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This homemade canned spaghetti sauce is FAR better than anything you can find in a store. You’ll love the rich, savory flavor. The best way to use fresh garden tomatoes! Canning spaghetti sauce is easy and rewarding and makes for the best pasta sauce ever!
This canned spaghetti sauce is HANDS-DOWN, the very best with home-grown tomatoes. We are kind of crazy about our tomatoes over here. The taste of this savory tomato sauce stays fresh and turns any pasta dinner into something special.
Ingredients in Canned Spaghetti Sauce
All you need for perfect spaghetti sauce are some herbs, spices and of course, fresh ripe tomatoes! This sauce couldn’t be simpler to make:
- Tomatoes – about 25 pounds. This recipe makes a huge batch of tomato puree.
- Onions – I start with about five large yellow onions. You’ll end up with 7-8 cups chopped onions.
- Red bell peppers – four large peppers work great.
- Green bell pepper – dice one large pepper
- Tomato paste – four 6-ounce cans should do the trick.
- Soy sauce – Sounds weird, but trust us, it deepens the tomato flavor like you won’t believe!
- Worcestershire sauce – stir in a little sauce to enhance the flavor of the tomatoes and give the sauce a meaty flavor.
- Brown sugar – a little sweetness balances the acidity of the tomatoes and all the herbs.
- Seasonings – Salt, garlic, oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, and bay leaves is all you need to season this delicious sauce.
- Lemon juice – for the jars
Why Can Spaghetti Sauce?
Canning spaghetti sauce offers several great benefits. It may take a little time up front but I love the satisfaction of walking into my pantry and seeing rows of freshly canned spaghetti sauce jars! Here are some more great benefits to canning:
- Long-term preservation: Enjoy homemade sauce even when fresh tomatoes are out of season.
- Control over ingredients: Customize the flavors, spices, and level of heat to suit personal taste preferences.
- Convenience and time-saving: Have ready-to-use sauce on hand for quick and easy meal preparations.
- Cost-effective: Save money by utilizing homegrown or bulk-purchased ingredients.
Tomatoes: A Family Tradition
Growing tomatoes is a “family tradition” of sorts for us. Our Uncle Larry is arguably the best gardener ever. He always has an immaculate garden and has studied and taught about gardening. The man knows ALL the tricks to get plants to grow. Uncle Larry has 10 green thumbs! His techniques have been passed around the family, luckily for us. He shared his secrets with our mom, who also grows a bountiful garden every year. To learn more about our tips and tricks for growing tomatoes, see our full guide.
Tomato growing is our family’s way to connect year after year. We compare notes on everything, from how our crops are faring, to what varieties we planted, to what has been canned so far. And of course, we love talking about all the delicious ways we can eat them! Along with the abundance of tomatoes comes a million ways to prepare them. One of our fondest memories growing up with our mom was making her delicious Homemade Canned Spaghetti Sauce. We’ve tweaked the recipe over the years and now it’s darn near perfection!
Family Tested, Dad Approved
Part of the reason we worked so hard to perfect this canned spaghetti sauce recipe is because of our dad. To know him is to know his passionate love for Italian food. He is super picky about spaghetti sauce; it has to be just right. Well, we’re happy to report that we served this sauce at family dinner recently and our dad loved it! He couldn’t get enough. In fact, he used a spoon to get all the excess off his plate. He’s crazy about this savory sauce, and you will be too!
How Can I Use Canned Spaghetti Sauce?
The name may say spaghetti, but this marinara sauce is so versatile, it’s sure to become one of your favorite staples, and not just on pasta night. Try it as a thickener for Italian-style soups like Minestrone, or add tomato paste to a serving to make pizza sauce. Here are some more delicious recipes that use spaghetti sauce:
Water Bath Canning Spaghetti Sauce
Water bath canning tomatoes is the most common way to can tomatoes, but it must be done the right way. Tomatoes are in the “gray area” of having enough acidity, so you need to add a bit of lemon juice or citric acid to ensure it reaches the correct acidity for canning. You can learn all about water bath canning in my water bath canning guide. If you want to learn about the basics of canning and other ways to can, check out my Canning 101 post as well. Between these two posts, you will learn how to be a water bath canning pro in no time!
How to Use a Pressure Canner
For a weighted-gauge pressure canner, you will want to process 20 minutes for pint jars and 25 minutes for quart jars. I like to use the Presto 16-Quart Pressure Canner, which is great for canning spaghetti sauce, homemade jams, and more. You can get it for $78 at Walmart to start canning your own sauces.
Process at 10 pounds for altitudes between 0-1,000 feet. Process at 15 pounds for altitudes above 1,000 feet. For more information on pressure canning spaghetti sauce, check out the National Center for Home Food Preservation here.
Where to Buy Canning Jars
We like to use 1-quart canning jars from Ball. They’re the BEST for canning spaghetti sauce. You can get 12 of them at Walmart for around $16, which makes it a little over $1 a jar and one of the more affordable ways to start canning. We also like to use them as drinking glasses, food storage, flower vases, and more, so you’ll get a ton of use out of them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do not, I repeat, do NOT skip this step. Stick a reminder note on your jars or tie a ribbon on your finger so you don’t forget. You absolutely can not safely can tomatoes without bringing up the acidity first. If you forget to add the lemon juice you will need to open the jars, add the juice, replace with new lids, and reprocess.
You can add ground beef or ground Italian sausage ONLY if you are going to pressure can it OR if you freeze it instead of canning it (or you just want to eat it fresh or within a few days). Do not add ground beef if you are planning to water-bath can or steam can — it will not be safe to eat after sitting on the shelf.
Be really careful when adding or omitting ingredients to a canning recipe. You are usually fine adding spices but when it comes to adding fresh mushrooms, celery, parsley, thyme or meat it could throw off the acidity levels, thus making unsafe for canning.
We usually try to eat anything that we have canned within a year. You can probably go a couple years but probably not much longer than that. Some canning sites even say you shouldn’t go more than 6 months, but I think you are fine going longer than that.
Absolutely! This spaghetti sauce recipe freezes beautifully and lasts for several months in freezer bags or freezer-safe containers. Just make sure to thaw the sauce completely in the refrigerator before re-heating. If you DO want to add more random ingredients like ground beef or extra veggies, freezing is a good way to go if you are worried about acidity levels.
The only ingredient that has any gluten in this recipe is the soy sauce. It sounds weird to even have soy sauce in a spaghetti sauce recipe, but trust us, it is divine! Instead of cutting the soy sauce, opt for a gluten free brand. The rich flavor will knock your socks off!
Still Have a Question about Canning Spaghetti Sauce?
This recipe has been tried and LOVED by many of you. Be sure to check out the comments to see everyone’s reviews about this canned spaghetti sauce. We also answer a lot of canning questions that have been asked in the comment section so if you have any questions, read below and I am sure you will find the answer you are looking for! Still can’t find an answer? Leave a comment and we will try to answer it as quickly as possible. With the sheer volume of comments we get, it may take a few days for us to respond but we try to get to every question!
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How to Make Canned Spaghetti Sauce
Homemade Canned Spaghetti Sauce
Video
Ingredients
- 25 pounds tomatoes
- 5 medium onions (about 7-8 cups chopped)
- 4 red bell peppers
- 1 green bell pepper
- 4 (6oz) cans tomato paste
- 1/4 cups soy sauce Sounds weird, but trust us, it deepens the tomato flavor like you won’t believe!
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2/3 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/4 cup salt
- 10 cloves garlic chopped or minced
- 3 tablespoons oregano dried
- 3 tablespoons basil dried
- 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 1/4 cups lemon juice for jars
Instructions
- Fill a large pot or Dutch oven half-way with water, bring to a boil. Using a slotted spoon, add tomatoes one at a time until you can't fit any more (about 8-10 tomatoes).
- Boil for 1-2 minutes. Remove tomatoes one at a time with slotted spoon and plunge in an icewater bath. Peel and quarter tomatoes.
- In a food processor, cover and process green peppers and onions in batches until finely chopped (if you want to add extra flavor, saute the peppers and onions in a little oil and a pinch of salt before processing).In a large stockpot, combine the tomatoes (do not discard excess juices from the tomatoes), onion/pepper mixture, tomato paste, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, salt, garlic, oregano, basil, pepper flakes, and bay leaves.
- Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 4-5 hours, stirring every 15 minutes or so (tomatoes burn easily so keep an eye on it). Discard bay leaves.If you want to make your sauce thick and smooth, use an immersion blender to blend the tomatoes until smooth with no large chunks (you can also blend it in batches in a blender).
- Add 2 tablespoons lemon juice to 9 or 10 hot 1-quart jars (depending on how much sauce you have). Ladle hot mixture into jars, leaving 1/2-in. headspace at the top. Remove air bubbles; wipe rims and adjust lids.
For Water Bath Canning:
- Process for 40 minutes in a boiling-water canner for altitudes of 1,000 feet or less. For altitudes up to 3,000 feet, add 5 minutes; 6,000 feet, add 10 minutes; 8,000 feet, add 15 minutes; 10,000 feet, add 20 minutes.
For Pressure Canning:
- Using a weighted-gauge pressure canner, process 20 minutes for pint jars and 25 minutes for quart jars. Process at 10 lb for altitudes between 0-1,000 feet. Process at 15 lb for altitudes above 1,000 feet.
Notes
- This recipe makes 9-10 quart-sized jars
- Our Uncle Larry is arguably the best gardener ever. He always has an immaculate garden and has studied and taught about gardening. The man knows ALL the tricks to get plants to grow. Uncle Larry has 10 green thumbs! His techniques have been passed around the family, luckily for us. He shared his secrets with our mom, who also grows a bountiful garden every year. To learn more about our tips and tricks for growing tomatoes, see our full guide.
- This spaghetti sauce recipe freezes beautifully and lasts for several months in freezer bags or freezer-safe containers. Just make sure to thaw the sauce completely in the refrigerator before re-heating. If you DO want to add more random ingredients like ground beef or extra veggies, freezing is a good way to go if you are worried about acidity levels.
I want to run my tomatoes through a mill. Should I do this before I add the other ingredients? Or after?
Yes, I would run them through the mill before adding the other ingredients. It may make the sauce thinner so you may want to cook them down longer or add a little tomato paste to help it thicken. Hope this helps!
Help I forgot to put the lemon juice in the bottom of the jar will the pasta still be good or do I need to recan them.
You are going to have to re-process them if you would like to store the spaghetti sauce long term. Sorry! I have totally done this before too and it’s such a pain but it’s the only way to keep the contents safe for consumption.
My go to spaghetti sauce recipe every year! Most of the time I use the tomatoes that I’ve bagged and froze as there are other things in the garden I need to get to. I let the tomatoes defrost a bit and then as I peel them, place in a colander to drain some of the juice. I save the juice to add to soups, etc. I also leave out the red pepper flakes as we are all pretty wimpy. Love this recipe. Thanks for sharing!
I’m so happy this is your go-to recipe. We, of course, love it too. It’s a great idea to freeze your garden tomatoes and then make the sauce when you have time. I’ve never tried that. It’s good to know it works well. Thank you!
Awesome recipe..I’m new to canning. I’m trying this one next. Thanks 😊
I usually make spaghetti sauce (family recipe) using Roma and Heirloom tomatoes putting them in a food processor whole with skins for fresh sauce to be used same day..want to try your recipe and can for later..should I not leave skins on for canning?
Your recipe sounds amazing!!
Hi Harv, we remove the tomato skins before canning. I think you will love this recipe!
I have to say that the flavor of this recipe is absolutely delicious! My only complaint is that the yield is not what I was expecting. I only got 5 quarts and I followed the recipe exactly with the exception of maybe adjusting the spices a little bit. Other than that, I am looking forward to my next pasta dinner!
Thank you for letting us know about the yield. Not sure why that would be off by so much. Did you have exactly 25 pounds of tomatoes?
This Recipe is amazing! I just finished my last jar from last year’s crop and canning for 2024 as I type. My dad was in town last week and I made Eggplant Parmesan and without him knowing I made the sauce; he said it was the best spaghetti sauce he’s ever tasted and said the Eggplant was too.
That’s quite a compliment, Craig! Thank you for sharing this with us. I’m so happy you and your dad enjoyed the recipe. 😀
Can I add fresh basil and other herbs to this recipe?
Absolutely! I love adding fresh basil when I have it on hand.
SO excited to try this. So much that I have the tomatoes in the pot as we speak. I only have 17LBS though. Any chance you can give me the safe ratio of the other ingredients?😬
Your best bet would be to add another 8 ounces of fresh or canned tomatoes to get up to the 25 ounces of tomatoes.
It looks like you do not deseed the tomatoes. Is that correct? I’m gonna try your recipe for the first time today or tomorrow lol
We don’t remove the seeds. They get blended up in the process!
Dont know how quick you could get back to me?? Have used this as my hobby to make sauce 1/yr vacuum and freeze…..family and friends love. Always cook for hours. Have you ever or would recommend using a crock pot ..low 6-8 hrs to ease the cooking step? ready to execute, as my Romas are ripening fast.Thx in advance.
G
Are you saying that you want to cook down the sauce in the Crock Pot? Depending on how many tomatoes you have, it may not fit in a Crock Pot. If you are doing a small batch, you could probably do it! You will want it to cook down so I would say cook it without the lid. Does this answer your question?
Made this twice and my family loves it! I was little surprised by its spiciness with just 2 tsp of red pepper flakes but it has a great flavor. Thanks for the recipe!
Erica, the recipe looks awesome and I’m planning on making with the last batch of tomatoes I have in the garden.
Quick question – in your recipe you put “green peppers” and onions in food processor. But the recipe has 4 “red peppers”. I assume you put both red and green peppers in food processor (because I don’t see them used in any other place)? Thanks in advance and I look forward to making this week.
Yes! Add the red and green peppers together!
Sounds so yummy… I plan on pressure canning this recipe. Do I still need to add two T of lemon juice to my quart jars? Just curious? Thank you
Yes you should still add the lemon juice!
I just got done with two batches and I forgot the lemon juice. Will this ruin my sauce?
You won’t be able to store them long-term without the lemon juice. The acidity in the jar needs to be raised to make them safe for canning. You may need to re-process the two batches after adding lemon juice or store them in the refrigerator and use them within a month or so.
hands down best spaghetti sauce Ive ever made!
I am not sure what I did wrong but I only got 12 pints spaghetti sauce. Do you cook the sauce in with the lid on or off. I cooked it at a very low heat and in very heavy pot. 2.4 temperature on my stove.
Have used this recipe several times and my family loves it
This sauce is wonderful. In fact excellent. It so good that we canned 50 qts. If I ever run out its what I will make fresh too. Its good on regular noodles. Its good on spaghetti squash.
Its good on whole wheat noodles. And zoodles! Yum
I absolutely LOVE this sauce recipe! It’s such a perfectly fresh tasting tomato sauce. I canned 4 large batches of it last year thinking we would have way too much left over. Well, we only have 3 pints left! Planning to make another 4 recipes of it again this year – batch one happening tomorrow!
This tastes SOOOOO GOOOD!! I don’t want to can it—I want to EAT IT! 🙂 Question though— If I want to thicken it up, what’s the best method? It turned out pretty runny (though, I’m only 3 hrs into the simmering, so maybe it’ll thicken more in the next hour or two?!) Thank you for sharing a great recipe!!
You can keep simmering, or when you serve the sauce you can add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste!
Love this recipe! I added three Parmesan rinds I had in the freezer and cumin. Best ever!