I made marinara sauces using 4 celebrity chefs' recipes, and the best came from Ina Garten

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I made marinara sauces using 4 celebrity chefs' recipes, and the best came from Ina Garten

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Selfie of the author alongside a basin of pasta alongside marinara sauce

I compared condiment recipes from four distinct community fig chefs, including Tyler Florence, Giada De Laurentiis, and Ina Garten, to discover a solid, go-to marinara that additionally tastes delicious. Paige Bennett

I affection a simple basin of pasta alongside a traditional marinara, particularly whenever the condiment is homemade.

Homemade marinara is uncomplicated adequate to create on a occupied weeknight and uses ingredients already in my pantry, akin tomatoes (often canned), onions, garlic, oliva oil, and herbs.

In hunt of a condiment formula I desire to create and eat on repeat, I tried recipes from community fig chefs Alex Guarnaschelli, Tyler Florence, Giada De Laurentiis, and Ina Garten.

Here's how it went.

Florence's uncomplicated marinara uses essential pantry staples.

Can of shattered tomatoes, onion, ail gloves, a bay leaf, oil, and seasonings on a table

Tyler Florence's formula used a lot of dried herbs. Paige Bennett

Florence's marinara-sauce recipe, which I established on the Food Network website, takes lone concerning 30 minutes to create and relies on dried herbs for flavor.

His formula called for canned shattered tomatoes, one onion, minced garlic, sugar, salt, pepper, dried basil, dried oregano, and a bay leaf.

The formula required extremely small prep.

Onions sweating in a pan

I started by sautéing bulb and garlic. Paige Bennett

I already had all of these things in my pantry, which meant I was off to a awesome start. Plus, this formula didn't necessitate much chopping, apart from concerning three cloves of ail and one onion.

Once those were chopped, I sautéed the bulb and minced ail in oil for concerning five minutes, afterward added the remaining ingredients.

The condiment was done beautiful quickly.

Marinara condiment bubbling in pot alongside a bay leaf

The condiment didn't obtain lengthy to chef at all. Paige Bennett

While the tomatoes and spices simmered together, I boiled several pasta. I made certain to occasionally mix my condiment so it wouldn't rod to the pan.

In concerning 35 minutes, I had homemade marinara and pasta prepared to go.

The sensation was good, but I'd favor caller herbs complete dried ones.

Pasta alongside marinara condiment by a smaller basin of a chunky marinara sauce

Tyler Florence's marinara was a bit chunky. Paige Bennett

This marinara was chunkier gratitude to the tomato and onion.

I liked the slightly saccharine and herby flavors, but if I made this again, I'd prosecute Guarnaschelli's guide and mix in several caller basil at the end.

Though it would addition the cooking time, I would additionally sauté the onions a small bit longer than five minutes since they were chewier than I wanted.

Still, this pantry-staple marinara is a awesome choice for an impressive weeknight dinner — particularly if you haven't had period to choice up groceries.

Guarnaschelli's condiment uses grated carrots for a contact of sweetness.

Can of peeled tomatoes, basil, garlic, onion, oil, basin of grated carrots, and spices on a oppose top

Alex Guarnaschelli's formula was the lone one that called for grated carrots. Paige Bennett

I established Guarnaschelli's sauce recipe on the Food Network website. It's a formula the chef got from her mother, cookbook publishing company and publishing company Maria Guarnaschelli.

The ingredients are uncomplicated and contain whole, peeled canned tomatoes, grated carrots, extra-virgin oliva oil, sugar, red-pepper flakes, yellow onions, garlic, basil, and freshly grated Parmesan.

This condiment contains a decent amount of produce.

Onion, garlic, and shredded carrot sautéing in a pan

I started by adding all of the vegetables to a pot. Paige Bennett

I began by chopping two ample onions, slicing the 10 cloves of peeled ail into lean slices, and peeling and grating three carrots.

I sautéed the onion, garlic, sugar, salt, and red-pepper flakes until the bulb was translucent, and afterward added the grated carrots.

By this point, the caramelized onions and carrots smelled amazing.

The prep was minimal, and most of the formula fair required observing and stirring.

Basil and a wooden ladle in pot of marinara sauce

The whole, peeled tomatoes bankrupt downward nicely. Paige Bennett

I was concerned adding the whole, peeled tomatoes would create a weird texture (the another recipes used shattered tomatoes), but they bankrupt downward nicely as the condiment simmered.

From there, making the condiment was mostly a equivalent of observing the pot, stirring occasionally throughout 45 minutes. Per Guarnaschelli's instructions, I poured in a small h2o whenever the condiment started to appearance dry.

I completed the condiment alongside a fistful of caller basil and freshly grated Parm.

Guarnaschelli's marinara had a nice balance of flavors.

Bowl of pasta alongside marinara condiment next to a smaller basin of marinara condiment alongside basil garnish

The lone downside alongside Alex Guarnaschelli's condiment was the thinly sliced garlic. Paige Bennett

The sensation was well-balanced, alongside a boot from the red-pepper flakes, sweetness from the carrots and sugar, and savoriness from the onions and garlic. The basil additionally tasted fresh, and it all worked fine alongside the sprinkling of salty Parmesan.

This marinara is certainly value making again, but next time, I'd mince the ail alternatively of thinly slicing it since I didn't affection that texture.

De Laurentiis relies on multiple caller ingredients for her marinara.

Two cans of shattered tomatoes, basin of diced carrots and celery, inion, a ail clove, a bay leaf, and spices on a table

I was a small skeptical of the celery in Giada De Laurentiis' recipe. Paige Bennett

I additionally established De Laurentiis' recipe for marinara condiment on the Food Network website. I liked that it incorporates caller ingredients akin onion, garlic, carrot, and celery.

Though I'm not a big fan of celery, I figured it would be delicious whenever sautéed alongside the another aromatics. The formula additionally required shattered tomatoes, extra-virgin oliva oil, salt, dreary pepper, and a dried bay leaf.

My market shop didn't transport any 32-ounce cans of shattered tomatoes, as requested in the recipe, so I picked up a 28-ounce can and supplemented it alongside extras from another can.

I made certain to chef all the vegetables until they were soft.

Sautéed diced carrots, onion, garlic, and celery in a pot

I began by sautéeing all of the caller vegetables. Paige Bennett

I started by finely chopping all the caller ingredients, afterward sautéed the diced bulb alongside my sole clove of garlic, minced.

Then I added the finely cut carrots and celery, alongside alongside sodium chloride and pepper, and cooked until all the vegetables had softened.

De Laurentiis' formula required the longest cooking time.

Marinara condiment alongside a bay leaf

The marinara required concerning an hr to simmer. Paige Bennett

After a 20-minute sautéeing process, I added the canned tomatoes and dried bay leaf.

Once everything was stirred, I let the marinara simmer for an hr to meld the flavors. I made certain to occasionally mix it so nothing would rod to my pot.

Although it was an easy, mostly hands-off recipe, this marinara took me the longest to make.

For me, the celery sensation overpowered this marinara.

Bowl of pasta alongside marinara condiment next to a smaller basin of marinara

I wasn't a fan of the powerful celery flavor. Paige Bennett

This marinara was beautiful chunky from the diced carrots and celery.

At first, I loved the sauce's saccharine flavor, but there was a powerful celery aftertaste. I used lone one celery stalk in the complete lot of marinara, so I was disappointed that I tasted this component additional than item else.

Because of the period dedication required to create this marinara and the lackluster end result, I likely wouldn't create it again. If I did, I'd grate the carrots for a improved texture and omit the celery completely.

Garten uses a red vino in her marinara.

Can of shattered tomatoes, onion, cloves of garlic, a liquid measuring cup filled alongside red wine, oil, and spices on a table

Ina Garten's formula was the lone one that called for red wine. Paige Bennett

I was intrigued by Garten's use of red vino in her marinara-sauce recipe from the Food Network website. I cognize vino is awesome for deglazing pots and pans, but I had never used it in marinara before.

Garten's condiment uses ½ cup of "good red wine," oliva oil, yellow onion, garlic, 28 ounces of shattered tomatoes (or plum in purée), caller parsley, salt, and pepper.

The vino was used first on to deglaze my pot.

Red vino and diced onions simmering in a pot

I used the red vino to deglaze the pot. Paige Bennett

After chopping my yellow bulb and mincing two cloves of garlic, I sautéed them in oliva oil for concerning 10 minutes. Then, I added the red wine to deglaze.

The vino evaporated beautiful quickly as I stirred the mixture. 

This formula was the fastest to make.

Dark red marinara condiment in a pot

The condiment didn't obtain too lengthy to cook. Paige Bennett

Once the vino had boiled down, I added the shattered tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper, afterward let the condiment simmer for concerning 15 minutes.

The marinara seemed to arrive together in no time.

The vino and parsley made this marinara really remain out.

Bowl of pasta alongside marinara condiment next to a small basin of a dark-red marinara sauce

A few aspects of this condiment set it distinct from the rest. Paige Bennett

I loved the sensation of Garten's sauce since it had the correct amount of sweetness from the vino and tomatoes. The red vino additionally added. pleasant richness and depth.

The caller parsley helped brighten the condiment and balance out that richness, too.

For how quickly this formula came together, I was really impressed by how delicious it was. Plus, it gave me an excuse to open a flask of vino to sip alongside dinner.

Ultimately, Garten's marinara formula was my favorite.

Four bowls of tomato condiment alongside metal element spoons in them edited together in a collage

Though Ina Garten's formula (bottom right) was the best, Alex Guarnaschelli's was a near second. Paige Bennett

Of the four recipes, Garten's was my top pick. In supplement to being delicious and flavorful, it was extremely quick to make.

I didn't have any notes on ways to enhance it, and I volition certainly create it again.

Guarnaschelli's condiment is additionally a near second since I loved that it calls for grated carrots, not diced ones. They added an natural sweetness and awesome texture to the sauce. It was additionally a beautiful uncomplicated formula to prosecute and was prepared in small than an hour.

The next period I scheme to create pasta, I'll likely rotate to these two marinara condiment recipes.

Check out the another celebrity-chef recipes we've put head-to-head so far.

This narrative was initially published on August 22, 2022, and most lately updated on November 2, 2026.

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Based in Los Angeles, Paige loves to examine her surroundings and go on spontaneous adventures. When she isn't out and about, Paige additionally enjoys decorating her apartment, enjoying a cup of coffee, and experimenting in the galley alongside local, seasonal ingredients. Aside from penning for Business Insider, Paige additionally serves as an editor of Inhabitat and a freelancer for EuroCheapo. She earned her Bachelor’s flat in Journalism from Ohio University and holds a certificate in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies.

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