tomato sauce in a skillet with basil.

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Full disclosure: I had never heard of making a tomato butter sauce. Sometimes I wonder how I miss these things? I mean, I cook all the time, read cook books like they are novels and watch cooking shows around the clock. But here is another example of how there is always something to learn.

I first caught Michael Symon on Food Network make a version of this sauce for a chicken cutlet and spaghetti recipe he was making. However, what caught my ear was his referral to Marcella Hazan. He said, “Marcella had done for Italian food what Julia Child did for French food.” That is quite the statement and it sent me on a search for Marcella and this original recipe. Marcella has written many Italian cookbooks and while I was aware of her, I had never come across this recipe.  I mean I have several Italian red sauces in my repertoire from marinara sauce to fresh tomato sauce with basil to my now famous Pee Wee’s Italian American Sunday Sauce, but I had not tomato butter sauce.  You know I had to tackle it.

The recipe is so deceiving because it is so simple. I might have completely overlooked it except for the butter. I’ve always made my sauce with olive oil. I’ve never even thought about using butter. For some reason, that doesn’t even “sound Italian” to me. That’s when you know you still have a lot to learn.

The first time I made this, I went to the farmer’s market to find the freshest tomatoes possible. This makes perfectly good sense because there are only three ingredients in the sauce. (BTW, I went wild and added the fresh basil from my garden because I couldn’t help myself…LOL. I haven’t mastered my Coco Channel approach to cooking yet!) With only three ingredients, they all better be the best. This sauce was fabulous!

I also knew, I wasn’t always going to have summer tomatoes, so I made it again with the San Marzano tomatoes (just remember to cut off those tough ends) and it was just fabulous.

ingredients for sauce.

Pro Tips on Selecting Ingredients for this tomato butter sauce

TOMATOES

Use fresh if they are in season.  Shop at high quality grocery stores or your local farmer’s markets for the best offerings.  Otherwise, use good quality canned tomatoes.  San Marzano tomatoes have long been touted as the best, but there are other high quality canned tomatoes out there.  Use your favorite.

Bottom line, use the best tomatoes you have and this recipe comes out great every time.

ONIONS

Pick a nice, fresh medium sized onion.  Nothing fancy here…just a basic yellow onion.  Peel it and cut in half.

BUTTER

Unsalted, please.  This way, you control the salt in the recipe.

HERBS

In the original recipe, there are no herbs…just salt and pepper.  That doesn’t mean you can’t add fresh basil like I did, or oregano or parsley to the mix.  Believe me when I say, it doesn’t “need” it, but I love the smell and flavor of basil so it is in my sauce if I have it on hand.  If not, I just omit it.

I’m sure this would be good with a little heat from Calabrian chili flakes or some fresh oregano and garnishing with fresh Parmesan is a no-brainer. But honestly, you don’t need anything but the big three: fabulous tomatoes, butter and an onion. 

What a score this recipe is. Just perfection. I’ve since ordered Marcella’s book The Essentials of Italian Cooking (30th Anniversary Edition csame out in September, 2022) and plan to experiment more but this is a sauce you need to get into your rotation.

spaghetti topped with sauce.

How to make this Tomato Butter Sauce Recipe 

Tomato Preparation

For Fresh Tomatoes:

  1. Score the tomatoes: Using a sharp paring knife, cut a small, shallow X-shaped incision in the bottom of each tomato. This scoring helps the skin separate easily during blanching.
  2. Blanch for easy peeling: Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Carefully lower the scored tomatoes into the boiling water using a slotted spoon. Blanch for exactly 1 minute – any longer and the tomatoes will start to cook and become mushy.
  3. Cool and peel: Immediately drain the tomatoes and let them cool until comfortable to handle. The skins should slip off easily starting from the scored X. If the skin resists, give it another 30 seconds in boiling water.
  4. Chop and preserve juices: Roughly chop the peeled tomatoes, working over a bowl to catch every drop of precious juice. Pour the chopped tomatoes and all accumulated juices into your saucepan.

For Canned Tomatoes:

  1. Remove tough ends: Before adding to the pan, inspect each canned tomato and remove any tough, hard stem ends with a small knife. These won’t break down during cooking and can create an unpleasant texture.
  2. Transfer with juices: Pour the tomatoes along with all their juices into your saucepan. You’ll break these down during the cooking process using a large wooden spoon or potato masher.

Sauce Assembly and Cooking

  1. Prepare the onion: Peel a medium onion and cut it in half lengthwise. Nestle both halves cut-side down into the tomatoes. The onion will infuse the sauce with subtle sweetness and can be removed later.
  2. Add butter: Add your butter to the tomatoes and stir gently until completely melted and incorporated. The butter will create the signature richness that makes this sauce special.
  3. Low and slow cooking: Cook the sauce over low-medium heat for 45 minutes. The sauce should maintain a gentle simmer with small bubbles occasionally breaking the surface – never allow it to reach a rolling boil, which can make the sauce bitter and cause the butter to separate.
  4. Break down the tomatoes: As the tomatoes cook and soften, use the back of a large wooden spoon or potato masher to gently break them down. The longer they cook, the easier this becomes. You’re aiming for a sauce with some small tomato pieces but mostly smooth consistency.

Finishing Touches

  1. Season to taste: After 45 minutes, taste the sauce and add salt as needed. Start with a pinch and adjust gradually.
  2. Handle the onion: Remove the cooked onion halves. You can discard them, save for another use, or chop them up and stir back into the sauce for extra flavor and texture.
  3. Final cleanup (for canned tomatoes): If using canned San Marzano tomatoes, use a large slotted spoon to fish out any remaining tough tomato ends that didn’t break down during cooking. They’ll be easy to spot against the smooth sauce.
  4. Add fresh basil: At the very end, tear fresh basil leaves by hand (never cut with a knife, which can bruise the leaves) and stir into the warm sauce. The residual heat will release the basil’s aromatic oils.  Remember, the basil is optional but a delicious option!

Pro Tips:

  • Fresh tomato timing: The best time to blanch tomatoes is when they’re fully ripe but still firm
  • Wooden spoon advantage: Use wooden utensils to avoid scratching your pan and to prevent any metallic taste
  • Butter temperature: Add butter when tomatoes are already warm to ensure smooth incorporation
  • Onion trick: The onion halves act as natural flavor enhancers and are much easier to remove than diced onion
  • Basil timing: Always add fresh herbs at the end to preserve their bright flavor and color

Serve over pasta or zucchini or spaghetti squash, or use in any dish that calls for a rich, flavorful tomato sauce. Enjoy!

onions simmering in tomato sauce.
skillet of tomato sauce with basil.

How to serve tomato butter sauce

I served it simply over pasta with a little Parmesan and fresh basil.  Just delicious with an incredible mouth feel from that butter.  I did add a little salt but taste before you feel the urge to add anything.  It is amazing what an onion can do!!!

pasta topped with sauce and parmesan.

Tomato Butter Sauce FAQs – Complete Guide

Tomato butter sauce will keep in the refrigerator for 3-4 days when stored in an airtight container. Due to the butter content, it has a shorter shelf life than regular tomato sauce. For longer storage, freeze the sauce for up to 3 months in freezer-safe containers, leaving some headspace for expansion.
While you can substitute margarine or olive oil, the sauce won’t have the same rich, creamy texture and distinctive flavor that butter provides. Butter creates the signature velvety mouthfeel and subtle sweetness. If you must substitute, use the same amount of high-quality margarine or 2-3 tablespoons of good olive oil, but expect a different taste profile.
San Marzano tomatoes are sweeter, less acidic, and have fewer seeds than regular canned tomatoes, making them ideal for butter sauce. They break down more easily during cooking and create a smoother texture. However, they do have tough stem ends that must be removed. Good-quality regular canned whole tomatoes work well too, but may need slightly more cooking time to break down.
The 45-minute cooking time allows the tomatoes to break down completely, the flavors to meld, and excess water to evaporate, concentrating the sauce. This timing also allows the butter to fully integrate without separating. Shorter cooking times result in a watery, less flavorful sauce, while longer cooking can make the sauce too thick and potentially burn the butter.
Yes, you can omit the onion, but it adds important depth and natural sweetness to balance the tomato acidity. The onion doesn’t make the sauce chunky since it’s removed before serving. If you skip it, consider adding a pinch of sugar to achieve similar sweetness, or substitute with a few garlic cloves for different flavor complexity.
To prevent separation, maintain low-medium heat throughout cooking – never let the sauce boil vigorously. Add butter to warm (not hot) tomatoes and stir gently until melted. If separation occurs, remove from heat and whisk in a tablespoon of cold butter or a splash of pasta water while stirring constantly to re-emulsify the sauce.
Tomato butter sauce pairs best with long pasta shapes like spaghetti, linguine, or fettuccine because the smooth, silky sauce coats the strands evenly. Short pasta like penne or rigatoni also work well as the sauce clings to the ridges. Avoid very delicate pasta like angel hair, which can be overwhelmed by the rich sauce.
Yes, but use a wider, heavier-bottomed pan to ensure even cooking and proper evaporation. You may need to extend the cooking time by 10-15 minutes for larger batches. Stir more frequently to prevent sticking, and taste more often since seasoning needs may increase proportionally but not always exactly double.
Choose tomatoes that yield slightly to gentle pressure but aren’t mushy. They should have deep, even color with no green shoulders. Ripe tomatoes will have a sweet, earthy aroma at the stem end. Avoid overripe tomatoes with soft spots or wrinkled skin, as these can make the sauce watery and less flavorful.
While basil is traditional and complements the butter beautifully, you can experiment with other herbs. Fresh oregano, thyme, or parsley work well – add them during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Avoid dried herbs in this sauce as they can taste harsh against the delicate butter flavor. Fresh herbs should always be added at the end to preserve their bright flavor and color.

Did you make this recipe?  Please leave a comment and rating.  Did you add any herbs to your version?  What did you think?  If you love this, be sure to try some of my Italian inspired recipes like my Baked Stuffed Shells, Crispy Eggplant Parmesan Slices or my Zucchini Lasagne Roll Ups.

Looking for other Italian sauce recipes?  Try some of my other favorites.

Marinara Sauce

Garlicky Pea Shoot Pesto

Fresh Tomato Sauce with Basil

Arrabbiata Sauce

Roasted Tomatoes in Olive Oil

New York Style Pizza Sauce

tomato sauce in a skillet with basil.

Tomato Butter Sauce

This is the best tomato sauce ever made. A handful of fresh ingredients are turned into something really special.
4 from 3 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Sauces
Cuisine General
Servings 6 Served

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

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Ingredients
 
 

  • 2 Lbs. Fresh summer tomatoes, (ripe and juicy) peeled and cut into small pieces
  • OR
  • 1 28 Oz. Can San Marzano tomatoes
  • 5 Tbsp. Unsalted butter
  • 1 Medium Onion, peeled and cut in half
  • Kosher salt to taste
  • 1/2 Cup Fresh Basil Leaves, torn

Instructions
 

  • If using fresh tomatoes, cut a small X in the bottom of the tomato then put in a pot of boiling water for one minute. Drain. When cool enough to handle, peel the tomatoes. Chop them and be sure to keep all the juice. Pour everything into a sauce pan.
    OR
    IF using the canned tomatoes, remove the tough hard ends of each tomato then put the tomatoes and all the juices into a sauce pan. You’ll break these down with a large wooden spoon or potato masher while cooking.
  • Peel a medium onion and cut it in half. Nestle this down into the tomatoes.  Add the butter and stir the butter into the tomatoes so it is melted and becomes part of the sauce.
  • Cook for 45 minutes over low-medium heat. The sauce should just simmer and NOT boil.  Remember, use the back of a wooden spoon or a potato masher to break up those tomatoes as they cook.  The longer they cook the easier it is to break them down.  You’ll still have small piece of whole tomato but most of the sauce with be smooth.
  • Taste and season with salt to taste.
  • Remove the cooked onion. Discard, save for another use or chop and add to the sauce.  NOTE:  when using the canned San Marzano tomatoes, there is a hard, tough end on these tomatoes. You can remove them before you start cooking or let the tomatoes cook down and break up.  Then, when I remove the onions, I scoop out those tough ends with a big slotted spoon.  You’ll easily see them.  If they don’t bother you, leave them in.  I just don’t like that tough end in my otherwise smooth sauce.
  • At the very end, add torn basil leaves to taste. Serve over pasta or use in any dish that requires a delicious tomato sauce. Enjoy.
Keyword italian, sauce
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