Best Pizza Sauce Recipe: No-Cook vs Cooked (and Store-Bought)

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Pizza sauce is simple but the difference between a great sauce and a mediocre one is significant. Here is the definitive guide to homemade pizza sauce, plus an honest comparison of the best store-bought options when you need speed.

The Best Homemade Pizza Sauce (No-Cook Method)

The best pizza sauce is not cooked. Cooking the sauce before baking makes it taste more like pasta sauce. The heat of the oven does all the work, preserving bright, fresh tomato flavor.

Ingredients (roughly 600 g of sauce, enough for several 12-inch pizzas)

• 1 can (28 oz) whole San Marzano tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano

Method

1. Drain about half the liquid from the can.
2. Crush tomatoes by hand into a bowl – rough and chunky, not smooth.
3. Add garlic, olive oil, salt, and oregano. Stir to combine.
4. Taste and adjust salt. The sauce should be bold.

How much sauce per pizza? Plan on about 80–120 g (roughly 1/3 to 1/2 cup) for a 12-inch pie: the low end for a thin Neapolitan-style layer, the high end for New York or pan pizza. A 28 oz (794 g) can, with some of the liquid drained off, gives roughly 600 g of sauce. That covers several 12-inch pizzas: about 4 heavily sauced New York–style pies, or more if you spread a thin Neapolitan-style layer.

Cooked Pizza Sauce (When No-Cook Isn’t the Right Call)

No-cook is my default for hot, fast bakes. Cooked sauce has deeper, more concentrated tomato flavor — great for New York style, pan pizza, and stuffed crusts. The cooking reduces water content, preventing soggy crusts on lower-temperature bakes.

Cooked Sauce Recipe (about 350 g, enough for about 3 twelve-inch pizzas)

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 can (400g) crushed tomatoes
• 1 tsp dried oregano (Sicilian or Greek), 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp sugar, salt to taste
• Optional: 1 tbsp tomato paste for extra richness

Sauté garlic in olive oil 60 seconds (don’t brown). Add tomatoes, herbs, sugar. Simmer 15-20 minutes until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. Cool completely before spreading — hot sauce steams and softens dough. Simmering cooks off some water, so one 400 g can ends up as roughly 350 g of sauce: about 3 pizzas at 100–120 g each.

No-Cook or Cooked: Which to Use

• No-cook: Neapolitan-style and other very hot, fast bakes, where the oven cooks the sauce on the pizza and keeps the tomato flavor bright.
• Cooked: New York style, pan pizza, stuffed crust, and lower-temperature home-oven bakes, where a thicker, reduced sauce keeps the crust from going soggy.

Why San Marzano Tomatoes Matter

True DOP San Marzano tomatoes have lower acidity and thicker flesh. They make a noticeably sweeter, more complex sauce. Look for the DOP label on the can. Buy certified DOP San Marzano tomatoes on Amazon

If budget is tight, look for California-grown plum tomatoes in whole or crushed form. Avoid tomatoes packed in heavy purée for no-cook sauce — they make it too thick and starchy.

Best Store-Bought Pizza Sauce

For best store-bought, Rao’s Pizza Sauce is the top choice – quality tomatoes, real olive oil, no added sugar. Check Rao’s Pizza Sauce on Amazon

Recommended Tools

A food mill gives excellent sauce texture. For quick crushing, a large bowl and clean hands work perfectly.

Storing Pizza Sauce

Keep both sauces in the fridge up to 5 days, or freeze in ice cube trays for convenient single-pizza portions.

Related Reading

• Neapolitan Pizza Dough Recipe
• Best Homemade Margherita Pizza
• Cast Iron Skillet Pizza Recipe
• Best Pizza Toppings Combinations
• Chicago Deep Dish Pizza Recipe