Spaghetti is one of my family's favorite dinner meals, so I always make sure to keep plenty of jars of sauce on hand. Personally, I use marinara sauce not just for spaghetti, but also for pasta, pizza, baked ziti, meatball subs, chicken parmesan, as a soup base and so much more! Store-bought spaghetti sauce is convenient, but once you taste homemade, especially home-canned spaghetti sauce, there's no turning back.
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I know it might sound a bit intimidating, preparing and canning homemade spaghetti sauce, especially using fresh tomatoes, but the whole process is a lot easier than you think. The most important part of the process is → time and patience.
As far as time is concerned, I've simplified the cooking process by using an electric roaster. Electric roasters are great because it's a low-mess method for preparing large batches of sauce. It's also perfect for slow cooking, prevents scorching, and reduces the sauce from a large quantity down to a rich, hearty sauce perfect for canning.
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My tomato variety of choice for spaghetti sauce are paste tomatoes (Roma, Amish paste or San Marzano) tomatoes work wonderfully. We grow our own tomatoes in our backyard garden, so other than early girls, paste tomatoes are pretty much all that we grow. I use paste tomatoes to make spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce , salsa, bbq sauce, and homemade Rotel to see us through the year. We live in North Texas, so when all of the tomatoes start coming in full force it's normally too hot to do any canning indoors. 😰
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We also grow our own onions, garlic, bell peppers and fresh herbs. I use dried herbs for this recipe, but they are fresh herbs that I have dried and preserved myself. There is nothing more satisfying than growing your own produce, fruit, and herbs and turning them into so many delicious recipes. If you would like to give this large batch spaghetti sauce recipe a try!! I have included some step-by-step photos below. The full recipe with detailed quantities and instructions is listed in the recipe card at the end of this post.
Supplies & Ingredients:
- Clean & Sanitized Quart Size Canning Jars w/lids and rings (approx. 12 jars)
- Large stockpot or 22 Quart or > Electric Roaster
- Lemon Juice (2 Tablespoons per jar)
- Water Bath Canning Pot
- Immersion blender stick
- Jar Funnel, Lifter, and Magnetic Lid Lifter
- LOTS of FRESH or FROZEN TOMATOES!
- Fresh Garlic, Onions & Bell Peppers
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Worcestershire sauce
- Fresh Herbs – Oregano, Italian Seasoning, Bay Leaves, Parsley, Brown Sugar, Garlic Powder, Salt, Pepper, and/or homemade herb bombs.
- Additional Seasoning to your liking: red pepper flakes
- Tomato paste - used as a thickener
If using frozen tomatoes you will need to thaw them out before starting this recipe. I normally place the tomatoes in a strainer (about 2 -3 days) before I want to make the sauce. Place the strainer over a large pot or pots, and place them in the refrigerator to strain off as much water as possible.
You can also thaw the tomatoes overnight in a large bowl or leave the bags in the sink. Drain the accumulated water and place the tomatoes in the electric roaster. I leave the skins on the tomatoes because in the end, I use an immersion blender stick and it blends everything up nice and smooth.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium- high heat. Add the onions and bell peppers and saute until softened, about 5-10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes or until fragrant, being careful not to burn it.
Add the sauteed vegetable mixture and all of the remaining ingredients except the lemon juice into the electric roaster. Stir the mixture to combine and bring to a light boil. Reduce the heat to 200 - 225 degrees, cover and simmer the sauce for 6 -8 hours, stirring often.
Remove the lid and discard the bay leaves. Give the sauce a good stir to blend everything together. For a smoother consistency, use an immersion blender and process until smooth.
If you want an even thicker sauce continue cooking on 200 degrees for an additional hour. Taste the sauce and adjust seasonings as needed. Prepare your jars and water -bath canner. I like to sterilize the jars and then fill them with water, and place them inside the water-bath canner on low to keep the jars hot.
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Pour 2 tablespoons of lemon juice into the bottom of each sterilized, hot quart size jar. Do not add hot sauce to a cold jar or it will crack. A good rule to remember is hot mixtures go into hot jars and cold mixtures in cold jars. Ladle the sauce into each jar and leave a 1 inch head space from the top of the jar. Continue filling the remainder of the jars, wipe the rims of the jars clean with a damp cloth and place a canning lid and ring on each jar. Tighten the rings finger-tip tight.
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Place the jars into a water bath or pressure canner on top of a canning rack.
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Bring the water to a boil, reduce heat to a light boil, cover and process the spaghetti sauce for 40 minutes or pressure can quart size jars for 25 minutes at 11lbs of pressure.
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Remove the jars carefully from the water-bath or pressure canner (if using a pressure canner let the jar sit inside the canner for 15 minutes after depressurizing and removing the lid- to prevent the jars from siphoning). Place the hot jars on the counter lined with a thick dish towel or drainer pad. Let the jars cool to room temperature for 12 hours, then remove the rings and clean the jars under warm soapy water. Rinse and dry the jars, label, and store in a cool, dark pantry for up to 18 months.
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