Pasta with tomato sauce is a favorite Italian dinner staple that most Americans make at home and order in restaurants. But if you've ever done a quick Google search for a recipe or browsed a few menus of Italian restaurants in your area, you've likely run into some confusing terminology. Pasta with some type of tomato-based sauce can go by many names — and the distinctions between them can be major or subtle. Here’s a breakdown of the similarities and differences between the most common terms you're likely to see when it comes to Italian noodles and sauce.
What Is Marinara?
In short, marinara sauce is a type of pasta sauce. It's likely the one that most people are familiar with — a simple, tomato-based pasta sauce without a lot of fuss. What distinguishes marinara as its own signature sauce is its unfussy ingredient list and quick cook time. It traditionally consists of only tomato passata (tomato puree), salt, and pepper; it may occasionally include a pinch of chili flakes, a sprig of basil, or a clove of garlic. Marinara is thin and hom*ogenous in consistency; you won't find any chunks or tomato skins in classic marinara.
While many recipes would lead you to believe otherwise, true marinara is a relatively plain sauce that really showcases the taste of the tomatoes without a lot of other supporting characters muddling the flavor. It's more traditional than other popular American versions of Italian sauces. Marinara can also be used as a dipping sauce or as an ingredient in other recipes, like mussels marinara.
What Is Pasta Sauce?
Technically, pasta sauce is any sauce typically paired with pasta — like pesto, bolognese, Alfredo, and marinara as well. But people usually think of a more robust and flavorful tomato sauce as classic "pasta sauce." There are really no hard-and-fast rules on what can simply be called pasta sauce. Still, it often contains a mixture of tomato products, including crushed tomatoes, passata, and tomato paste combined with fresh and dried herbs, salt and pepper, garlic, onion, and more. The consistency is usually a thicker, chunkier product. This formula is much more popular with American pasta sauces, especially pre-made jarred sauce; you won't generally find this type of sauce among the Italian classics.
The 20 Best Pasta Sauces, According to Our Readers
If you've ever thumbed through an old French cookbook, you may have encountered the term “sauce tomate,” also known as, tomato sauce. This is one of the five French "mother sauces" and is a more French-influenced take on classic Italian red sauces. Sauce tomate includes the usual suspects like tomato product and seasoning, but also includes pancetta or another cured pork product and meat stock. The primary diversion from Italian tradition is the occasional inclusion of a roux, a cooked paste of butter and flour, used to thicken the sauce. In some preparations, the final sauce is closer to the texture of tomato paste than thin marinara. It's not uncommon to see a version of sauce tomate billed as “pasta sauce” in recipes and restaurants.
What About Meat Sauce?
Bolognese is a highly traditional Italian pasta sauce with a base of tomato paste and ground meat. In America, it's often called "meat sauce" or "spaghetti sauce," but some refer to this type of sauce as "pasta sauce." The varieties you'll find gracing American menus and recipes divert considerably from the classic Italian recipe, creating an entirely new dish. Traditional Italian bolognese starts with long cooking of a sofrito — a blend of carrots, onions, and celery — in olive oil until they're nearly melted. This is followed by ground beef and pork deglazed with red wine and a dollop of tomato paste before being cooked for hours and finished with a splash of milk.
How to Know if Your 'Italian' Ingredients Are Actually Italian
In contrast, American "meat sauce" usually starts with ground beef and sometimes includes some sofrito veggies, along with the occasional bell pepper or mushroom. This is mixed with crushed tomatoes or tomato passata and is usually seasoned with dry herbs and cooked for a much shorter time period. This type of sauce is very common in the U.S. and has become ubiquitous as "pasta sauce," especially when paired with spaghetti.
In short, marinara sauce is a type of pasta sauce. It's likely the one that most people are familiar with — a simple, tomato-based pasta sauce without a lot of fuss. What distinguishes marinara as its own signature sauce is its unfussy ingredient list and quick cook time.
One of the key differences is that pasta sauce is more robust and complex, with a longer ingredient list and rich flavor. Marinara does not typically contain meat (while spaghetti sauce does), giving it a thinner texture. Marinara is traditionally used as a dipping sauce, while pasta sauce is not.
Many recipes can accommodate either marinara or tomato sauce. For example, both tomato-based sauces can be used for pasta, but the heavier, more complex tomato sauce can overpower lighter, simpler dishes, while marinara is less ideal for smothering proteins or filling out lasagnas.
Marinara can be used as a spaghetti sauce or with any other type of pasta, or it can be used as a dipping sauce for mozzarella sticks, breadsticks, and more. Spaghetti sauce uses all those same base ingredients and then takes it to the next level with proteins and/or vegetables.
We call it marinara because that is what it is by definition. marinara | Definition of marinara in English by Oxford Dictionaries tells us: Denoting a sauce made from tomatoes, onions, and herbs, served especially with pasta. From the Italian phrase alla marinara 'sailor-style'.
Marinara sauce is lower in calories and fat, making it a preferable sauce choice for those that are counting calories or on a low-fat diet. It also has more fiber than Alfredo sauce as it contains mostly vegetables. Conversely, high-fat diets are on the rise, making Alfredo an ideal sauce for many consumers.
Is Pizza Sauce the Same as Marinara? Pizza sauce and marinara sauce are similar but not the same. Pizza sauce is thicker in consistency than marinara sauce because the tomatoes are pureed instead of lightly blended. Pizza sauce is usually cooked on a pizza crust, whereas marinara sauce is served as a dip or topping.
Flour: Make a slurry of 2 parts water to 1 part all-purpose flour and whisk until very smooth. Slowly whisk in no more than 1 tablespoon of the mixture per 2 cups of simmering sauce. Stir and simmer for about 2 minutes, check the thickness, and repeat with more as needed.
Rao's Homemade® quickly became the world's leading brand of premium pasta sauce and for good reason: Rao's sauces are simmered slowly and made in small batches with only the best ingredients, like pure Italian olive oil and hand-picked, naturally ripened tomatoes from southern Italy.
Best Pasta for Marinara and Tomato Sauces: Spaghetti
It doesn't get much simpler than spaghetti, a long, round noodle that can be paired with just about any sauce. Spaghetti's smooth texture makes it a good choice for thin tomato sauces, which evenly coat the noodles as you twirl them around a fork.
These thicker types of pasta are much better equipped to handle the chunky sauce. This is not to be confused with spaghetti sauce, which is often also used in lasagna. Spaghetti sauce, on the other hand, is a tomato-based sauce that's much thinner and usually served with spaghetti (surprise!).
If you don't have tomato paste on hand, you can use pasta sauce on pizza by following these steps: Strain the pasta sauce to remove excess liquid. Add the pasta sauce to a food processor or blender and pulse until smooth. Add your desired seasoning and salt to taste.
If you are buying a jarred or canned sauce, choose a tomato-based (marinara) sauce rather than a creamy sauce. Creamy sauces usually have more saturated fat and calories. Eating too much saturated fat has been linked to heart disease. Tomato-based sauces also contain more nutrients like vitamin A and lycopene.
To make a pizza, you're layering a sauce between uncooked dough and unheated cheese to create the delicious finished product. Conversely, a pasta sauce like marinara is added to the finished product of a cooked pasta (unless you're making lasagna, but that's a different story).
Introduction: My name is Greg O'Connell, I am a delightful, colorful, talented, kind, lively, modern, tender person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/11966-best-marinara-sauce-yet-DDMFS-4x3-078e494b66c4485e8efe0971473b3196.jpg "Marinara vs. Pasta Sauce: What's the Difference? (1)")
