Looking for a lower in carb spaghetti sauce then what you can find at the local grocery stores?
Spaghetti sauce gets the bulk of its carbs from the tomatoes and other ingredients such as onions, peppers and mushrooms. If you look at store bought brands they are even higher in carbs due to added sugar (corn syrup, dextrose, etc) to make the sauce sweet.
Here’s the nutritional stats on a few of the spaghetti sauces available in many local stores:
Ragu Old World Style Traditional Sauce: 1/2 cup has 13 grams of carbs and 2 grams of fiber for 11 net grams of carbs.
Prego Traditional Sauce: 1/2 cup has 13 grams of carbs and 2 grams of fiber for 11 net grams of carbs.
Hunt’s Traditional Spaghetti Sauce: 1/2 cup has 11 grams of carbs and 3 grams of fiber for 8 net grams of carbs.
You get the idea.
There are currently more no sugar added spaghetti sauces coming out on the market which is great for those of us looking to avoid the added sugars. But, you can also quickly and easily make your own lower in carb spaghetti sauce. It’s fast and easy to do. Plus you are in control of all the ingredients.
Start with the basic recipe and then dress it up a little by adding in Italian sausage. Why not double or triple the batch so you can freeze the extras to be used on another day? It takes no more time to do it and it will save you plenty of time down the road.
Homemade Low Carb Spaghetti Sauce
Making this spaghetti sauce is so incredibly easy to do:
Simply heat a bit of olive oil in a large stock pot. Add in the garlic and saute until it becomes softened and fragrant.
Add the remaining ingredients except for the salt and pepper.
Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes to allow the flavors to blend together.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Each 1/2 cup of this lower in carb spaghetti sauce contains:
Carbohydrates: 5.4 grams
Fiber: 1.3 grams
Net Carbs: 4.1 grams
Pass on the pasta and serve over spaghetti squash or zucchini that’s been cut into ribbons, thin strips or even rounds. Try summer squash in place of zucchini. For more low carb pasta replacement ideas check out this page.
Homemade Low Carb Spaghetti Sauce with Italian Sausage
To change things up add a bit of Italian sausage to the sauce. It will take the same ingredients as noted above in the basic sauce recipe plus you will need one pound of Italian sausage.
To make this:
Take a pound of Italian sausage (Sweet or Hot) and run a sharp knife down the side to split the casing.
In a large stock pot, over medium heat, add the olive oil and crumble in the sausage. Break up the sausage as it is cooking. Continue to cook the sausage until it’s no longer pink.Once the sausage is cooked add in the crushed and diced tomatoes, tomato paste, red wine vinegar, oregano, basil, rosemary, garlic and onion powder.
Cook over medium low heat for 20 to 30 minutes to allow the flavors to blend.Season with salt and pepper to taste.
FREEZER TIP:
This sauce freezes well so double or triple the batch if desired. When I do this I use one portion for a meal that day and allow the remainder of the sauce to cool a bit.
Spoon it into a plastic container (Gladware is my personal favorite) and place in the refrigerator to cool completely.
Once it has cooled the container can then be transferred to the freezer.
But, before freezing, make sure to clearly mark your containers. When I use freezer bags I write directly on them. When I use freezer containers I use these freezer labels.
There’s nothing worse than thinking you are pulling out a container of spaghetti sauce only to discover later on that it’s chili or tomato soup. Always remember to label your freezer food with the name of the item and the date.
Nutritional information for 1/2 cup of Spaghetti Sauce with Italian Sausage:
Calories: 275
Fat: 7.3 grams
Carbohydrates: 5.8 grams
Fiber: 1.3 grams
Net Carbs: 4.5 grams
Protein: 8.3 grams
Homemade Tomato Sauce With Sausage
Equipment
- Large Stockpot
Ingredients
- 2 cans crushed tomatoes 14 ounces each
- 1 can diced tomatoes 14 ounces each
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 3 cloves Garlic minced OR 1 teaspoon dried garlic
- 2 teaspoons Basil
- 2 teaspoons Oregano
- 1 teaspoon Rosemary
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large stock pot add the olive oil and garlic. Cook over medium heat until the garlic is fragrant.1/4 cup olive oil, 3 cloves Garlic
- Add the crushed and diced tomatoes, tomato paste, vinegar, basil, oregano, rosemary and onion powder.2 cans crushed tomatoes, 1 can diced tomatoes, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon Onion Powder, 2 teaspoons Basil, 2 teaspoons Oregano, 1 teaspoon Rosemary
- Allow the sauce to cook for 15 to 20 minutes so the flavors can blend together.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.Salt and Pepper to taste
- When done serve over your favorite pasta, spaghetti squash or zucchini noodles.
Nutrition
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