Updated: 8/16/24
Are you looking for a quick and healthy alternative to store-bought pasta sauces? Whether you’re in a pinch for pasta sauce because you forgot to pick some up at the store or are trying to avoid the unnecessary added sugars that often are found in canned and jarred tomato sauces, you can make your own easily at home! (And did I mention it’s fast?!)
I must say this recipe tastes so much better than any jarred pasta sauce that I’ve purchased at the store, and it’s MUCH cheaper too. All you need is a food processor or a small blender like this one.
Table of Contents
Why make your own low sodium tomato sauce?
Making your own tomato sauce is a great way to control what ingredients go into it.
Store-bought sauces often have a lot of added salt and sugar, which isn’t good for your health, especially if you need to watch your sodium. By making the sauce at home, you can keep it healthy, tasty, and save some money too. Plus, you can adjust the flavor to match what you like!
Here are the nutrition facts per 1/2 cup serving:
- Calories: 74.3
- Carbohydrates: 6.6 g
- Protein: 1.3 g
- Fat: 4.6g
- Sodium: 18 mg
- Sugar: 3.6 g
Customizing your tomato sauce for low sodium cooking
The original recipe below contains 626mg of sodium per 1/2 cup serving using regular table salt. However, you can reduce the sodium in this recipe by using a salt substitute in place of table salt and a can of no salt added diced tomatoes bringing it down to 18 mg of sodium per serving.
You can also add in more veggies such as carrots, bell peppers, or zucchini to add natural sweetness and flavor.
Where to use your sauce
Use this pasta sauce for chicken parmesan, lasagna, or any other pasta dish of your preference. For a 13×9 lasagna, you’ll want to quadruple this recipe (that’s 4 cans of diced tomatoes). If you need a quick pizza sauce or marinara sauce, drain the canned tomatoes before blending to make it slightly thicker.
Try using it on this eggplant parmesan recipe!
Quick and Easy Low Sodium Tomato Sauce
Equipment
- Blender or food processor
Ingredients
- 1 14.5 oz can Diced tomatoes
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 3/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp salt substitute
- 1 1/2 tsp Italian herb seasoning blend
- cayenne pepper to taste (optional if you want it spicy)
Instructions
- Add the can of tomatoes (liquid and all) as well as olive oil, herbs, and spices.
- Blend well until smooth.
- Heat sauce in the microwave or in a pot over the stove. Serve warm.
- Keep any leftovers in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Did you enjoy this recipe? Let me know what you think in the comments below!