Chef notes
Too many prepared pizza sauces are filled with all sorts of subpar ingredients, sweeteners and syrups, while the better-quality stuff costs exponentially more than this simple and awesome sauce. And when people ask for your secret recipe, it's priceless!
Technique tips: You can mix this sauce up directly in the can. Just be sure to transfer the leftovers to a nonreactive container at the end of your pizza party to refrigerate or freeze for future use. One 28-ounce can of crushed or pureed tomatoes is enough for 6 pizzas worth of sauce.
If you still have some remaining, it will be good for other uses. It will keep in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, or you can freeze it. Leftover sauce can be used as the base for a pasta sauce, or worked into a chili or stew, and it's a favorite ingredient when we're getting creative with our slow cooker.
A healthy way sweeten your sauce without adding refined sugar: grab a fine grater and grate in some raw carrot — magic!
Ingredients
- 1 (28-ounce) can good-quality crushed or pureed tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon salt (optional)
- 1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
Preparation
1.Open the can of crushed or pureed tomatoes and taste them. Check the ingredients on the can. Does it have salt? If the tomatoes already have salt, don't add more, keeping in mind that you're going to be adding other salty toppings later. If there isn't salt added, add 1 teaspoon of salt, which will be plenty.
2.Good-quality tomatoes are packed at proper ripeness and are naturally sweet right out of the can. If your tomatoes taste at all acidic or tinny out of the can, add 1 teaspoon of sugar. Or, if you prefer a sweeter sauce, you can simply add your desired amount of sugar or honey.
3.Add the garlic powder and oregano to the can. Stir all together well.
4.Keep in mind that, with pizza, less is more. Over-saucing your pizza will result in a soggy/gummy crust (overloading toppings compromises your crust, too!). We recommend no more than 4 ounces of sauce per 12-inch pizza. If you really need extra sauce, heat some up on the side and apply when your pizza comes out of the oven.
