
4.01Net carbs
11.67Sugar (grams)
9.01Protein (grams)
3.13Sodium (milligrams)
435.67Cholesterol (grams)
5.02Nutritional information provided is strictly an estimate and will vary based on ingredient brands and cooking methods. Although optional, the unsalted butter is included in the nutritional calculations for this recipe.
Step by Step Instructions
PREPARATION
Organize all your tools and ingredients before you begin. Getting all your ingredients in one place at the beginning will shorten your prep time.
Note: Oops…we forgot to add the red wine and sugar in this photo!
STEP 1
Chop 1 medium white onion into small dice, and mince 8 garlic cloves, and aside.
STEP 2
Pour two 28 ounce cans of San Marzano whole tomatoes (including juices - see Note A below) into a large mixing bowl. Squish the tomatoes with your hands (see Note B below), using your fingers to break up and crush the tomatoes. Set aside the bowl.
Note A: We used the Kirkland brand of San Marzano whole tomatoes; however, we recommend Cento San Marzano whole tomatoes for it’s quality and because it’s widely available in most grocery store chains nationwide.
Note B: These protective gloves are great for preventing your hands from getting dirty. If you don’t want to use your hands, you can always use a potato masher to crush the tomatoes directly in the bowl.
STEP 3a
Heat a nonstick stock pot (6 or 8 Quart) on medium heat, and add ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, and 1 tablespoon unsalted butter (optional). Once oil is hot and butter has melted, add minced onions, and sprinkle 1 pinch of kosher salt over the onions, and sauté until softened and translucent (about 8 to 10 minutes). Add 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes (or more to taste), and sauté for 1 minute. Then add minced garlic, stir to combine, and sauté for 30 seconds (do not let garlic brown).
STEP 3b
Stir in (remaining) 1 scant teaspoon of kosher salt, and ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper, and immediately add 1 tablespoon tomato paste (double concentrated), stir to combine, and cook for 30 to 60 seconds. Add ½ cup red wine and deglaze pan, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and reduce for 1 minute. Add ½ teaspoon dried basil, ¼ teaspoon dried parsley, and stir to combine.
STEP 4
Ladle the crushed tomatoes into the stock pot, add 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, and stir to combine. Add 1 bay leaf, and bring to a simmer. Once it reaches a simmer, reduce the heat to low, partially cover with a lid, and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in 1 teaspoon granulated sugar (or more to taste - see Note below), and continue to simmer for another 30 to 45 minutes until thick and bubbly.
Note: Sugar is often added in tomato sauces, as canned tomatoes can sometimes be too acidic. Allow the sauce to cook down, and then taste for sweetness. If needed, you can always add another ½ to 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar, and continue to simmer for at least 5 to 10 more minutes.
STEP 5
Taste for seasoning (see Note below), and adjust as needed. Just before you are ready to serve, remove from heat, and add ½ cup torn fresh basil leaves. Stir to combine, remove and discard the bay leaf, and serve!
Note: Once the sauce has finished cooking, adjust seasoning if needed by adding more kosher salt, black pepper, and/or crushed red peppers (to taste). It won’t hurt the sauce if you need to simmer it a few more minutes.
SERVING
Our Arrabbiata Sauce is great on pasta or beans with some grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, and more fresh basil. Try it in our Quick White Bean Ragù! Or cool completely, and store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
VIDEO
How to Make this Spicy Arrabbiata Sauce!
Blog Comments & Tips
A Deliciously Spicy Pasta Sauce!
My absolute favorite pasta to order at an authentic Italian restaurant is Penne Arrabbiata. It’s my barometer for whether that Italian restaurant is truly authentic. Having traveled in Italy several times, I’ve come to learn how a true Italian pasta sauce should taste. Although we think our Arrabbiata Sauce comes very close, by no means can we claim that it’s exactly like your Italian grandmother used to make!
Literally translated, arrabbiata means “angry,” which we think describes this sauce perfectly! Spicy enough to bring a flush of color into your face, this Arrabbiata Sauce is reminiscent of a homemade tomato sauce that has been slow cooked in an Italian kitchen.
We used traditional San Marzano tomatoes in this recipe, which we found have the best flavor when it comes to canned tomatoes. The best part is there is little chopping to be done in this recipe. Only an onion and some garlic needs mincing, otherwise the rest is just about measuring.
We love to use this Arrabbiata Sauce over almost every type of pasta, or in our Quick White Bean Ragù, or in place of marinara sauce in our Zesty Lasagna (recipe coming soon!). Although this pasta sauce is vegetarian, vegan, non-dairy, and gluten-free, we highly recommend a generous serving of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese over your favorite pasta that has been bathed in our Arrabbiata Sauce.
How do you ensure the best results from our recipe?
Our 4 tips to making a great Arrabbiata Sauce:
Use San Marzano whole tomatoes, as these special plum tomatoes are from the Campagnia region of southern Italy, and make the most amazing sauce. We prefer the Cento brand which is a product of Italy, but we also used the Kirkland brand of San Marzano whole tomatoes with basil, which are great quality.
Don’t be afraid to use a little sugar. Canned tomatoes can often be very acidic and need a little help to sweeten them up. It’s quite typical to add a bit of granulated sugar to a simmering tomato sauce.
When cooking with canned tomatoes, the simmering process is very important. We recommend a minimum of 1 hour of simmering, but you can really go as long as 90 minutes if you want a thicker sauce. Just make sure it is on low, and you stir it a couple of times during the simmering process.
Taste for seasoning, and adjust if needed. You can add more salt, pepper, and even a little sugar at the end. If you do, just make sure to continue to simmer for at least 10 minutes to make sure the extra seasoning cooks into the sauce.
Have any dietary preferences that won’t quite work with our recipe? It’s time to customize and Pimp Our Recipe.
Pimp Our Recipe:
Make it More Spicy: We feel that 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes has just the right amount of spicy heat in this sauce. If you like it off the charts spicy, you can always add 1 additional teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, and simmer the sauce an extra 15 minutes. But be prepared for some serious heat, as you will be using a total 1 tablespoon of crushed red pepper flakes in this sauce!
Make it Milder: You can always start with 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, if you prefer. Then adjust when you taste for seasoning, if needed. If you can’t take any heat at all, we’ve got you covered! This sauce recipe is still delicious as a very flavorful marinara sauce, by just omitting the crushed red pepper flakes entirely.
Make it Rich: Along with the olive oil, we used only 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter in this recipe (which is optional). If you want a richer and smoother flavor in this sauce, just add 1-2 tablespoons of unsalted butter (a total of 2-3 tablespoons). The butter will mellow out the flavors and give it a richness.
Make it Lux: If you have a leftover rind from a wedge of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, just drop it in the sauce during Step 4 before you add the lemon juice, and allow it to simmer until the end. Two key points to remember when using the rind in your sauce, 1) reduce the amount of kosher salt added, and taste for seasoning once it’s finished simmering, and 2) make sure to remove and discard the rind (and the bay leaf) before serving.
Enjoy and let us know what you think by commenting below, rating our recipes, subscribing, following, and liking us on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube! Don’t forget to subscribe to get updates on new recipes and tips & tricks.
Happy Cooking!
Mich
Footnote: Remember to get your hands in there and squish the tomatoes thoroughly!
Adapted from the Arrabiata Sauce Recipe by ciaoflorentina.com. We really enjoyed this original recipe. Although it was fairly authentic, we felt it needed a little extra something. In true PMR form, we pimped it up by adding a few extra ingredients to brighten and deepen the flavor, and changed up the cooking technique. The results are what we feel is the most authentic flavor in this sauce.
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