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Red sauce 101
Tomato Sauce vs. Marinara: What's the Difference?
The short answer
Marinara is a quick sauce: tomatoes, garlic and herbs, cooked for 20 to 30 minutes. It comes out thin and bright. Tomato sauce cooks low and slow with onion, garlic and olive oil until it's thick and rich. Marinara is for dipping and fast weeknights. Tomato sauce is for dishes where the sauce is the star. Jule's Classic Red Tomato Sauce is great for both!
By the Vitelli family. Our dad made tomato sauce at Jule's on Westside Ave in Jersey City from 1962 on.
Side by side
| Marinara | Tomato sauce | |
|---|---|---|
| Cook time | 20 to 30 minutes | Simmered slow, until it thickens |
| Texture | Thin and loose | Thick, clings to every noodle |
| Flavor | Bright, herby, garlic forward | Deep, rounded tomato |
| Built on | Tomatoes, garlic, herbs | Tomatoes, onion, garlic, olive oil |
| Best for | Dipping, mussels, a fast Tuesday | Lasagna, chicken parm, baked ziti, Sunday dinner |
Our recipe
Ours is a tomato sauce. On purpose.
For 40 years, Jule's served towering lasagnas and chicken parms the size of a football. A thin marinara would have slid right off. Our dad's recipe simmers tomatoes with onion, garlic and olive oil until the sauce holds its own. That's what's in the jar today, made in small batches.
No added sugar. The sweetness is the tomatoes.
Everything in Classic Red
Tomatoes (tomatoes, salt, dry basil), water, onion, olive oil, garlic, salt, black pepper, citric acid.
Vegan · Gluten-free · Non-GMO“Very tasty, REAL flavor. Not covered by sugar and other junk. Made lasagna and it was delicious, especially the next day!”
Mark F. · Verified buyer, Classic Red
Quick questions
Can I use tomato sauce instead of marinara?
Yes. For a looser, marinara-style sauce, warm it with a splash of pasta water or a little olive oil. Going the other way is harder. A quick marinara won't thicken into a rich tomato sauce.
Do jarred sauces have added sugar?
Many do. Check the ingredient list for sugar or cane sugar. Ours has none. Here's how to spot added sugar on a label.
Which is better for pizza?
Either works if you spread it thin. Here's how to use tomato sauce on pizza.
Taste the difference yourself.Four jars of Classic Red in the 1962 Original Bundle.
Shop the bundle