I have been making tomato gravy for years. It’s chunky, hearty and so delicious you could literally eat it by the spoonful, like soup. But save it to make all your pasta dishes scrumptious!
It is so satisfying ladling this pasta sauce onto your macaroni because you know that you are going to have a meal that will be both filling and delicious.
It’s filled with chunky veggies. If you want to add ground beef, you’ll have an even more robust meal.
I will go over quickly why I call the lovely red goodness above ‘gravy’. A lot of people differ on what to call it – gravy or sauce. I think what you call it depends on where in Italy your ancestors came from.
People without the Italian heritage usually call it sauce, unless they knew someone who called it gravy and the word stuck.
One thing I find interesting is that people who call it sauce seem to get irritated with people who call it gravy. At least that is my experience.
But if you ask a gravy type of person how they feel about ‘sauce’ people, they are usually indifferent.
I don’t care what you call it, just let me call it whatever I want.
Free speech and all that!
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Helpful tips
- This is a vegetarian sauce but if you want extra protein, add a ground meat of your choice.
- My mother used to make her gravy with green bell peppers; I prefer red bell peppers, so choose which one you prefer.
- I use Vidalia onions since I like the sweetness, but if you prefer yellow onions, go for it.
- When you add tomato paste, you need to add water to thin it out. The trick is finding the right amount to add. Remember, you can always add more but you can’t take it out.
- When I add the water, I use the tomato paste can to measure it. It also helps clean the can of residual paste.
- Hubby loves when I add extra oil to sauté the vegetables because it makes the gravy velvety. Use what you are comfortable with. Two tablespoons is a good place to start.
How to make tomato gravy
Pre-step
Get a stockpot or Dutch oven.
Step one
Gather the ingredients – red bell pepper, onion, garlic and mushrooms. (A)
Step two
Chop the onion and red pepper in chunks (B) and slice the mushrooms and mince the garlic.
Step three
Heat your stockpot or Dutch oven on medium and once the pan has heated, add 2 – 4 tablespoons of olive oil.
After the oil heats up, add the red bell pepper and onions in the pan and sauté for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. (C)
Step four
Add the mushrooms and garlic and sauté 5 more minutes. (D)
Step five
Gather the herbs – basil, oregano, parsley and thyme. (E)
Step six
Open the cans of diced tomatoes and tomato paste. (F)
Step seven
Add the diced tomatoes, the tomato paste, 1 ¾ tomato paste cans of water, herbs, bay leaf, salt and pepper.
Step eight
Once the tomato mixture comes to a boil, turn the heat down to simmer and let the concoction cook for 1 hour, stirring every 10 minutes or so.
I pour it into a serving bowl, but you can serve it out of the pan if you prefer.
Look at how chunky that is.
I spoon pasta in a bowl and ladle tomato gravy on it.
I hope you enjoyed this tomato gravy recipe as much as Christopher and I love to eat it.
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And as always, may all your dishes be delish!
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Tomato Gravy | Chunky Vegetables
Ingredients
- 1 onion large, chopped in chunks
- 1 red bell pepper large, chopped in chunks
- 1 package portobello mushrooms package of sliced baby bellas
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 28 ounces diced tomatoes
- 12 ounces tomato paste
- Water (1 ¾ cans full – use tomato paste can)
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- Pepper to taste
- 1 bay leaf
Instructions
- Heat large sauce pan on medium heat
- Chop the onion and bell pepper into chunks
- Add olive oil and heat it up
- Add onion and bell pepper and sauté for 10 minutes
- Add mushrooms and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes
- Add diced tomatoes, paste and 1 ¾ cans of water (use the paste can)
- Add herbs, bay leaf, salt and pepper
- Once mixture comes to a boil, lower to simmer and cook for 1 hour, stirring every 10 minutes
- Ladle on pasta
- Smile
- Enjoy
Equipment
Notes
- This is a vegetarian sauce but if you want extra protein, add a ground meat of your choice.
- My mother used to make her gravy with green bell peppers; I prefer red bell peppers, so choose which one you prefer.
- I use Vidalia onions since I like the sweetness, but if you prefer yellow onions, go for it.
- When you add tomato paste, you need to add water to thin it out. The trick is finding the right amount to add. Remember, you can always add more but you can’t take it out.
- When I add the water, I use the tomato paste can to measure it. It also helps clean the can of residual paste.
- Hubby loves when I add extra oil to sauté the vegetables because it makes the gravy velvety. Use what you are comfortable with. Two tablespoons is a good place to start.
Dakota
Yum, the gravy almost looks like a salsa, very chunky. I might try this as a taco, or even as a salsa dip.
Elaine
Thank you so much and yes, other than it not being spicy, it’s yummy on chips. Ask me how I know! 😉
Joyce
I made this last night and it came out perfect! I love this recipe!
Elaine
I’m so happy to hear that Joyce!
Gloria
Well this gravy sounds amazing. Perfect for pasta, rice, potatoes….and even in subs. This needs to happen in my kitchen for sure.
Elaine
Thank you Gloria! It is a staple in our house.
HEATHER PERINE
Made this and it was great! Added ground beef…delicious. And yup I don’t care if it’s gravy or sauce haha as long as it’s tasty!
Elaine
I’m so glad to hear that Heather. I do make it with meat half the time. Thanks for letting me know!
Chef Dennis
I am thinking of a new delicious sauce for my pasta and this tomato gravy is perfect. My wife will love this.
Elaine
Thanks Dennis! I hope you both enjoy it!
Debbie
This is such a great basic red sauce!! So versatile and can be used so many different ways . This is just fabulous!
Elaine
Thank you Debbie! I appreciate it.
christine
This is very different than the Sunday sauce I grew up with. Super chunky. I’m excited to change up my sauce game for a little something different.
Elaine
I make my gravy super chunky, unlike my whole family. I think it was because I was a vegetarian for many years and it made the gravy interesting. My family uses meat for the chunk! Thanks Christine. 🙂
Eva
What a beautiful sauce (I guess I belong to team sauce haha)! I love the chunky veggies in it, and I love that you served it with orecchiette, one of my favourite types of pasta. They pair so well with a chunky sauce!
Elaine
Thanks Eva. And no judgement about you calling it ‘sauce’. 😉 Yes, I love orecchiette too and how it captures the chunky gravy. 🙂
Marta
I grew up calling it a gravy, not a sauce, and I’m not even Italian, so I’m glad you called it the same, LOL!
Elaine
How absolutely fun Marta. I wonder if one of your parents grew up with a friend that called it gravy and then adapted it. 🙂 Thanks for letting me know.
Denise
ooh I love chunky sauces! This Tomato Gravy looks incredible and flavorful, I can’t wait to try it.
Elaine
Thanks Denise! I too love chunky sauces! 🙂 I hope you enjoy it when you do!
Moop Brown
Love this recipe- it seems super versatile and able to go with a variety of different dishes. Thanks!
Elaine
Thank you so much Moop! I use it in so many different ways, one of my favorites is using it as pizza sauce.
Jo
This tomato gravy is a regular in my kitchen. Just like yours, I also serve it with pasta and it’s so good! Love your recipe.
Elaine
Thanks so much Jo! Hubby wants me to make it a lot and I comply! 🙂