If you love spaghetti sauce as much as my family does, then you’ve probably wanted to find a way to make a homemade version that’s inexpensive and doesn’t make a mess or require constant stirring.

Enter my Dutch oven spaghetti sauce. A spaghetti sauce recipe that sits in the oven on low for hours.

I’ve been hanging onto this recipe for a long time.

It’s another one of those “don’t share it with anyone, Mom” family favorite recipes.

Well, I’m sharing it now.

Because I know if you’re anything like me, you value your time, your money, and delicious, nutritious food.

Baked in the Oven, In a Dutch Oven

This marinara sauce recipe is easy to assemble. Just add tomatoes, garlic, and spices together in a Dutch oven and let it cook at a low temperature for hours in the oven. Finish it off with some red wine and parmesan cheese to enhance all the flavors.

It’s a low maintenance recipe, too. I take it out of the oven and stir it two to three times during the cooking process, which is usually 5 or 6 hours in total.

No Meat, No Mess

Making your spaghetti sauce in a Dutch oven cuts down on splatters and mess significantly.

Nothing boils over because the oven is at a low temperature (250 degrees Fahrenheit).

Also, I don’t add meat to my spaghetti sauce. My family prefers that I roast Italian sausages in the oven or make homemade meatballs.

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What is a Dutch Oven?

It’s an enamel, cast iron casserole dish with a lid and two handles.

I have two of them – a green one and a blue one.

I use them for making sourdough bread, ratatouille, boiling water for pasta, soups and more. I absolutely love my Dutch oven – that’s why I have two!

This is my favorite tool to make this recipe (the Dutch oven, of course!)

How Can You Serve Dutch Oven Spaghetti Sauce?

I usually serve it straight up on pasta with meatballs or cooked Italian sausages.

But you could also use this sauce for lasagna, any Italian baked casserole that calls for marinara sauce, or as the marinara sauce for hot submarine sandwiches like a meatball sub.

What Side Dishes Go with Marinara Sauce Made in the Dutch Oven?

Aside from pasta and meats, I usually have an Italian loaf of bread and a salad. If you have more time, you might want to sauté broccolini or spinach and serve it with this tomato sauce.

How Do I Store Pasta Sauce?

This recipe makes quite a bit of pasta sauce, so I always have leftovers. You can store your leftovers in the refrigerator for 3 or 4 days, but I usually transfer the sauce to a container and freeze it for another meal.

Pasta sauce can be frozen for up to 6 months (mine never lasts that long!).

I hope you enjoy making this simple, easy, so tasty spaghetti sauce in your Dutch oven!