Cherry Tomato Sauce

A rustic, creamy, thick and full of flavour Cherry Tomato Sauce, that's perfect for serving over pasta. It's made with only 6 ingredients and is easy enough for midweek, yet worthy of company too. 

For the carb addicts amongst us who are always looking for something new and saucy to smother their pasta in, enter my Cherry Tomato Sauce. It's here for all of your pasta tossing and thwapping on top of everything needs.  

And here's exactly what you need to know about it:

• creamy / tomatoey / herby / rich / rustic sauce vibes
• juicy, bursty cherry tomatoes throughout
• quick and easy
• super yum

And here's what else you need to know about this Cherry Tomato Sauce:

It's meal prep and freezer friendly

It clings to pasta in all the right ways! 

It's also pretty good when dolloped on vegan meatloaf, burgers, grilled tofu, roasted potatoes, spread in a panini or sandwich, used in place of marinara in lasagna or pizza. You could even use it as the base in my Vegan Shakshuka. 

So yes, what I'm trying to say is, you need this Cherry Tomato Sauce in your life. As it is. Exactly as written, in all of its rustic, chunky, thick and packed with flavour glory. 

I see many situations where this delish sauce fits: 

Got a big family? - Feed them all quickly and easily 

Meal Prep - Make a massive batch and dip into it all week long. It keeps well in the fridge for 5 or 6 days and freezes perfectly. 

Date Night - You, your significant other, this, spaghetti for a Lady and the Tramp type moment, a fresh, crisp salad and a good bottle of vino

Feeding the fussy kiddos? -  Most of them like spaghetti and pasta sauce !

A treat yo'self night - You, piles of pasta, obscene amounts of vegan parm and a soppy movie? 

How to make Cherry Tomato Sauce

SEE MY VIDEO FOR A VISUAL GUIDE. FOR INGREDIENTS & FULL INSTRUCTIONS PLEASE SEE THE RECIPE CARD AT THE END OF THIS POST

With so many tomato sauce recipes out there, here's the low down on how to make mine:

This is what you need:

And this is how it's done:

Sauté the onions and garlic then throw in the dried herbs, seasoning and tomatoes and let them burst and caramelize up a bit

Add tomato paste and stir it all up  ... It will be super thick and gloopy ...

Then add some plant-milk. A nice creamy one is good. I like to use my cashew milk but store bought milk is fine too.

And stir it all up to make a lovely, creamy, thick sauce

Toss it through some freshly cooked pasta and you're done!

Cherry Tomato Sauce Success Tips 

The combo of fresh tomatoes and tomato paste is what gives such great, concentrated flavour and creamy consistency. Don't be tempted to use regular canned tomatoes instead.  

Whilst it's great when freshly made, the flavors in the sauce develop even more if you make it a day or two before you need it. Just make it and store it in a sealed container in the fridge. 

My biggest tip though, is to really carb up and serve some of my No Knead Focaccia Bread on the side of your Cherry Tomato Sauce laden pasta. Just perfect for sopping up that sauce!

So there we have it. Here’s to you and me diving headfirst into Cherry Tomato Sauce doused pasta ... 

For more tomato-based recipes, check out these great options:

1. Easy Tomato Basil Soup
2. Tomato Pasta Bake
3. Tomato Chickpea Salad
4. Instant Pot Tomato Soup

And if you love this recipe, please do check out my cookbook, and subscribe to my email list for a fabulous FREE eCookbook featuring my top 10 recipes. Being on the list means you will be first to see my new recipes and you’ll be kept in the loop on all things new and exciting too!

Step By Step Photos AboveMost of my recipes come with helpful step by step photos, success tips & a video so you can make them perfectly first time!

Cherry Tomato Sauce

Melanie McDonald

A rustic, creamy, thick and full of flavour Cherry Tomato Sauce, that's perfect for serving over pasta. It's made with only 6 ingredients and is easy enough for midweek, yet worthy of company too. 

5 from 7 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Total Time 30 mins

Course Entree, Sauce

Cuisine vegan

Servings 6 servings

Calories 38 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional - sauté with a few tablespoons of water instead to make the recipe oil-free)
• 1 medium onion , chopped finely
• 4 cloves garlic , chopped very finely
• 2 teaspoons dried herbs , rosemary, herbs de Provence, thyme, oregano, basil, Italian seasoning all work really well (use what you like best. Any or a combination of them is fine).
• 1½ teaspoons fine salt , plus more to taste
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 heaping cups / 350 g halved cherry or grape tomatoes , or the same quantity of fresh larger tomatoes chopped into chunky pieces
• ⅓ cup / 5½ tablespoons tomato paste (tomato puree in the UK) - Don't use regular canned tomatoes
• 1 cup / 240 ml unsweetened milk of choice , I like to use a creamy milk like my cashew milk

INSTRUCTIONS

 

• Warm a tablespoon of olive oil (or water for oil-free) in a large sauté pan over a medium heat.
• Add the onions and cook, moving frequently until just starting to colour, then add the garlic. Cook for a minute longer.
• Add the tomatoes and keep moving everything around for about 4 minutes, until the tomatoes have burst a bit and are just starting to caramelize.
• Turn the heat down to medium low, and add the salt and pepper and herbs, then the tomato paste. Stir together well.
• Pour in the milk and stir well until a creamy sauce is formed. Keep it simmering over the heat for about 7 minutes, until the sauce reduces down and thickens up enough to coat the pasta well. If you leave it any longer and it thickens up too much, simply add another little bit of milk to thin it out.

NOTES

This full recipe will make enough sauce to coat about 500 g / 17 oz of spaghetti

Sauce keeps well in the fridge for 5 - 6 days and freezes well. 

NUTRITION

Serving: 1of 6 servingsCalories: 38kcalCarbohydrates: 7.9gProtein: 1.7gFat: 0.6gSodium: 692mgFiber: 1.8gSugar: 4.2gVitamin A: 800IUVitamin C: 18.2mgCalcium: 80mgIron: 1.1mg

Tried this recipe?Rate it & leave your feedback in the comments section below, or tag @avirtualvegan on Instagram and hashtag it #avirtualvegan

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