Tomato sauce will be much richer with double the amount of 1 ingredient

Chef William Murray, the brains behind some of London’s best restaurants, shared the secret for making the perfect tomato sauce at home

Ellen Jenne U35 Spare Time Writer

13:51, 16 Oct 2025

Chef William Murray, the brains behind some of London’s best restaurants, shared the secret for making the perfect tomato sauce at home(Image: Phill Thornton via Getty Images)

Tomato sauce is the cornerstone of numerous recipes and even more sophisticated sauces, but there’s a method to enhance its flavour when making it at home. Chefs Jack Croft and William Murray, who have honed their skills in some of London’s top restaurants such as Fallow, Roe and FOWL, have shared their secret to crafting the perfect homemade tomato sauce, reports the Express.

In a recent TikTok video, Will demonstrated how to create four distinct sauces from a basic “Sauce Tomat”. These include arrabiata, vodka, Provençale, and romesco.

Alongside this, he divulged his tips for concocting the ideal “mother sauce”. The magic ingredient? A generous helping of olive oil.

To start, pour a substantial amount of “good quality” Greek olive oil into a large saucepan. Will advised: “My rule when making a tomato sauce is always use about double the amount of olive oil you think you need. It’s going to add a richness to the sauce.”

Olive oil can help add a level of richness to the tomato sauce(Image: fcafotodigital via Getty Images)

Next, add finely chopped onions, frying them without letting them brown. Allow the onions to sweat until they become soft.

Add a pinch of salt and a small quantity of chopped garlic, continuing to sweat the ingredients. Once the garlic has softened, introduce a tin of tomatoes.

Follow this with a “hit” of black pepper and an additional splash of olive oil. Lower the heat and let it simmer gently for around ten minutes.

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After ten minutes, stir in a tablespoon of sugar. After another ten minutes of cooking, season with another dash of salt and pepper.

Switch off the heat. If you fancy, you can add a bunch of fresh basil leaves, tied together and left to infuse as the sauce cools.

This versatile sauce can be used in a range of dishes, or you could use it to whip up some of the sauces Will showcased in the video.

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