When crafting the perfect homemade pizza, the secret is in the sauce. Our exceptional sauce for homemade pizza is inspired by our love of California-grown tomatoes, onions, olive oil and garlic. We think most people would agree that the soul of any great pizza lies in its sauce, and our recipe is a total winner!

The Heart of Every Pizza: The Sauce

Homemade pizza has always been a family favorite around here, with its ability to be completely customizable to anyone’s taste preferences. It’s fast, easy, and always a unanimous “YES!”. But what truly elevates our pizza recipe from the rest is the California Grown Pizza Sauce.

When you bite into a slice of pizza, the flavors you experience come largely from the sauce. Our recipe is rich and hearty with canned tomato paste and canned plum tomatoes from California, California extra virgin olive oil, onions, garlic, dried herbs, and a touch of balsamic vinegar. Together these ingredients cook down into a thick luscious sauce in just over 20 minutes.

Crafted for simplicity and speed, this sauce captures the essence of Italian flavors, reimagined with a touch of California sunshine. Here’s how to whip up this rustic sauce that promises to take your homemade pizza to the next level.

Step-by-Step How to Make Sauce For Homemade Pizza

Once you make your first batch of pizza sauce, you’ll be sold. And there will be no looking back. The only question you’ll find yourself asking is, what toppings should I pile on top of my pizza?! And to that, we say, all things California Grown!

Hungry for more pizza-inspired recipes? We’ve got you covered!

Whether you are into traditional pizza or want something a bit out of the ordinary, there is something below for every type of pizza eater.

Pizza Twirls

These adorably delicious pizza rolls from California Ripe Olives may look difficult make, but they are surprisingly easy and delicious too! We can’t think of a better application for our homemade pizza sauce recipe.

Click here for this recipe.

Black & White Pizza

For those of you who want something completely different, this incredibly decadent pizza from California Ripe Olives packs BIG flavor without the tomato-based sauce.

Click here for this recipe.

Pepperoni and Black Olive Stromboli

This Stromboli recipe from Baking the Goods may have you wondering, what exactly is Stromboli? It’s basically like a pizza and a sandwich got really cozy and rolled up together into one gloriously crave-able nosh. You’re gonna LOVE it!

Click here for this recipe.

Marinated Olive Beer-Crust Pizza

This deliciously easy make-ahead pizza dinner from Displaced Housewife is one that you will love! Prep the dough, sauce, and olives up to three days in advance, meaning pizza night has never been easier.

Click here for this recipe.

A Word About California Extra Virgin Olive Oil:

Want to be sure your olive oil is fresh, the highest quality, and the real deal? Look for the COOC seal on bottles of California Extra Virgin Olive Oil to make sure you’re getting delicious 100% Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Certified California EVOO uses stricter standards than international requirements, requiring the oil to pass chemical testing and a sensory analysis by a group of experts, called an organoleptic panel evaluation.

BE SURE TO SHARE YOUR HOMEMADE PIZZA CREATIONS WITH US BY SNAPPING A PIC AND TAGGING US ON SOCIAL USING #CAGROWN. For more mouthwatering inspirations with a Californian touch, follow us on Pinterest!

California Grown Pizza Sauce

Meg van der Kruik

Our exceptional sauce for homemade pizza is inspired by our love of California-grown tomatoes, onions, and garlic.

4.84 from 6 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Servings 3 cups

Calories 247 kcal

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 2 tablespoons garlic minced
• 1 yellow onion small diced
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 28 ounce canned whole plum tomatoes
• 2 teaspoon oregano dried
• 1 teaspoon basil dried
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 3 teaspoon salt
• ⅛ teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

 

• Cook garlic, onion, red pepper flakes, and oil in a medium saute pan or skillet on low heat for 5 minutes or until onions are translucent. Stir frequently to avoid burning the garlic.
• Add tomato paste and cook for another 3 minutes or until the color begins to darken.
• Add the plum tomatoes and gently break them apart with a wooden spoon or spatula, then stir in oregano, basil, bay leaf, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper.
• Allow the sauce to simmer on low for fifteen minutes and check for seasoning. Additional simmer time may be added if you want your sauce to be thicker. If you want it to be thinner, add a little water at a time.
• You can further puree the sauce in a food processor or blender to your desired consistency or keep it chunky.
• Sauce can be cooled and refrigerated for up to five days in an airtight container.

Video

Notes

It is important to maintain low heat during the entire process to avoid burning the garlic.

Cooking the tomato paste until it darkens is an important step that will add incredible depth to the flavor of the sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 247kcalCarbohydrates: 19gProtein: 3gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 14gSodium: 2802mgPotassium: 713mgFiber: 5gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 698IUVitamin C: 31mgCalcium: 130mgIron: 4mg

Keyword homemade sauce for pizza, pizza, pizza sauce, tomato sauce

Tried this recipe?Mention @cagrownofficial or tag #CAGROWN!

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This article and recipe by Meg van der Kruik. Photo credit Becky Sue Wilberding for California Grown.