How to Make Store-Bought Tomato Sauce 10x Better, According to Giada De Laurentiis

Let's be honest, homemade tomato sauce is unrivaled in flavor. Really good homemade tomato sauce is all about the tomatoes and a few other simple ingredients, plus time—and plenty of it. Most from-scratch tomato sauce recipes need to simmer for hours, and most of the time, that's absolutely not in the cards for me. On days like that, I turn to a trusty old friend: jarred tomato sauce . 

But what if there were a way to take jarred tomato sauce from meh to magical ? For instance, turning it into a delicious skillet full of creamy pasta alla vodka ? I discovered this genius jarred sauce hack from the website of Giada De Laurentiis , who is one of America's most adored Italian chefs. Giada's pasta alla vodka trick turns a humble jar of tomato sauce into an extra-special meal with very little work. Here's how she does it. 

Related: We Tried Giada De Laurentiis' Chicken Meatballs Recipe and We Wish We'd Discovered It Years Ago

How to Make Giada's Shortcut Pasta Alla Vodka

Giada De Laurentiis ' recipe is the definition of meeting in the middle. You get the ease of saving time and energy with jarred tomato sauce, but you don't miss out on any of the flavor thanks to the addition of cream, Parmesan cheese and, of course, vodka. All you've got to do is dump the jarred sauce in a pot, then bring the sauce and vodka to a simmer over low heat until the mixture reduces by about a quarter. Stir in some heavy cream and simmer until the sauce is warmed through. 

While the sauce is simmering, boil your pasta. When the sauce is ready, stir in some Parmesan cheese. Finally, drain the pasta and add it to the vodka sauce, tossing until perfectly coated. That's it!

Related: Giada's Sheet Pan Lasagna is Weeknight Dinner Perfection

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One Tiny Tweak ThatTransforms Jarred Sauce Even More

Giada's recipe is one of the best ways to upgrade a jar of tomato sauce, but there's one tiny addition that I believe makes all the difference: butter. There's something incredible about what adding a few tablespoons of butter does to elevate the flavor of jarred tomato sauce.

The mother of Italian cooking, Marcella Hazan , is the legend behind this trick. Oftentimes, store-bought tomato sauce lacks depth of flavor and it's almost always way too acidic. Adding a few tablespoons of butter to the sauce at the end will mellow out the acidity and give the sauce a wonderful velvety texture. Doesn't butter make everything better? 

Related: Giada De Laurentiis Taught Me the Secret to the Most Flavorful Pasta Salad

Pro Tips for Making Giada's Pasta Alla Vodka

1. Pasta water makes perfect.If you find that your sauce is a little bit on the thicker side, reserving a bit of pasta water while draining will be a lifesaver. A splash of starchy pasta water will loosen up the sauce and help it coat the noodles perfectly. 

1. Short noodles are the star of the show.Noodles like rigatoni, penne and fusilli are my go-tos for pasta alla vodka. Short noodles with nooks and lots of ridges create lots of places for sauce to cling to. 

1. Get the good stuff.  Splurging on a nicer jar of tomato sauce really does make a difference in taste. Look for sauces with a short ingredients list full of high-quality ingredients, like San Marzano tomatoes or garlic.

1. Turn up the heat.While vodka adds a kick of heat to the sauce already, I always add in a sprinkle of red chili flakes to take the heat up just a notch. It's the perfect little boost of flavor for this dish. 

2. Blend 'er up.In the recipe, Giada also says you can blend it with an immersion or stand blender to make it ultra-velvety. Feel free to do that step if you want a smoother, silkier pasta sauce.

Related: We Made Sauce With 16 Different Canned Tomatoes and the Winner Won by a Landslide