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Three-Tomato Marinara Pasta
Most marinaras are mundane, but this one is marvelously multi-layered. Tomatoes in three forms create complexity: tomato paste lays a foundation of concentrated flavor; canned crushed tomatoes offer sauciness; and fresh cherry (or grape) tomatoes supply sweetness and brightness. Salting the fresh tomatoes for several minutes softens them slightly so they more readily break down into the sauce. This marinara pairs well with long, strand-shaped pasta such as spaghetti and bucatini, but also is good with short, tubular shapes with sauce-gripping ridges, such as penne rigate and mezze rigatoni.
4-6
Servings
Tip
Don’t use canned tomato puree in place of crushed tomatoes. Crushed tomatoes have a coarser texture and a brighter flavor because they are less cooked. Also, be sure to add ¼ cup of the pasta cooking water to the tomato mixture in the skillet when you add the cherry tomatoes.
40 minutes
Ingredients
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1
pint cherry or grape tomatoes, roughly chopped
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Kosher salt and ground black pepper
Directions
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01In a small bowl, toss the cherry tomatoes with ¼ teaspoon salt; let stand, tossing once or twice, until ready to use. In a large pot, boil 4 quarts water. Add the pasta and 2 tablespoons salt, then cook, stirring, until just shy of al dente. Reserve ½ cup of the cooking water, then drain and return the pasta to the pot.
Reviews
July 1, 2026
Great Flavor
Relatively easy to make; would make again. Everyone liked it.
October 16, 2025
Delicious and simple
I used bucatini pasta perfect for this dish instead of regular spaghetti. Had it for a weekday dish and it was very simple to make and delicious!
October 4, 2025
Tasted great, uncertain about method
First off, this was a very tasty pasta recipe and I would certainly make this again. There are a few steps that I'm a bit skeptical about. The first of which involved browning tomato paste in a large amount of olive oil until it stuck to the bottom of the pan. When I made the recipe there was so much oil that it never got to the point of sticking to the pan (and I know I used a large enough skillet). I had to temporarily drain off the oil for the tomato paste to get to that stage and add oil back in. Second, the recipe has the cooked pasta sitting for a number of minutes before the sauce is ready. However, due to the large amount of oil in the sauce the pasta strands that stuck together eventually unclumped. Good testing recipe but this method has some pitfalls
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