As the base of countless cherished recipes, knowing how to make tomato sauce is akin to setting a strong, reliable foundation before building a masterpiece, whether the classic Marinara sauce, a spicy Arrabbiata, or a hearty Bolognese.
Its sweet, vibrant flavor, complemented by a gentle caress of acidity, melds into a rich, velvety sauce that cradles the taste buds in a tender, comforting embrace.
Amish Paste
Origin: Amish community in Wisconsin
Type: Heirloom
Flavor: Sweet, superior to many paste tomatoes; including Roma
Characteristics: Thick-walled, meaty, high in umami, low in seeds
Best for: Sauces, salsas, purees
Growing Tips: Indeterminate plant, continuous growth and fruit production, disease-resistant
Originating from the Amish community in Wisconsin, the Amish Paste tomato boasts an heirloom lineage. This variety stands out with its sweet taste, often considered superior to many other paste tomatoes, including Roma.
As a substantial indeterminate plant, it is great for backyard gardeners and DIY farming enthusiasts by offering continuous growth and fruit production throughout the season. The thick-walled, meaty tomato flesh of the Amish Paste makes it an exceptional choice for sauce-making.
High in umami flavor yet low on seeds, these large tomatoes can be transformed into delicious pasta or pizza sauces through prolonged simmering or sautéing. Simmer the sauce while stirring occasionally to ensure even cooking and prevent sticking.
They're versatile, too - perfect for creating tangy salsas, rich marinara sauces, and purees. Their noteworthy disease resistance adds another feather to their cap, making them a preferred selection among outdoor tomato variants.
Big Mama
Origin: Hybrid variant
Type: Lycopersicon esculentum
Flavor: Balanced between sweet and tangy
Characteristics: Large, plum-like shape, meaty texture, less juicy for thicker sauces
Best for: Marinara, pasta dishes
Growing Tips: Needs six hours of sunlight daily, water about one inch per week
Big Mama tomatoes earn their name from their impressive size, growing up to five inches long and three inches wide. Renowned for their exceptional yield per plant, these sizable tomatoes have a plum-like shape and meaty texture that's perfect for crafting hearty sauces.
This hybrid variant of Lycopersicon esculentum is highly regarded by gardening enthusiasts and seed companies, with Burpee recommending them as a top choice. Known for their heft and flavor, Big Mama tomatoes strike a pleasing balance between sweet and tangy notes.
They are equally delightful in salads or eaten plain, but they truly shine in homemade marinara or pasta dishes. Adding olive oil to the sauce enhances its flavor and texture.
Their less juicy interiors ensure a thicker sauce consistency, often preferred by many cooks. When cultivating Big Mamas in your backyard garden, expose them to at least six hours of sunlight daily and water them approximately one inch per week.
Carmello
Origin: Traditional
Type: Medium to large, round
Flavor: Robust
Characteristics: Dense, firm flesh, ideal for thick sauces
Best for: Marinara, pizza sauce
Growing Tips: Vigorous growth, easy to cultivate from germination through ripening
Carmello tomatoes captivate gardeners and chefs alike with their vigorous growth and robust flavor. These medium to large, round red tomatoes stand out for their vibrant appearance. Their dense, firm flesh is perfect for slicing but truly excels in sauce creation.
Carmello tomatoes distinguish themselves with an unparalleled meaty texture, making them ideal for simmering into thick sauces. These plump gems are delightful whether stewed into cozy marinara or folded into pizza sauce.
Adding red pepper flakes can give the sauce a bit of heat and enhance its overall flavor. Savvy DIY farmers seeking reliable, high-yield tomato varieties should consider Carmello tomatoes. Their resilient nature ensures they are easy to cultivate from germination through the ripening season.
Costoluto Genovese
Origin: Italy
Type: Heirloom
Flavor: Tangy, robust
Characteristics: Large, deeply ribbed, rich and meaty texture
Best for: Sauces, soups, juicing
Growing Tips: Thrives in high heat and cooler weather, thick-walled with few seeds, suitable for canning and juicing
Costoluto Genovese tomatoes are an indeterminate heirloom variety from Italy. These large, red, deeply ribbed fruits are perfect for making fresh tomato sauce and paste.
Their rich, meaty texture adds depth to sauces and soups. Known for a tangy, robust flavor, they bring authentic Italian taste to your dishes. Adding fresh basil leaves can elevate the taste and aroma of the sauce.
These tomatoes thrive in both high heat and cooler weather. They are ideal for backyard gardens or larger-scale cultivation. With thick-walled flesh and few seeds, they are excellent for canning and juicing.
Costoluto Genovese tomatoes also make great tomato juice. They are open-pollinated, so you can save seeds from previous harvests. For best results, grow them in USDA Hardiness Zones 8-10.
Simmered into pasta sauce or used in pizza sauce, Costoluto Genovese tomatoes enhance your culinary creations with their distinctive flavor.
Giulietta
Origin: Italy
Type: Plum
Flavor: Mild, sweet
Characteristics: Firm texture, low moisture, ideal for thick sauces
Best for: Marinara, pasta sauces
Growing Tips: High productivity, ripens prolifically from July onwards
Giulietta tomatoes are a standout choice for sauce-making, known for their firm texture and mild, sweet flavor. These large Italian plum tomatoes have low moisture content, perfect for creating thick, concentrated sauces.
Recognized for their excellence in Italian cuisine, Giulietta tomatoes are ideal for marinara and pasta sauces, adding depth and richness to dishes. They can be used in various recipes, from simmering with herbs to making thick pastes. Additionally, Giulietta tomatoes are perfect for a fresh tomato sauce recipe, providing a rich and concentrated flavor.
These tomatoes are highly productive, ripening prolifically from July onwards. This high yield makes them a favorite among home gardeners looking for a bountiful harvest.
Heinz 1350
Origin: Developed by H. J. Heinz Company
Type: Determinate
Flavor: Balanced
Characteristics: Bright red, globe-shaped, uniform ripening
Best for: Sauces, canning
Growing Tips: Mid-season, high yields, suitable for fresh use in salads or sandwiches
Heinz 1350 tomatoes are a reliable choice for sauce-making. Developed by the H. J. Heinz Company, these determinate, mid-season tomatoes produce bright red, globe-shaped fruits.
Each tomato weighs between 6 to 8 ounces, making them perfect for sauces and canning. Their uniform ripening allows for harvesting plenty of ripe tomatoes simultaneously, streamlining the sauce-making process. Adding lemon juice is necessary to ensure a safe level of acidity for canning the sauce.
Heinz 1350 tomatoes offer great flavor and texture, suitable for fresh use in salads or as sandwich slices. Their balanced flavor enhances both cooked and raw dishes.
Favored by gardeners for their dependable performance and high yields, Heinz 1350 tomatoes are versatile and easy to grow, making them an excellent addition to any home garden.
Jersey Giant
Origin: Rare variety
Type: Meaty
Flavor: Rich
Characteristics: Elongated, bright red, high yield
Best for: Fresh tomato sauce, canning
Growing Tips: Minimal seeds, ideal for thick, robust sauces
Jersey Giant tomatoes are a rare and exceptional variety, perfect for making flavorful fresh tomato sauce. These meaty tomatoes have rich flesh and minimal seeds, ideal for creating thick, robust sauces.
Their elongated shape, bright red color, and pointed ends make them visually appealing and packed with taste. Jersey Giants are known for their high yield, making them an excellent choice for those looking to harvest a plentiful crop for sauce-making. Using fresh tomatoes ensures a superior flavor and texture in the homemade sauce.
In addition to sauces, these tomatoes are also great for canning. Their dense texture holds up well during the canning process, preserving their rich flavor.
Martino's Roma
Origin: Traditional Roma
Type: Paste
Flavor: Exceptional
Characteristics: Low water content, dense flesh
Best for: Sauces, salsas, tomato paste
Growing Tips: High yield, takes about 75 days to mature
Martino's Roma tomatoes are highly sought after for their exceptional flavor and versatility in sauces. These meaty tomatoes, typically weighing around 2-3 ounces each, are perfect for creating rich sauces, salsas, and tomato paste.
With their low water content and dense flesh, Martino's Roma tomatoes are a go-to choice for both home cooks and professional chefs. They provide an impressive yield, ensuring you have plenty of tomatoes to work with in your recipes.
Whether simmering them into a marinara sauce or sautéing them as a base for pizzas, Martino's Roma will add depth and complexity to any dish. These tomatoes are also easy to grow, taking about 75 days to mature from germination. Making tomato sauce with Martino's Roma tomatoes is easy and results in a rich, flavorful sauce.
Napoli
Origin: Southern Italy
Type: San Marzano variety
Flavor: Rich umami
Characteristics: Thick walls, meaty texture, few seeds
Best for: Authentic Italian sauces
Growing Tips: Traditional farming practices, adaptable to various climates
Napoli tomatoes, originating from the picturesque city in southern Italy, are synonymous with high-quality sauce tomatoes. Known for their thick walls, meaty texture, and few seeds, these tomatoes are perfect for creating rich, flavorful sauces.
One notable variety from Napoli is the San Marzano tomato, grown exclusively in the Sarnese-Nocerino district. San Marzano tomatoes are celebrated for their outstanding sauce-making qualities, providing a rich umami flavor that enhances any dish. Napoli tomatoes are also perfect for making homemade spaghetti sauce, adding depth and richness to the dish.
Napoli tomatoes thrive in traditional farming practices, producing high-quality fruits. Their adaptability to various climates and soil conditions makes them a reliable choice for gardeners looking to grow exceptional sauce tomatoes.
Northern Ruby
Origin: Bred by Montana grower Doug Beaty
Type: Determinate
Flavor: Classic paste flavor
Characteristics: Thick-walled, meaty, few seeds
Best for: Sauces, canning
Growing Tips: Early producers, high yield
Northern Ruby tomatoes are a rare and highly sought-after variety, perfect for making delicious sauce. Bred by Montana grower Doug Beaty, these medium-sized, bright red paste tomatoes are known for their creamy sauce and classic paste flavor.
These determinate tomatoes grow to a specific size and then stop growing, making them easy to manage in a backyard garden or DIY farm. Northern Ruby plants are early producers, so you can start enjoying the fruits of your labor sooner.
With thick-walled, meaty flesh and very few seeds, Northern Ruby tomatoes are ideal for creating a flavorful sauce. Their high yield ensures you'll have an abundance of tomatoes per plant. Whether simmered into marinara or sautéed with herbs for pasta or pizza sauce, Northern Ruby will elevate your culinary creations. Additionally, Northern Ruby tomatoes can be used to make canned tomato sauce, ensuring a shelf-stable product for up to 12 months.
Opalka
Origin: Polish heirloom
Type: Paste
Flavor: Rich, sweet
Characteristics: Meaty, minimal seeds, virtually seedless
Best for: Thick, hearty sauces
Growing Tips: Prolific vines, excellent disease resistance
Opalka tomatoes are a prized Polish heirloom variety known for their exceptional taste, making them one of the best tomatoes for sauce-making. These elongated tomatoes range from 2 to 4 inches in size and are borne on prolific vines that showcase excellent disease resistance.
One of the key features of Opalka tomatoes is their meaty texture and minimal seed content. This makes them perfect for creating thick, hearty sauces with rich, sweet flavor. Their impressive meatiness and refreshing sweetness add depth and complexity to any sauce or paste recipe. Additionally, cherry tomatoes can also be used to make a fresh tomato sauce, adding a unique flavor and texture.
Opalka tomatoes are virtually seedless, making them easy to process for sauce-making. They are an ideal choice for those looking to create a thick and hearty sauce. Whether you're simmering, sautéing, or boiling your sauce ingredients, Opalka delivers outstanding results every time.
Oxheart
Origin: Traditional
Type: Large
Flavor: Robust
Characteristics: Fewer seeds, thick walls
Best for: Rich, hearty sauces
Growing Tips: Produces abundant fruit throughout the growing season
Oxheart tomatoes are a versatile and flavorful option for making delicious tomato sauce. These large, meaty tomatoes have fewer seeds and thick walls, making them perfect for creating a rich and hearty sauce.
Their unique heart shape and robust flavor balance make Oxheart tomatoes stand out in any dish. They excel in sauce-making but are also great for slicing, stuffing, or incorporating into soups and salads.
Growing Oxheart tomatoes is relatively easy, even for beginners. They produce abundant fruit throughout the growing season, making them a reliable choice for home gardeners looking to enjoy a plentiful harvest.
Pantano Romanesco
Origin: Italy
Type: Heirloom
Flavor: Rich
Characteristics: Ribbed texture, varied firmness
Best for: Sauces, slicing, juicing
Growing Tips: Bountiful yield, thrives in warmer climates
Pantano Romanesco tomatoes are a highly coveted heirloom variety, perfect for making sauces. This organic Italian tomato is popular among farmers' market vendors due to its stunning appearance and intense flavor.
These tomatoes range from 6 to 10 ounces in size and are known for their ribbed texture and varied firmness. While they can become mushy quickly, regular picking helps maintain their quality. Despite this characteristic, their weighty nature ensures a bountiful yield.
Pantano Romanesco tomatoes excel not only in sauce-making but also for slicing, juicing, cooking, and even sandwiches. Their rich flavor sets them apart from other varieties, adding depth to any dish. These tomatoes thrive in USDA Hardiness Zones 8-10, with sprouting occurring within 7 to 14 days under optimal conditions of 75-95 degrees Fahrenheit.
Plum Regal
Origin: Hybrid
Type: Red plum-type
Flavor: Smooth, meaty
Characteristics: Exceptional disease resistance
Best for: Rich, flavorful sauces
Growing Tips: Resists common tomato diseases, high yield
Plum Regal tomatoes are a fantastic variety for making mouthwatering sauces. This red plum-type tomato stands out due to its exceptional disease resistance, making it a reliable choice for home gardeners.
Plum Regal tomatoes are known for their smooth, meaty consistency, which is perfect for cooking down into a rich, flavorful sauce. They resist common tomato diseases like early and late blight and hold up against spotted wilt, ensuring a healthy, productive plant.
The taste of Plum Regal tomatoes surpasses even some heirlooms, offering a balance of sweetness and tanginess that enhances any sauce. Their dense flesh and few seeds make them ideal for creating thick, hearty sauces that cling beautifully to pasta or pizza crusts.
Ponderosa
Origin: Traditional
Type: Large
Flavor: Sweet and tangy
Characteristics: Low acidity, meaty
Best for: Balanced sauces
Growing Tips: Indeterminate variety, disease-resistant
The Ponderosa tomato is an excellent choice for creating delicious homemade tomato sauce. With its large size, meaty texture, and complex sweet and tangy flavor profile, this variety brings a lot to the table. Known for their low acidity, Ponderosa tomatoes are perfect for those looking to achieve a well-balanced sauce.
Being an indeterminate variety, Ponderosa tomatoes continue to produce fruit throughout the season, providing a bountiful harvest. Whether you choose pink ponderosa or red ponderosa seeds, growing these disease-resistant plants is relatively straightforward.
Pozzano
Origin: Traditional
Type: Plum-type
Flavor: Rich
Characteristics: Blunt-tipped, high solids
Best for: Sauces, canning, salsas
Growing Tips: High productivity, similar to San Marzano
Pozzano tomatoes are highly regarded for their exceptional yields and suitability for creating delicious sauces. These tomatoes have blunt-tipped fruits with high solids, making them perfect for quickly saucing down and intensifying flavors when cooked.
Although they may not be resistant to blossom end rot, Pozzano tomatoes compensate with their unique characteristics. They offer a similar flavor profile to the classic 'San Marzano' variety but with even higher productivity.
Pozzano tomatoes are popular for canning, salsa recipes, and even as flavorful tomato slices in sandwiches. Their versatility and rich taste make them a favorite among those looking to create authentic Italian sauces.
Principe Borghese
Origin: Italy
Type: Plum-shaped
Flavor: Rich
Characteristics: Meaty, minimal juice, few seeds
Best for: Sun-dried tomatoes, sauces
Growing Tips: Indeterminate, requires staking, short growing period
Principe Borghese tomatoes are a top choice for making flavorful sauce. These small, plum-shaped fruits, weighing around 1-2 ounces, have a unique meaty texture with minimal juice and few seeds.
Renowned in Italy for their use in sun-dried tomatoes, Principe Borghese tomatoes have low moisture content. The plants are indeterminate and produce prolific clusters of 7-10 fruits, requiring staking or caging for support.
With a relatively short growing period of just 78 days, these tomatoes are efficient for home gardeners. Their rich antioxidant content adds health benefits alongside superb flavor, enhancing any Italian recipe.
Red Pear
Origin: Traditional
Type: Large pear-shaped
Flavor: Sweet, citrusy
Characteristics: Large, meaty, mild acidity
Best for: Rich pasta sauces, marinara
Growing Tips: Prolific early producers, versatile culinary uses
Red Pear tomatoes are an excellent choice for creating delicious tomato sauce. These pear-shaped tomatoes, ranging from 8 to 18 ounces, offer a sweet, citrusy taste with mild acidity, ideal for sauce-making.
Their large, meaty structure makes them perfect for producing rich pasta sauces and marinara recipes. Red Pear tomatoes are also versatile, working well in salads, sandwiches, roasted meals, canned tomatoes, and soups.
The plants are prolific early producers, providing a bountiful harvest. Red Pear tomatoes are not only tasty but also convenient for various culinary uses, making them a favorite among home gardeners.
Roma Tomatoes
Origin: Hybrid
Type: Plum, paste
Flavor: Rich
Characteristics: Few seeds, thick walls, meaty pulp
Best for: Sauces, pastes
Growing Tips: Reliable yield, easy to grow
Roma tomatoes, also known as plum or paste tomatoes, are a staple for making fresh tomato sauce. These classic Italian tomatoes are renowned for their exceptional flavor and versatility.
Developed as a hybrid variety, Roma tomatoes have very few seeds and thick walls, resulting in less juice and more meaty pulp. Their rich flavor adds depth and complexity to any sauce recipe, maintaining a perfect balance of sweetness and tanginess.
Whether simmered for a homemade pasta sauce or sautéed with basil and oregano, Roma tomatoes provide an excellent foundation for creating delicious sauces. Their reliable yield and ease of growth make them a favorite among gardeners.
San Marzano
Origin: Italy
Type: Heirloom
Flavor: Sweet-tart
Characteristics: Meaty flesh, fewer seeds, thick skin
Best for: Authentic Italian sauces
Growing Tips: Easy to peel, traditional farming practices
San Marzano tomatoes are renowned for their exceptional sauce-making qualities. These Italian favorites are prized for their meaty flesh and fewer seeds, providing the perfect consistency for a flavorful tomato sauce.
Known for their rich sweetness balanced with refreshing acidity, San Marzano tomatoes deliver a sweet-tart flavor profile highly desirable in sauces. Their thick skin makes them easy to peel, simplifying the sauce preparation process.
Associated with traditional farming practices in Italy, San Marzano tomatoes evoke images of authentic Italian cuisine. Their distinctive narrow shape and pointed tip add to their appeal in both homemade and professional tomato sauces.
Striped Roman
Origin: Bred by John Swenson
Type: Romano-type
Flavor: Sweet and tangy
Characteristics: Dense flesh, few seeds, wavy gold streaks
Best for: Sauces, stews
Growing Tips: Elongated shape, visually appealing
Striped Roman tomatoes are a versatile variety perfect for making sauces, salads, and more. Known for their elongated shape and distinctive wavy gold streaks, these tomatoes are visually appealing and highly functional.
Bred by John Swenson, Striped Roman tomatoes have dense, grainy flesh with few seeds, making them ideal for processing into rich and flavorful sauces. Their unique appearance and excellent balance of sweetness and tanginess bring out fruity overtones in your sauce creations.
Whether you are making a simple marinara or a complex stew, Striped Roman tomatoes add a delightful touch to any dish.
Super Italian Paste
Origin: Traditional
Type: Paste
Flavor: Sweet
Characteristics: High pulp content, lower juice
Best for: Rich, thick sauces
Growing Tips: Easy to work with, ideal for simmering, sautéing, or boiling
Super Italian Paste tomatoes are revered for their outstanding flavor and texture, making them one of the best choices for sauce-making. These tomatoes are known for their exceptional sweetness, which often eliminates the need for additional flavorings in homemade sauce.
With high pulp content and lower juice, Super Italian Paste tomatoes are perfect for creating rich and thick sauces that cling beautifully to pasta or pizza crusts. Their firm flesh makes them easy to work with in the kitchen, whether you're simmering, sautéing, or boiling them down into a concentrated paste or puree.
Versatile and widely recognized in traditional Italian recipes, these tomatoes are an excellent choice for those looking to grow their own garden and enjoy authentic sauce ingredients.
Viva Italia
Origin: Hybrid
Type: Plum
Flavor: Rich
Characteristics: High yields, disease resistance
Best for: Sauces, salsas, marinara
Growing Tips: Fresh flavor holds up well, suitable for freezing or canning
Viva Italia tomatoes are an excellent choice for making delicious and flavorful sauces. These plum tomato hybrids are known for their rich, deep flavor that intensifies when cooked, adding an extra element to your sauces.
Viva Italia tomatoes are highly versatile and can be used in salads, pasta sauces, salsas, marinara sauces, and even ketchup. Their high yields and disease resistance mean you can enjoy a bountiful harvest of juicy tomatoes without worrying about pests or diseases damaging your plants.
Their fresh and zesty flavor holds up well whether simmering them into a thick sauce or sautéing them for a quick pasta dish. You can also freeze or can these tomatoes to preserve their flavors throughout the year
Yellow Pear
Origin: Heirloom
Type: Small pear-shaped
Flavor: Sweet
Characteristics: Unique flavor, disease-resistant, high nutritional value
Best for: Sauces, salads
Growing Tips: Requires extra effort to grow, packed with vitamins
Yellow Pear tomatoes are an excellent choice for making sauce due to their unique flavor and disease resistance. These heirloom tomatoes produce small, quirky fruits that are perfect for snacking, drying, or roasting.
Despite requiring some extra effort to grow, the results are well worth it. Yellow Pear tomatoes offer a delicious taste along with significant nutritional value. Packed with vitamins A and C, B vitamins, potassium, and calcium, they provide a healthy boost to any sauce recipe.
These vibrant yellow tomatoes also contain lycopene, a compound known for its medicinal properties. Whether used in salads or as the main ingredient in sauces, Yellow Pear tomatoes add a delightfully sweet touch and enhance any dish they're included in.
Leave a Reply