Julie Clark
Updated:
Healthy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
Healthy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce recipe has no added sugar. It’s meaty, thick, full of Italian flavor and great served over traditional pasta or spaghetti squash for a low-carb meal.
As a family, we like to kickstart healthy eating by trying to stay away from sugar. We don’t like how we always crave sweets. So many savory foods are loaded with sugar as well, and honestly, if I’m having sugar, I want it in a cookie.
We created this healthy spaghetti sauce that is now a staple in our home. We love our Italian food here, and I had to find a way to still be able to get that good Italian taste without all the sugar.
Make your own delicious homemade pasta sauce with our easy recipe. Our homemade sauce is the perfect complement to any pasta dish, especially our spaghetti pie! Try it today and taste the difference!
About this Healthy Homemade Pasta Sauce:
- Flavor: This sauce has a familiar pasta sauce flavor. It will be a lot more tomato forward since there is no added sugar. It also has a little kick of spice thanks to the red pepper flakes.
- Texture: This is not a smooth sauce. You have the petite diced tomatoes and ground beef that add a lot of texture. For a smoother sauce, use an immersion blender to blend the tomatoes before adding them to the sauce.
- Method: I make this on the stovetop, but once you get it all together, you can let it simmer in your slow cooker as well.
Low Carb & Low Sugar
This spaghetti sauce has no added sugar, but is full of flavor. Find a tomato puree that has an ingredient list of one thing…tomatoes. Yes, tomatoes have some naturally occurring sugars, but as long as there is not sugar listed in the ingredients, you’re golden and will end up with a deliciously low carb spaghetti sauce.
Serve this healthy pasta sauce over spaghetti squash for a low-carb, low-sugar meal.
Is it worth making your own pasta sauce?
It really depends on your eating goals and what you like to do. I do love making pasta sauce because it’s easy, I can control the ingredients and even the flavor of the sauce. It can be economical as well, especially if you are making a vegetarian pasta sauce.
But there are times I buy a jar of spaghetti sauce, too. And that’s ok.
Canned Tomatoes vs Fresh Tomatoes
I use canned tomatoes so I can make this year round and have consistent results. Can you use fresh tomatoes? Yes. Here’s a couple of tips:
- For the purée , I recommend puréeing fresh tomatoes, then letting it simmer down and reduce to remove some of the water content. This will mimic more of a tomato purée rather than a thin tomato juice.
- For the diced tomatoes, use a meaty tomato such as Roma or San Marzano tomatoes. They are great for sauce making because aren’t as juicy.
Do i have to remove the tomato skins?
I would, but it is really a matter of preference. I don’t like tomato skins in my sauce, so I take the time to remove skins if I’m using fresh tomatoes.
Can I use fresh herbs?
Yes, you can use fresh basil, thyme and oregano for a fresh flavor in this healthy spaghetti sauce. I would add 2-3 tablespoons of basil and oregano, and one tablespoon of fresh thyme. Taste, then add more if needed.
Can you freeze pasta sauce?
You’ll love this healthy homemade spaghetti sauce recipe because it makes a big batch. And yes, you can freeze the leftovers to pull out at another time. When you are trying to healthy and homemade food, anything that saves time is so helpful!
To freeze this meat sauce, allow it to cool completely, then place it in an airtight container. Freeze for up to 6 weeks. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
Make it a meal.
Wondering what to serve with your healthy spaghetti sauce? Serve over pasta (I prefer whole wheat or Banza pasta) or spaghetti squash. Then add a side or two:
Recipe Variations
- Use Italian sausage instead of ground beef. The choice is yours as to whether you use mild, hot or sweet Italian sausage.
- Looking for an alternative to petite diced tomatoes? Try crushed tomatoes.
- Leave out the ground beef if you like to use this pasta sauce over recipes with chicken, such as chicken parmesan.
- Use this sauce for homemade lasagna or even for homemade pizza. It’s delicious!
- For even more flavor, add 2-3 tablespoons of basil pesto to the sauce.
- Add finely diced carrots, yellow onions, green bell peppers or even zucchini to this homemade pasta sauce.
How long does this last in the fridge?
Serve the sauce within 4 days of making it. Or you can freeze any leftovers.
Healthy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce
Healthy Homemade Spaghetti Sauce recipe has no added sugar! It’s meaty, thick, full of Italian flavor and great served over traditional pasta or spaghetti squash for a low-carb meal.
Servings 20 servings
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 cans tomato puree 29 ounces each
- 2 cans diced tomatoes, with juice 14.5 ounces each
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- In a large saucepan or pot on the stove, brown the ground beef over medium heat along with the garlic. Drain off any fat.1 ½ pounds ground beef, 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- Add in the rest of the ingredients and bring to a low boil. Stir often. 2 cans tomato puree, 2 cans diced tomatoes, with juice, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons lemon juice, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 teaspoons dried oregano, 2 teaspoons dried basil, 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- Once the sauce is heated through and at a low boil, reduce the burner temperature to low and simmer uncovered for 45 minutes. This will allow some of the moisture to evaporate out, making your sauce thicker.
- Serve immediately over pasta and sprinkle with parmesan cheese and fresh parsley. Or allow the sauce to cool, then package it in freezer-safe containers for easy storage.
Video
Notes
- How do I thicken spaghetti sauce? You could add a tablespoon or two of tomato paste. Or you can simply cook longer over very low heat to allow the sauce to reduce and thicken.
Nutrition
Calories: 112kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 284mg | Potassium: 554mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 505IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 36mg | Iron: 3mg
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! I knew I had to make my own spaghetti sauce when I found out the only Whole30 compliant sauces in the store were almost $7 each! It takes a few to feed my large family! This sauce was perfect and was a hit with the family! I added onions and peppers and will probably also add mushrooms next time! I’m excited that I had enough to freeze! Now I have an emergency meal when needed!
Hi Lizzy T,
If I omit the meat will it change the flavor very much?
Thank you for sharing the recipe!
This is now my go-to sauce recipe! I double the crushed red pepper (we like it spicy), but other than that — perfect! Thanks so much.
I made this last week and am making it again tonight for the dinner with friends that we are hosting! My husband and one-year-old both loved it as well! So, so good!
I just made this and it was amazing! I didn’t have any thyme or Basil though so I didn’t get to add that. I also didn’t have tomato paste so I just added the tomatoes, I didn’t add extra water either. It was a little spicy which I like but also a little salty. I still loved it but next time I might not add as much salt. Wonderful! thank you!
Made it last night and it was a hit! LOVE It! Froze extras for another time. Thanks for a great recipe!
For my adjustments. I used 3 quarts of canned tomatoes ,1 pint of canned tomato juice instead of water and 1-6 oz tomato paste Helped to thicken it up some. Used balsamic vinegar instead lemon juice. Used Italian seasoning instead of the 3 spices. Added 5 tsp minced onions. Love that there is not any sugar. Cooked in crock pot 4 hrs cooled put into several freezer containers and froze. Thanks so much for a healthy and easy recipe.
The spaghetti sauce was a runny, horrible mess! The instructions call for way too much purée, water, and juice from the petite tomatoes. It ruined this recipe which would probably taste good if it wasn’t basically tomato water. I even added an extra pound of meat just to try and absorb some of the wetness and it was just horrible.
I made this for the first time tonight and had to say, it was SO good! It was a hit with my whole family! Thank you!
I made this sauce tonight and it is delicious! I used a tomato puree and diced tomatoes with the lowest amounts of sugar and sodium available at my grocery store, and I think that with that small compromise, its healthy enough and yummy enough to become a staple during my Whole30 starting tomorrow. I’m making your slow cooker paleo stuffed peppers tomorrow with this and later this week I’ll be pouring it over some zoodles. Since I’m cooking for one right now, I think this will last most of the month. Thank you! 🙂
I notice, sodium is not good for you , with a two cans of tomatoes and two tsp of salt this recipe would be high in sodium I have a heart condition and i watch my sodium but it sure looks good
Thanks for the great recipe. Could you tell me what brand of tomato puree and diced tomato you use? The only ones I can find have 3 grams of sugar per serving each, thanks!
Your Sugar free spaghetti sauce is not TRULY sugar free. the tomato puree has 21.9g of sugar per serving. that’s a huge 43 grams per serving. you have to whatch for hidden sugars as well.
Thank you so much for this recipe! I am always looking for easy and delicious ways to use whole foods when cooking but I do get bored with the same old recipes, so I am really excited to try something new for dinner tomorrow night!
Spaghetti Sauce – even better replace water with dry red wine