A roasted heirloom tomato sauce recipe works on so many levels because of the roasting and the fresh ingredients.
The flavor of the fresh heirloom tomatoes and the basil give this tomato sauce recipe it's depth. The rich and silky texture is a great start to any tomato-based dish.

What are heirloom tomatoes
Heirloom tomatoes are an open-pollinated and non-hybrid tomato. Meaning that cultivators depend on birds, bees, and the wind to pollinate. They are not genetically modified and therefore, they are less shelf-stable and less resistant to disease.

Heirloom tomatoes are grown from plant seeds that are at least a minimum of 50 years old. They have a wide range of colors, flavors, shapes, and sizes.
Oven roasted heirloom tomatoes
Roasting any food at a high temperature ensures that you can get a nice brown color on your food. This will change the flavor profile of the food you are roasting and will create an added depth of flavor to your dish.

Fresh herbs vs dried herbs in your tomato sauce
When adding herbs to any dish, you must remember the proper way to use them and when to add them.
Fresh herbs are more delicate and require less cooking time to avoid their flavor from diminishing. Dried herbs are more pungent than fresh so you want to use them at the beginning of the cooking process.
So remember:
- Fresh herbs - add towards the end, or at the end of the cooking process.
- Dried herbs - add towards the beginning, or at least by the middle of the cooking process.

If you love this roasted heirloom tomato sauce, You'll also love these recipes:
- How to make the best bolognese sauce - You could incorporate your heirloom tomatoes with this meaty sauce.
- Tomato Sauce - a quick and easy marinara sauce.
- Pasta Dough - fresh pasta that you can make in minutes.
Helpful Hints
- Can heirloom tomatoes be canned? - YES! They need to be canned according to the water bath canning method.
- Can you freeze tomato sauce? Absolutely. After they are cooled and placed in freezer-friendly containers, they are good for at least 3 months.
If you tried the Roasted Heirloom Tomato Sauce recipe, please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and Twitter. Tag me with #joeeatsworld
📋 Recipe

Roasted Heirloom Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
- 5 lbs heirloom tomatoes
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 medium shallot, quartered
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoon red wine
- 2 tablespoon fresh basil leaves, fine chop
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- pre-heat oven to 500°
- remove the cores and stems from the tomatoes.
- rub tomatoes with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper
- place tomatoes, shallots, and garlic in oven-safe pan and roast for 15 minutes or until browning occurs.
- remove from oven, let cool to the touch.
- remove the skin from tomatoes
- place the tomatoes, garlic, shallots, their liquid and remaining ingredients (except basil) into a large saucepan and simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- add fresh basil. Simmer for another 15 minutes to infuse basil.
- Serve or let cool and store.
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Notes
- Substitue 1 tablespoon dried basil for the fresh basil
- You can omit the red wine if you wish
- add more salt, pepper, and sugar to taste
Becky Lipka
This sauce is AMAZING and it makes me very happy.
Joe Morales
So glad you enjoyed it! The heirloom tomatoes are the best! I just wish they lasted longer in the summer time!
Becky Lipka
I made it a few times this summer, it is truly the BEST.
Amanda
So easy and so delicious. I’m going to keep on making batches with my home grown heirloom tomatoes and freeze for yummy fall dishes.
Joe Morales
That's awesome! Let me know how it turns out after you freeze them. I really love the flavor of the heirlooms!
Rebecca
How long will this be good in the fridge?
Joe Morales
Hi Rebecca,
It would last about 4 or 5 days in the refrigerator but would last a couple months in the freezer.
Barbara
I tried this recipe last week with my heirloom tomatoes and it was just what I was looking for. The flavor profile was so delicious and it was very easy to make. I rolled the tomatoes in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, pepper and a touch of garlic granules. I also added garlic and onions to the mix in the oven. I put in a crockpot instead of on the stove and cooked until simmering nicely then added my fresh herbs, basil and oregano to taste (lot ). This recipe was fantastic and even my husband who makes the sauce every season loved it. Highly recommend!!!
Joe Morales
That's wonderful! I'm so glad that you enjoyed it. It's one of my favorites.
Shannon
Does the recipe mean 2 cloves of garlic or two heads of garlic??? Thank you, I look forward to making this today once I know.
Joe Morales
Hi Shannon, it was supposed to say 2 garlic cloves (or to your taste). I love garlic so I tend to put a little more in but it really depends on the person. I'm fixing the recipe now. Enjoy!