Name: Spaghetti al Pomodoro
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 2-1/2 lbs ripe vine-ripened tomatoes (~4 large tomatoes); 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil; 1 shallot (chopped); 4 garlic cloves (pressed or minced); pinch of sugar; 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves; 2 Tablespoons butter; 3/4 teaspoon salt; freshly cracked pepper (to taste); 12 oz spaghetti; freshly grated parmesan cheese (for serving (optional))

Spaghetti al Pomodoro is the perfect recipe to highlight ripe and juicy summer tomatoes. This simple pasta dish is fresh and light!

overhead photo of a fork in a plate of spaghetti al pomodoro

We’ve reached that time of year when it’s so hot the cicadas start buzzing in the trees mid-morning and become absolutely deafening by bed time.

AKA MY FAVORITE TIME OF YEAR!

Here in the Midwest, the daily cicada choir is usually a good indication that local tomatoes are ripe, ready, and begging to be turned into Spaghetti al Pomodoro. This simple, light, and fresh Italian tomato sauce recipe with pasta is like summer on a plate, and I wait on pins and needles all year long to make it.

Pomodoro sauce is the ULTIMATE fresh Italian tomato sauce!

Watch How to Make It

Pasta Pomodoro Sauce

Pomodoro means “tomato” in Italian, and pomodoro sauce, aka salsa al pomodoro, is a tomato-based pasta sauce that’s made from fresh tomatoes, olive oil, salt, fresh garlic, and fresh basil. Are you sensing a theme here?

Fresh, fresh, fresh!

Spaghetti al Pomodoro, or simply spaghetti pomodoro, is the sauce swirled with cooked spaghetti. In my case gluten free spaghetti. I really love Jovial’s Capellini (angel hair, y’all) and spaghetti, or Rummo gluten free spaghetti. This dish is also commonly made with linguini pasta.

Bottom line: whatever you’ve got in the pantry is going to to taste heavenly when coated in this light and luscious tomato sauce.

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Ingredients Needed

I love how pomodoro sauce is truly unfussy and the simple ingredients are all ones I almost always have on hand — especially in the summertime.

Fresh tomatoes: I use vine-ripened tomatoes for my fresh pomodoro sauce. It’s important that the tomatoes be very ripe (ie, this isn’t the best dish to make in December) and local if possible.
Extra virgin olive oil: EVOO gives rich flavor to the sauce, especially after being infused with shallots and garlic.
Shallots and Garlic: fresh shallots add a delicate onion flavor, while garlic adds an unmistakable punch of garlicky flavor.
Fresh basil: fresh basil is torn into the sauce near the end of the cooking process so its herby flavor is still at its peak when serving.
Sugar: just a pinch of sugar is added to balance out the acidity of the tomatoes.
Salt and pepper: ‘nuf said.
Butter: butter isn’t typically added to pomodoro sauce, though I personally love how it smoothes out the flavor of this fresh tomato sauce. I add it to the tomato sauce I make with canned tomatoes, too. Just a personal preference that I’d love for you to try.
Spaghetti: You can’t have Spaghetti al Pomodoro without spaghetti! Again, I like Jovial and Rummo brands though you can use your favorite pasta. Angel hair or linguini is also delicious.
Parmesan cheese: freshly grated parmesan cheese on top of each bowl of Spaghetti al Pomodoro is the cherry on top of this incredible dish!

cooked spaghetti mixed with fresh italian tomato sauce

Family Friendly Recipe

Making this pasta always reminds me of Ben’s and my vacation to the Amalfi Coast in Italy nearly 100 years ago (give or take a year or two). We stayed in the quiet, tiny town of Praiano, just down the coast from touristy Positano and on our daily walks up and down the stone stairways that got you everywhere you needed to go, we could hear and smell the residents cooking. MY GOSH, there were several times that I had to hold Ben back from knocking on someone’s door asking to stay for dinner!

Here in the present day, we absolutely adore this dish. The last time I served it Gwen said, “I need this again and again and again!” and my boys, who generally prefer to see ground beef in their spaghetti sauce, love love love this recipe.

Spaghetti al Pomodoro is the perfect example of simple is best. Combine a few fresh, everyday ingredients together to make this swirly, irresistable dinner tonight. Gluten Free Focaccia pairing optional, but recommended!

How to Make Spaghetti al Pomodoro

Step 1: Prep the tomatoes.

Start the spaghetti pomodoro by peeling large, vine-ripened tomatoes. We do this by scoring the bottom of the tomatoes with an “X” then boiling them briefly to loosen the skin.

Carefully add the scored tomatoes to a large pot of boiling water then cook for 30 seconds.

ladle holding a tomato over a pot of boiling water

Transfer the tomatoes to a colander to drain then, once they’re cool enough to handle, peel away the skins and discard. Easy!

Tip: Turn the heat under the pot of water to low to keep it hot. We’ll use it to cook the pasta in a bit!

Chop the peeled tomatoes then transfer – seeds, juices, and all – to a bowl and set aside.

Step 2: Start the sauce.

Heat a large skillet with high sides, or a medium-size Dutch Oven, over medium heat then add extra virgin olive oil. Once hot, add chopped shallots then saute until tender, 3-5 minutes. Add pressed or minced fresh garlic cloves then saute until extremely fragrant but not browned, another 30 seconds.

shallots and garlic sauting in a dutch oven

Step 3: Simmer the sauce.

Add the chopped tomatoes to the pan with a pinch of sugar then simmer for 30 minutes, smashing the tomatoes against the bottom and sides of the pan every so often with a rubber spatula to smooth the sauce out, and turning the heat down to medium-low heat if necessary to reduce splatters.

When the sauce has 5 minutes left to cook, add fresh basil leaves torn into small pieces, plus butter, salt, and freshly cracked pepper.

ingredients for pasta pomodoro in a cooking pot

Step 4: Boil the Spaghetti

When the sauce has 15 minutes or so left to cook, bring the pot of water you used to boil the tomatoes in back up to a boil and season generously with salt. Add spaghetti noodles then you have two options:

Drain the pasta: Cook the pasta until it’s al dente, drain, then scoop onto plates and serve the pomodoro sauce on top.
Finish the pasta in the sauce: Cook the pasta until it’s just shy of al dente then transfer it to the sauce pot with tongs to finish cooking directly in the sauce. Add splashes of pasta cooking water if needed to cook the pasta all the way through.

Personally I prefer method 2 because it infuses the pasta with the sauce.

adding cooked spaghetti to a pot of pomodoro sauce

That’s all she wrote! I’m telling you, make this once, and you’ll be planting tomatoes next summer JUST so you can make it on demand. SO fresh, SO light, SO darn delicious. I hope you love every last bite of Spaghetti al Pomodoro – enjoy!

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