This 3-Ingredient Pasta Sauce is a combination you MUST try. I know that a tomato onion butter sauce sounds like a slightly crazy, overly simple combo, but trust me. JUST TRUST ME.

Something about this simple combination creates a tomato sauce that just tastes like pure tomato. The butter makes the sauce silky and the onion infuses its flavors, both supporting actors in the main show, which is all about the tomato.

A plate of pasta with 3-ingredient pasta sauce topped with parmesan and herbs.

Table of Contents

The Story Behind the Recipe

The first time I read about this recipe, I was a doubter. Canned tomatoes, butter, and an onion? Sure, I thought, sounds okay and all. But it doesn’t sound like anything that would part the heavens and make the birds sing and force me to declare proudly that my life was now complete.

two white plates full of penne pasta and topped with Marcella Hazan's tomato sauce recipe.

Which I guess it really doesn’t – it’s just food after all.

But this sauce truly is more divine than you’d think upon reading the list of ingredients. Something about simmering these three ingredients together really does create magic.

A wooden spoon full of 3-ingredient pasta sauce

Created by the illustrious Marcella Hazan, an Italian cookbook writer celebrated for making Italian cooking accessible for all, she has said about this sauce, “This is the simplest of all sauces to make, and none has a purer, more irresistibly sweet tomato taste. I have known people to skip the pasta and eat the sauce directly out of the pot with a spoon.” (Source: Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan)

Why You’ll Love Magic 3-Ingredient Pasta Sauce

Well, first of all, this tomato butter onion sauce is the PERFECT recipe for the beginning cook. You don’t even need any knife skills! Just peel your onion and cut it in half – that’s the extend of the knife work.

Second, it could not be simpler to make. Just add the three ingredients to a saucepan and simmer. Done.

It’s inexpensive, too.

Simple, inexpensive, and so easy to make. Who doesn’t want more of that in their kitchen?!

Ingredients for 3-ingredient pasta sauce

Ingredients

  • Tomatoes – You’ll want canned whole tomatoes. I often turn to San Marzano tomatoes for this Marcella Hazan tomato sauce recipe, but it’s remarkable with any sort of canned whole tomatoes.
  • Onion – I use a standard yellow onion, typically, but a white onion will work, too.
  • Butter – I prefer unsalted so I can better control the overall salt content in the recipe. But you can use salted here and be fine!
  • Salt – Optional, but feel free to add it if you’d like a bit more flavor.

How to Make Magic 3-Ingredient Pasta Sauce

Add the can of tomatoes, the butter, and the onion to your saucepan. Bring to a simmer and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally and gently smashing the tomatoes against the edge of the saucepan when you stir.

A saucepan with the ingredients for 3-ingredient pasta sauce.
Cooking 3-ingredient pasta sauce

Remove the onion and discard it, and that’s it! Now you can spoon your tomato onion butter sauce over pasta or, you know, just eat it with a spoon.

3-ingredient pasta sauce ready to serve.

Can I Freeze Tomato Onion Butter Sauce?

Yes! It freezes well, so consider making a double batch. Just spoon the cooled sauce into an airtight container or freezer bag, label, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and warm it back up gently over the stove.

Marcella Hazan tomato butter and onion sauce on pasta on a white plate.

More Pasta Sauce Recipes

How to Serve It

Magic 3-Ingredient Pasta Sauce is wonderful tossed in or spooned over just about any pasta. We especially enjoy it mixed in with plain ol’ spaghetti noodles or piled onto whole-wheat penne.

You can also use it as a dipping sauce for breadsticks or pizza pinwheels. Or use it in lasagna. Sky’s the limit!

3-ingredient pasta sauce being spooned onto penne pasta
No ratings yet

Magic 3-Ingredient Pasta Sauce (Marcella Hazan Recipe)

Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes
Total: 50 minutes
Author: Kare
Yield: 4
Three ingredients – tomato, butter, and onion – come together perfectly in this simple – and simply magical – pasta sauce.
Print Pin Rate

Ingredients

  • 1 24-ounce can whole tomatoes (San Marzano are fabulous, but I’ve used others and they’re also delicious)
  • 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 medium yellow onion (peeled and halved)
  • Salt (optional, to taste)

Instructions

  • Add the tomatoes, butter, and onion to a heavy medium-sized saucepan. Bring sauce to a simmer over medium heat, then reduce the heat to low, keeping it at a steady simmer.
  • Simmer for about 45 minutes until the butter droplets float free from the tomatoes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, gently smashing the tomato on the side of the pan as you stir.
  • Remove the onion and discard.
  • If desired, season to taste with salt.
  • Serve with your favorite pasta.

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 1g, Calories: 546kcal, Carbohydrates: 10g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 57g, Saturated Fat: 36g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 15g, Trans Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 151mg, Sodium: 13mg, Potassium: 180mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 1754IU, Vitamin C: 8mg, Calcium: 42mg, Iron: 0.3mg

Share or save:

This post may contain affiliate links, which means if you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a portion of the proceeds. More about this here.