How To Make Tomato Sauce The Old-School Way (No Blender Needed)

Canned tomato sauce is great to have on hand, as it's used in a wide variety of recipes. However, if you want to make soup, spaghetti sauce, or salsa and you don't have a can of sauce, you can make your own easily, and you don't even need to use a blender or food processor. Instead, you can use an old-school method that achieves the same (or even better) results.

Start with fresh, ripe tomatoes — the best types of tomatoes for making sauce are Roma, plum, or San Marzano. Score each tomato with a paring knife and blanch them in boiling water for about a minute. Immediately put them in an ice bath and peel off the outer skins. You can then chop the tomatoes, crush them by hand, or use a potato masher to make it easier.

Next, put your fresh, mashed tomatoes into a pot and simmer them with olive oil, basil leaves, and finely chopped garlic. If you're making heirloom tomato sauce, you'll saute your garlic and chile flakes in olive oil, then add your tomatoes. Let everything simmer for long enough that the tomatoes break down further and the sauce becomes thicker. If you're making a fresh, chunky salsa, all you need to do is add the rest of your ingredients to your crushed tomatoes and stir. For soup, add the tomatoes to a pot along with broth and let it simmer on low until the tomatoes start to break apart, then add your meats and veggies.

Alternatively, you can use the box grater method for prepping tomatoes. Cut the tomatoes in half and rub the cut ends along a box grater to turn each tomato into pulp. If you have cans of whole tomatoes, the process is even easier. Just dump the tomatoes into a bowl and use your hands to crush them up into a sauce-like consistency. Then simmer the tomatoes along with garlic, olive oil, and your desired veggies and spices over a low heat, stirring regularly. As the tomatoes break down, the sauce will become thinner. You can thicken it with cornstarch or just continue to simmer it on low to allow it to reduce, watching carefully to prevent it from burning.

You can also chop your fresh tomatoes into chunks and roast them in the oven for a deeper, smokier flavor. To make perfect roasted tomatoes, spray a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray or lightly coat it with olive oil. Place your tomato pieces in a single layer along with some whole, peeled cloves of garlic and wedges of white or yellow onion. Drizzle everything with some more olive oil and season it all liberally with salt, pepper, and other desired seasonings. When the tomatoes are perfectly toasted, put them in a bowl and use a potato masher to crush them. Then simmer them on the stove with ¼ cup of water or broth and three tablespoons of butter until the tomatoes break apart and turn into a smoother and more consistent texture.