This meatball sauce recipe is a combination of traditional Italian seasonings with a simple tomato sauce that goes well with anything you’d use marinara on.
What You’ll Need
This meatball sauce uses primarily pantry staples making it a quick and easy sauce to make any time. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.
- Extra virgin olive oil – Since there are so few ingredients, try to use a high quality olive oil for the best results.
- Yellow onion – Chop the onion finely and uniformly.
- Garlic cloves – Mince each garlic clove or use a microplane to grate them.
- Plain tomato sauce – Be sure to get just the sauce and not an already prepared marinara.
- Dried basil – If you don’t have this on hand you can easily find it in the spice section of your local grocery store.
- Sugar – Just a little bit of sugar will help balance the flavors of the sauce.
- Coarse salt – Salt helps to bring out the flavors of the other ingredients.
- Bay leaf – Be sure to remove the bay leaf after cooking.
Let’s Get Cooking!
Making meatball sauce might be easier than you think! Just follow these simple steps.
- Cook meatballs. If you’re making homemade meatballs, make sure to cook them ahead of time. I like to use a mixture of ground beef, ground pork, breadcrumbs and seasonings. Cook in batches in a skillet or bake on a baking sheet.
- Sauté onion and garlic. In a large Dutch oven or pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft and fragrant. Add the garlic, sauteing for an additional minute.
- Add remaining ingredients. Stir in the tomato sauce, sugar, basil, salt and bay leaf. Simmer until flavors marry. Remove and discard the bay leaf.
- Add meatballs to pan. Add your meatballs to the sauce, or gravy if you are Italian!, and simmer for an additional hour.
- Salt – I like to add coarse kosher salt to bring out the other flavors of the sauce. Be sure to taste test it first before adding more.
- Seasonings – Add in your favorite herbs like fresh parsley or oregano. If you have fresh basil on hand you can substitute it for the dried variety. Spice this sauce up by adding black pepper, cayenne pepper powder, or crushed red pepper flakes. Or use the blend from my bread dipping oil.
- Sauces – Depending on what you’re serving this meatball sauce with, experiment with adding worcestershire sauce or soy sauce.
- Swaps – If you want a slightly richer sugary flavor, try using brown sugar instead of white sugar. You can also add a little honey and garlic to taste to make a honey garlic meatball sauce. Replace some of the tomato sauce with crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, or tomato paste for a thick tomato sauce. If you do, you can also add chicken broth or beef broth if it needs to be thinned.
- Senses – As this meatball sauce simmers, the rich aroma of garlic, onions, and herbs fills the air, mingling with the deep, savory scent of slow-cooked meat. Juicy, tender meatballs soak up the vibrant tomato sauce, bursting with tangy sweetness and a hint of smoky depth
Perfect Pairings
There are all sorts of options for serving this meatball sauce.
- Meatballs – The obvious pairing is homemade meatballs! Make spaghetti and meatballs, a meatball sub, or just a large bowl of meatballs topped with parmesan cheese.
- Dipping sauce – Serve this with cheesy breadsticks, mozzarella sticks, or garlic bread.
- Burgers and chicken – Top grilled hamburgers or chicken with this sauce and some provolone for a pizza-style sandwich.
- Pizza – Use this sauce in place of your typical pizza sauce.
- Pasta – Top your favorite type of pasta — from linguine to penne or even egg noodles — with this tasty sauce.
Storage and Freezing
You can easily store this meatball sauce and reheat it when you’re ready to serve. You can chop the onions and mince the garlic ahead of time. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
How to Store Homemade Meatball Sauce
Once it has cooled to room temperature, store this sauce in an airtight container or ziploc bag in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Can I Freeze Meatball Sauce?
Freeze this meatball sauce in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag for up to six months.
Common Questions About Meatball Sauce
Some sauces with this name incorporate the meat as well but ours is the simple combination of tomato, spices, and aromatics.
It is better to brown the meatballs before adding them to this sauce. That’s why it’s great to make this sauce ahead of time and then use it with any other dish that you’re making.
Other Savory Sauces
There is nothing I love more than a good homemade sauce. Here are a few of our favorites.
Meatball Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 yellow onion chopped
- 5-6 cloves garlic minced
- 28 ounces plain tomato sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
- 1 dried bay leaf
Instructions
- In a large Dutch oven or pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 3-4 minutes until soft and fragrant. Add the garlic, sauteing for 1 additional minute.
- Stir in the tomato sauce, sugar, basil, salt and bay leaf. Simmer for 20-30 minutes or until flavors marry. Remove and discard the bay leaf.
- Add your meatballs to the sauce and simmer for an additional hour.
- If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or star ratings.
Notes
Nutrition
This meatball sauce is absolutely fantastic, I love being able to make a big batch to use for lots of recipes throughout the week!
I love this meatball sauce, it’s also great for lasagna and I am going to try it with chicken parm, too.
One of the best meatball sauces that I’ve seen! Fantastic recipe and great instructions 😉
This sauce is so easy and tasty. We used it as a dip for meatball subs and yum!
This will without a doubt, be a go-to sauce for any type of meatballs: chicken, plant-based, etc. It’s so good and I can’t wait to try it with my pasta.
I just made this sauce to serve with appetizer mini meatballs and it turned out great! I doubled the recipe and added half green bell pepper, half red bell pepper, a teaspoon of jalapeño pepper (all diced very small), and oregano (instead of basil).
it really is very versatile!!
That sounds delicious!