Marinara sauce!

So the wife had bought some heart-shaped pasta because she thought it was "adorable". I've always wanted to make my own sauce but she had always objected because it would "take too long". So we usually have Prego and it worked.

Well....heart-shaped pasta means a special marinara so she gave me the go-ahead to make something new. Now...I know what kind of marinara I like, so I set out with no recipe but an idea of what I wanted in the sauce. Here were my steps.

Two large cans of tomato sauce and a large can of tomato paste (no time to make the sauce from true scratch, i.e. from raw tomatoes...I'll try that another day).
Pound of lean hamburger
Fresh Basil
Fresh Oregano
Fresh Garlic
Kosher salt
Pepper
White wine
small white onion
Stalk of celery
Olive oil

Chop up the onion, garlic, and celery. You'll need to use your own judgement as far as how much of each to add depending on how much you like garlic or onion flavor or how much texture you want the celery to contribute to your dish. I did one stalk celery, half a small white onion, and 12 or so cloves of garlic (maybe 15...we love garlic). Toss it in a pan with what I'd estimate to be 1/3 cup of olive oil. Saute it until the garlic starts to brown and the onions begin to carmelize. Then throw in around 3/4 or 1/2 cup (hard to estimate when you've been drinking some of it) white wine. I used a Napa Valley Chardonnay...it was what I had sitting around. Let that reduce down until it's thickened and then dump it in the pot with the tomato sauce, paste, and cooked hamburger.

Wash the basil and oregano and then dice/tear it up or run it through your food processor and toss it in the pot. You'll need to judge how much you like basil and oregano as well. I used...probably two tablespoons of oregano (after it's chopped) and around half or so of one of those fresh "organic" packs of basil from the grocery. maybe two tablespoons after it's all cut up. If you use dried spices the amounts will be different.

Add some salt and pepper (to your taste) and then just let the stuff simmer and thicken to your desired consistency. As I was testing the taste of the sauce I couldn't stop eating it. I'd love to try this same sauce inside a lasagna.

Some ideas for improvements/changes for different flavors. Each of these changes will be one at a time not all at once. I'd like to chop up some rosemary (just a little) and add that. Also roast half a red pepper in the broiler, skin it, then chop it up. Some lemon zest and a bit of lemon juice added to the skillet when browning the garlic, onions, and celery might be nice too.

Anyway...just wanted to share as I thought this stuff was amazing and my lovely wife agrees...and now I'm capable of killing most of the cast of those sparkly fagpire movies with my breath.

I haven't used jar sauce in years, and my family is spoiled. We usually prefer meat sauce, which means I'll saute some fresh minced garlic and shallot in some olive oil, add fresh thyme and rosemary from my yard, then add a 25oz can of whole tomatoes in sauce (the plum tomatoes), and maybe 6oz of tomato sauce. I'll let that simmer for 10-15 minutes, then use a wooden spoon to smash/chop the whole tomatoes. Add salt/pepper to taste and voila. It's really simple and clean. If it's in season, I'll add some fresh basil. For meat sauce, add ground beef after the garlic and shallots have sweated. If I'm in one of those cooking moods, I'll roast some red peppers, puree them and add them to the sauce for a bit of sweet smokiness.

Sure, opening a jar of sauce is convenient, but making "real" marinara sauce isn't rocket science, doesn't take that much time or effort, and tastes way better than prepared stuff.

yep
just like this
although i like to add just a pinch of sugar. (esp if using my own canned tomato's as they tend to be more acidic)

You made a nice gravy, however, marinara tends to have no meat in it.

I tend to make my gravy in a similar fashion, however I will use homemade lean pork sausage, or cut it 50/50 with hamburger. I add a teaspoon or two of sugar with it, and sometimes will add a small amount of crushed red pepper.

Prego is one of the better jar-sauces, IMO. I use it when in a time jam, or for chicken fingers, nuggets, etc. The first time I had it was at a friends house and I was truly fooled into thinking he scratch made the gravy. I couldn't believe it when he showed me the jar. Costco has the big jars.

Usually, when I have pasta on my mind, I start the gravy as soon as I get in from work. If it doesn't simmer for at least an hour, it just isn't right.

I like pasta sauce prepared Italian Sunday gravy style.

How long do let your marinara sauce simmer compared to a spaghetti sauce?

Marinara is not sunday gravy
it's a simple fresh tasting sauce.
You will taste the individual pieces rather than the melded whole.

15-20 minutes TOTAL start to finish.

In high school, for a winter formal dance, I spent all day making an incredible spaghetti sauce for a group of us that were having dinner together. I used a very old New York Times cookbook, and the sauce took about 6 hours. Of course, we were in high school and nobody cared that it was awesome. They would have been fine with generic sauce from a can. Now, I just don't have the time for that. Like BozemanMT, I can whip up a marinara sauce in 15-20 minutes. By the time I leave work, get the kids and get home, I have to whip dinner up in a hurry. 5 minutes to saute the garlic and shallot, 10-15 minutes to simmer the tomatoes (either whole plum tomatoes in sauce or crushed tomatoes) and 2 minutes final prep (crush the whole tomatoes, add salt/pepper to taste), then serve.

Can someone explain to me why you would simmer a marinara sauce for hours and hours? What is the scientific reasoning behind this? I'm well aware of the logic "because that's how it's done", but I'm curious if someone has a valid explanation along with comparisons.

I can only offer why I think it's done. Over time, if a sauce simmers, the flavors can become more intense with the evaporation of water, and flavors can 'meld.' Also, some flavors tend to mellow out after cooking and can be more palatable, and sugars can caramelize. There's no doubt that heat and time can radically alter flavor profiles. I have no scientific data to back this up though.

If you want more flavor, why add water only to boil it away again?

Sugar isn't going to caramelize in a boiling pot either.

Nowhere did I say I added water. If I put a 25oz can of tomatoes in a saucepan, the water content will evaporate over time.

I only simmer until it is as thick as I want it...I don't know about how "officially" it's done.

Italian gravy...marinara sauce with meat... I thought this was a place for sharing recipes not semantics. Yes, the marinara is the sauce part...

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