What’s the Difference Between Popular Italian Sauces? Find Out

Whenever we think of pasta, it’s hard not to think about the most delicious Italian sauces, from fresh marinara to moreish pesto and creamy bechamel. All of these sauces are either made using a cauldron of fresh tomatoes, mortar filled with pine nuts, a saucepan of cream, fresh olives, capers or garlic. These ingredients are tossed together to make hearty sauces of different flavours. But do you know the difference between them? Especially since some of them are made almost with the same ingredients. Here’s a small guide on how to differentiate between Italian sauces and what makes one suit more to a dish than the other.

Pomodoro and Marinara

Even though these sauces are made of the same ingredients, the difference lies in the way they are cooked. A Pomodoro sauce is thicker than the Marinara sauce, but the tomatoes used in it are minced while in the Marinara, they are cut into chunks.

Marinara is cooked quickly and is lighter in colour in comparison to Pomodoro which can be simmered for hours. Both of these sauces are used while cooking pasta. But if you’re making pizzas, then ideally pomodoro is used as a base sauce.

Ragu and Bolognese

Touted as one of the most popular Italian sauces, Bolognese is typically used in Spaghetti alla Bolognese. Almost all restaurants in the US have it on their menu. But if you travel to Italy, you will realise it exists under a different name, Ragu. The famous bolognese Sauce is in fact a variety of the Italian ragu sauce or meat sauce.

Alfredo and Carbonara

Alfredo Sauce and Carbonara are both creamy in texture, but there are notable differences between the two. The ingredients used in the sauces are different. While both the sauces use cheeses like Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino Romano, Carbonara Pasta Sauce relies heavily on eggs for its creamy texture whereas Alfredo Pasta Sauce is made of generous amounts of heavy cream and butter.

Pizza and Pasta Sauce

Even though the tomato-based sauce used for pastas and pizzas seem similar, they are quite different from each other. A pasta sauce is slowly simmered for hours and comprises a few more herbs like basil leaf. And since it’s cooked, pasta sauce consists of sweeter, deeper, richer flavours. Whereas a pizza sauce is basically an uncooked sauce. It consists of tomato puree that is seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, oregano or a drizzle of balsamic or red wine vinegar.

Fairly easy to-make, you can make sauces for pastas and pizzas at home, but if you’re not in the mood to make anything in the kitchen, get sauce online or from any of the stores that sell Italian products. Try and get your sauces from stores like Sorrentina that promise authentic Italian flavours. From an array of sauces like Basil Seed Pesto, Truffled Mushroom Sauce and Romesco Cream Cheese, you can choose whatever you like and get it delivered fresh to your doorstep.