Tomato sauce may be easily bought from a supermarket, but it’ll taste a lot nicer if you cook it from scratch with this quick and simple recipe.

This easy-to-follow recipe has been shared on Instagram by Giulia Ardizzone, who says this is the way the sauce is made by ‘Italian grandmas’.

She wrote: “This is how my Sicilian grandmother taught me to make tomato sauce—no machines, and in no time at all.

“Nothing compares to the taste of homemade tomato sauce, especially when it’s poured over a generous portion of pasta or spread on a pizza”

This tomato sauce is the perfect option for a quick mid-week meal, and can be cooked with pasta or spread on a homemade pizza.

Fresh Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

• 1kg tomatoes
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 tsp salt
• Chopped basil leaves to taste

Method

Soak the tomatoes in a bowl of boiling water for about five minutes to loosen the skin. Then drain and peel the skins off the tomatoes, before chopping them into pieces.

In a pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onions until they become soft and translucent, this should typically take about five minutes.

Add the chopped tomatoes to the pan with the onions, stirring to combine, and season with a pinch of salt to enhance flavours.

Leave the mixture to simmer on medium heat for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes break down and the sauce thickens to your preferred thickness.

If you want a particularly smooth sauce, use either a hand immersion blender or transfer the sauce to a blender until it reaches your desired texture. You can skip this step if you prefer and thicker sauce.

Once blended add the chopped basil. The sauce can then be served immediately or stored for later use.