When you’re paleo, skipping the pasta doesn’t mean you have to live without a full-flavored marinara meat sauce. This very simple recipe would be perfect for so many of your healthy paleo meals!
You know, this is the same amazing Italian sauce recipe I’ve been whipping up for more than 20 years. No kidding! It’s very clean with wholesome ingredients that were paleo before there was paleo. That’s because the best Italian cooks use ingredients that are natural, ripe, and at the peak of flavor. Italian recipes are rarely complicated – it’s the flavors and simplicity that keep you coming back for more.
And here’s something that may surprise you – for this recipe, I used canned tomatoes. What? Canned tomatoes? Oh yes! And here’s why: the brand of tomatoes I use – Cento® San Marzano – are picked, peeled, and packed in Italy (in their own puréed tomato sauce no less) when the tomatoes are at their sweetest.
If you jar tomatoes from your garden or want to search the grocery stores looking for perfect plum tomatoes, peel them, and then cook them down, well, I bow down to you. Really, I do. But if you want to save yourself some time, grab a can opener and try the Cento-brand peeled tomatoes…this recipe will turn out amazing every single time, thanks to those ripe red beauties.
If you like this sauce, I’d encourage you to double the recipe and freeze some so you can use it later. As written, the recipe makes about 6 cups of meat sauce – so I usually double it and then freeze the leftovers in 3-cup portions. Use freezer bags or any air-tight containers you like. Then the best part about this recipe will be the day you come home tired and don’t want to think about what to cook – and you suddenly remember you’ve got a lovely paleo meat sauce you can reheat in a jiffy!
And one more thing, feel free to leave out the sausage if you want. This paleo marinara sauce is amazing without it if you prefer to go meatless.
Quick, easy, and delicious is how I like paleo meals. Given a little preparation, your paleo menu can be awesome and full of flavor…this incredible paleo marinara sauce recipe is a great example of that. That’s how us Italian girls like it. Bellissimo!
Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 28 oz can Cento® San Marzano Italian peeled tomatoes
- 15 oz tomato sauce
- 1 lb uncooked Italian sausage – mild or hot
- 1/2 large yellow onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp basil
- 2 tbs fresh parsley
- Optional: 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes (I always add this!)
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- In saucepan over medium heat, sauté onion in about 2 tbs of olive oil for about 5-7 minutes
- Add garlic, stir one minute
- Add sausage, brown until cooked through
- Drain fat
- Next add the peeled tomatoes and tomato sauce, followed by the herbs and (optional) pepper flakes
- Taste sauce and add salt and pepper as needed
- Turn down heat and allow sauce to simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally
- Serve immediately, or cool then store in air-tight freezer bags/containers