Name: Spicy Marinara Sauce
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 28 oz can whole plum tomatoes; 3 cloves garlic, sliced; 1 teaspoon salt; 1-2 tablespoon calabrian chili peppers; 8 basil leaves; 2 tablespoon olive oil; ¼ cup grated parmesan

I love to make this Spicy Marinara Sauce when I'm topping sandwiches or even chicken parmigiana! If you love adding a little spice to your recipes, try this simple 6-ingredient delicious sauce.

If you love a spicy sauce, try our Shrimp Fra Diavolo with Linguineor Spicy Chicken Riggies!

A Quick Look at The Recipe

✅Recipe Name: Spicy Marinara Sauce
⏲️Ready in: 30 minutes
👪Makes: 6 servings
📋Main ingredients: Whole Plum Tomatoes, Calabrian Chili Peppers, Garlic.
⭐Why You'll Love This Recipe: Spicy marinara is the perfect sauce for those who like a little spice on their pasta, sandwich, or meatballs!

Have a question about the recipe? Ask Ai!

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Why This Recipe

Every once in a while, I need to have a little spice in my sauce. I love a classic marinara, and you can see how to make that in my Ultimate Guide to Marinara Sauce. But a spicy marinara has its place in our home when we're looking to spice something up, like Chicken Parm Slidersor an Eggplant Parm Sandwich.

This recipe combines the simplicity of a classic Italian recipe like marinara and adds one more authentic Italian ingredient to add the heat: Calabrian chili peppers. We get a delicious spicy marinara or arrabiata sauce to serve with favorites like Fried Cauliflower Cakes and Polpette di Melanzane (Eggplant Meatballs)!

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

Whole Plum Tomatoes- It's best to go with whole plum tomatoes and hand-crush them. They have a much better texture than buying crushed tomatoes. They're heartier, chunkier, and more rustic when crushed by hand. This is how I make my Authentic Italian Sunday Sauce.
Calabrian Chili Peppers- I always opt for Calabrian chili peppers in oil when I'm making a spicy marinara or fra diavolo sauce like Mussels Fra Diavolo. You can substitute 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper for every tablespoon of Calabrian chili peppers. If you want to decrease the spiciness, just half the Calabrian chili peppers in the ingredients.
Basil- Fresh basil is key in any simple Italian sauce. I like to finish the sauce with a bit of fresh basil at the end. The flavor will be more forward this way!
Olive Oil- In any simple Italian recipe, high-quality ingredients are key. I like to use a single olive extra virgin olive oil!

*Please see the recipe card below for more information on the ingredients.

How to Make Spicy Marinara Sauce

Follow the numbered steps below to make a simple but delicious spicy marinara.

Step 1: Pour the whole plum tomatoes into a bowl. After cleaning your hands, hand-crush the whole plum tomatoes into a pulp.

Saute garlic and calabrian chili peppers.

Step 2: Bring a saucepan to medium heat. Add olive oil to the pan. Stir the garlic and Calabrian chili peppers in the pan and saute for 1-2 minutes.

Step 3: Pour in the tomatoes. Season with half a teaspoon of salt and some basil. Bring to a simmer and lower to medium-low heat.

Step 4: Simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Step 5: Stir in a little extra basil in the last 5 minutes. Taste the sauce and add another half teaspoon of salt if necessary. Then stir in the parmesan.

Serve over your favorite pasta or on a sandwich! It's also a great sauce for dipping Italian Sausage Bread, Pepperoni Bread (Stromboli), or Veggie Stromboli!

Pro-Tips

Hand-crush your tomatoes for a more rustic chunky tomato sauce, or use an immersion blender to blend them into a smooth sauce. Smooth sauce works better with sandwiches, while a chunky sauce is great with pasta.
Calabrian chili peppers can be really spicy, so adjust according to your tolerance for heat.
Add grated parmesan to make the sauce slightly creamier and offset the acidity of the Calabrian chili peppers.

Serving Suggestions

Spicy Marinara Sauce is the perfect sauce to substitute in so many classic Italian recipes like Eggplant Parmigiana, Chicken Pizzaiola, or Chicken Rollatini!
It's also perfect on top of your favorite pastas like penne or rigatoni with a ton of parmesan, along with Classic Italian Fried Meatballs or Authentic Italian Braciole!
If you love baked pasta, it would be great as a substitute for the sauces in Baked Cheese Manicotti, Authentic Italian Baked Ziti, or Italian Stuffed Shells with Meat Sauce and Ricotta!
It's perfect for dipping Grilled Beef Spiedini or Air Fryer Parmesan Crusted Chicken.

FAQs about Spicy Marinara

What is spicy marinara sauce called?

Sometimes it's called arrabiata, which means "angry sauce" in Italian.

What else can I put in my pasta to make it spicy?

Dried red chili peppers or crushed red pepper are good substitutes. Some people will also use infused olive oils.

If I made my spicy marinara too spicy, how can I tone it down?

You'll have to add more sauce to help dampen the spice. Or if you're in a pinch, add heavy cream, and that will help lower the spice level also. Check out Spicy Vodka Sauce, which is a bit less spic,y to see how we use heavy cream to do this!