What's the Difference Between Pasta Sauce and Pizza Sauce?

Pizza is undeniably one of the world's favorite foods. While opinions may differ on whether pineapple belongs on pizza, there's no debate that a perfect mix of dough, cheese, and sauce creates a winning dish.

Sometimes, your passion for pizza might inspire you to skip the delivery and make your own at home. Once you've got the right tools for pizza-making, it's not too difficult. But there's one important detail to remember before you start layering cheese and toppings: pizza sauce and pasta sauces, like marinara, are not the same.

Pizza vs. Pasta Sauce: What's the Difference?

It may seem strange at first, but it becomes clearer once you think about it. With pizza, the sauce is spread on raw dough and uncooked cheese to create a finished meal. On the other hand, pasta sauce like marinara is added to cooked pasta (unless you're making lasagna, but that's a whole different dish).

Using a pre-cooked marinara sauce on your pizza before it goes into the oven would be redundant and can negatively impact the final taste. By cooking the sauce just once, you preserve a fresher, more vibrant tomato flavor once your pizza comes out of the oven.

On the other hand, since pizza cooks at very high temperatures (typically 400-500 degrees F or higher), adding pizza sauce to your plate of pasta will likely make it feel undercooked. A traditional pasta sauce is designed to have its flavors fully developed before packaging, so it’s not meant for such a quick cooking method.

There are also other key differences. Pasta sauces typically have more water content, while pizza sauces are thicker because they often rely on undiluted tomato paste. Pasta sauces usually turn tomato paste into a "tomato puree" by adding water, whereas pizza sauce keeps a more concentrated, rich texture.

Pizza sauce is typically simpler in terms of ingredients. While both pizza and pasta sauces feature tomatoes, a pizza sauce often includes just garlic, oregano, basil, and olive oil—ingredients that combine to create the perfect pizza base. Pasta sauces, particularly slow-roasted varieties, tend to have a broader range of ingredients. In addition to the basics, marinara might include olives and onions, while other pasta sauces can contain ingredients like peppers, sugar, salt, and even meats. For pizza, however, these ingredients are better suited as toppings rather than mixed into the sauce.

Final Thoughts

The key takeaway here is simple: don’t slather marinara sauce on pizza dough and expect a perfect pie to come out of the oven. Pizza sauce and pasta sauces are different for a reason—it's not just about food companies selling you extra products. With this knowledge in hand, go ahead and make a pizza that will impress the world.