This throw it all in and forget it recipe for a rich and intense fat free slow cooker marinara or tomato sauce will become a freezer staple. Perfect for pizzas or pasta, it’s a simple slow cooker recipe that delivers scrumptious results every time. Gluten free and vegan.
I’m a big fan of preparing ahead and freezing, finding that for meals during the week having something prepared earlier sitting in the freezer really cuts down on my stress levels and lets me make a healthy and tasty dish in no time at all. This slow cooker fat free tomato sauce is a perfect example, and has so many uses.
This tomato sauce is frugal, rich and intense and will become your favourite tomato or marinara sauce in no time. Best of all the preparation is almost completely hands off – you need to do a little chopping then chuck everything into your slow cooker, pop the lid on and leave overnight.
Long slow cooking will reduce the canned tomatoes to a rich and intense sauce.  To intensify the flavour even more leave the lid of the slow cooker ajar for the last hour of cooking time. One huge advantage of making a recipe like this in the slow cooker is that it really does not matter if you leave it coking for an extra hour or two.
How do I make Fat Free Slow Cooker Tomato Sauce?
This is a very straightforward and easy recipe. There’s no no need to spend time spent frying onions or anything like that: simply place all the ingredients in a slow cooker and switch it on the low setting. Eight hours later, blitz the sauce with a stick blender and it’s all done. Use there and then, or let it cool and freeze it for later.
Can I Make This Slow Cooker Tomato Sauce Without A Slow Cooker?
Easily! Use a heavy casserole dish with a lid, and cook the sauce for a couple of hours on the lowest setting on your stove top. You may need to use a diffuser plate under the pot depending how how much control you have over the burners, and give the pot a stir from time to time.
Can I Freeze Fat Free Slow Cooker Tomato Sauce?
Yes, absolutely! What I like to do is to freeze it in an ice cube tray, then transfer the frozen cubes into a plastic bag. That way it’ll keep in the freezer for a few months, and it’s so easy to pull a couple of cubes out, let them defrost and stir into some pasta for a fuss free meal.
What Can I do with Fat Free Slow Cooker Tomato Sauce
I use this sauce as is on pasta and home-made pizza, but it’s easy to add some variation. Here are a few ideas:
- Fry some mince until browned, add the tomato sauce and let it heat through. Spag bol in minutes!
- Cook some spicy sausages, add tomato sauce and serve with delicious buttery mashed potatoes.
- Add a cube to stews for a hint of rich tomato flavours.
- Add to soups or risottos
- Use as a sauce in this Corned Beef Pasta Bake
This throw it all in and forget it recipe for a rich and intense fat free slow cooker marinara or tomato sauce will become a freezer staple. Perfect for pizzas or pasta, it's a simple slow cooker recipe that delivers scrumptious results every time. Gluten free and vegan.
- 800 g canned tomatoes (2 cans)
- 3 medium tomatoes (roughly chopped)
- 1 small onion (peeled and roughly chopped)
- 3 garlic cloves (peeled and sliced in half)
- 2 tbs tomato puree
- 2 stalks fresh basil
- pinch dried oregano
- salt and pepper (to taste)
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Simple pop all the ingredients into your slow cooker, and stir.
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Cook on low, with the lid on, for about 8 hours or overnight. If needed cook for another hour or two with the lid of the slow cooker slightly ajar to reduce further.
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Blitz to a smooth sauce with a stick blender.
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Allow to cool before packing into tubs, glass jars or ice cube trays ready for freezing.
This is such an adaptable recipe and really is as simple as throwing it all in the slow cooker and leaving it to cook.
For a touch of heat add a pinch of chilli powder - take care though as the long slow cooking will intensify the heat.
You will get better results from using a mid range brand of canned tomatoes, not the most expensive, but not the cheapest which can be watery and taste metallic.
Freezes well.
All slow cookers behave differently, the sauce may need more or less time depending on the wattage and if your cooker has any hot spots.
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Felesha Bell
What a fabulous idea to make this in the slow cooker!!! I absolutely love the ice cube tray tip!! Great pics!
Helen
So easy to make, let the cooker get on with it and go and do something else. Ideal .
meeta
Like you I am a huge fan of pre-preparations. It makes weeknight cooking a lot easier. I am just loving the thickness of the marinara sauce here. I do not have a slow cooker but can imagine it would work just as well in my römertopf!
Helen
I’m sure it would work Meeta.
Lisa Huff
Hmmm, why didn’t I think about making tomato sauce in my slow cooker?! Going to try!
Helen
So easy to do Lisa, and use the time to do other stuff.
Dannii
You can’t beat a homemade tomato pasta sauce – we actually just posted one ourselves. It beats the Jarred stuff any day.
Helen
I saw yours yesterday, when I was working on finishing my draft which I made and shot way back in November!
Sarah Irving | The Urban Wanderer
Excellent recipe, Helen, and the perfect way to make batch sauces. It can sometimes be a bit of a bind having to pull everything together all of the time, so I love the idea of making and storing some for later – especially as the slow cooker does the work while I play. Thanks!
Helen
Such a good way of using the slow cooker, and making batch sauces is ideal for saving time later.
Veena Azmanov
Love a good marinara sauce. I love making mine in a slow cooker and freezing too!! That helps me on days when I am busy with my cake orders. Love the pretty red color…
Helen
I imagine that the last thing you want to do after one of your amazing cakes is to cook anything!
Olivia Jade??? (@dungareesdonuts)
Oh wow, I was weirdly looking for a recipe last night to make this. A lot of them over complicate it or taste nothing like the real thing. Just need to get a hand blender, and I can get making this for my weeks meal prep! x
Helen
you could pass it through a sieve or use a jug blender. But a stick blender is so cheap and such a useful thing to have.
Kate Williams
Oh that looks lovely, we tend to make pasta sauces from scratch but doing them in the slow cooker would make it a lot easier!
Helen
So very easy Kate, and making a batch saves more time later.
Charli Bruce
I love making homemade tomato sauce, the flavour you can get in it and just how fresh it tastes beats anything! I’m definitely going to try your recipe x
Helen
So much better than the jar versions available, and so easy to make.
Rachel
I’ve got 2lbs of tomatoes sitting in my freezer so I think I know what I am going to be making! Thanks Helen.
Helen
use them, make the sauce and then refill the freezer!
Dena Jayne
This looks yummy & sounds so easy to make! It’s also amazing that it’s freezable! x
Helen
Really handy to freeze, ready for easy use.
Liv @ Healthy Liv
This looks delicious! I’ve never tried making tomato sauce in the slow cooker but it’s a great idea!
Helen
So easy to do Liv, and can spend the time doing something else entirely different.
Lynne Harper
I love foods that you can make and store. Great for those days when your late in, just a simple heat, add pasta and parmesan yummy :0
Helen
I also have a tub of grated Parmesan in the freezer – ideal for a lazy super.
Kaz | Ickle Pickles Life and Travels
This is a great sauce – I would use this a lot as we love pasta! I have never used a slow cooker to make a sauce. Kaz
Helen
I love my slow cooker sauces. throw it all in and go and do something fun, or sleep, whilst it cooks!
Louise
Ooh, this sauce looks absolutely divine! I will definitely have to give it a try :)
Louise x
Helen
So easy to make, and so useful to have in the freezer ready to go.