The 1-Ingredient Upgrade That Makes Store-Bought Pasta Sauce Taste Homemade

I may live on a farm and work as a food writer, but I'm a big fan of store-bought pasta sauce. It’s convenient, usually quite tasty, and lasts forever in my pantry. That being said, it’s never quite as good as homemade pasta sauce.

That's why home cooks love to doctor up the store-bought stuff. Sara Haas swears by a pat of butter in her tomato sauce, and I know some people add a generous pinch of Italian seasoning.

I have a secret ingredient you'd never expect: Worcestershire sauce.

My 1-Ingredient Upgrade for Pasta Sauce

When I start dinner with a jarred marinara, I add a little Worcestershire sauce. It provides a savoriness that complements the sweetness of the store-bought sauce and deepens its flavor.

To add Worcestershire to pasta sauce, start with a teaspoon, then continue adding until you achieve the flavor you desire. For a whole jar of sauce, you likely won’t need to add more than one tablespoon. Once it's stirred in, let the sauce simmer for about 10 minutes.

What Is Worcestershire Sauce?

Worcestershire sauce often includes ingredients like malt vinegar, anchovies, tamarind paste, molasses, garlic, onion, and salt. The result packs quite a punch of savory flavor, so a dash goes a long way!

Though you might think of Worcestershire as a British condiment, it has its origins in ancient fermented fish sauces. As the story goes, Worcester-based chemists John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins developed the savory sauce at the request of a British nobleman, who missed the fish-based sauce he enjoyed in India.

The story goes that Lea and Perrins' attempt at recreating the sauce was a pungent disaster, and the barrel of sauce was promptly forgotten. Fast-forward about 18 months, and the sauce had fermented into something truly delicious.

Other Ways To Add Umami to Pasta Sauce

Worcestershire sauce isn’t the only pantry ingredient you can use to add depth of flavor to store-bought pasta sauce. Other ingredients that provide a boost include:

• Parmesan rind: When you get to the end of a Parmesan wedge, don’t throw away the rind—it adds a savory, cheesy flavor to store-bought pasta sauce. Simply toss in a rind and simmer away.
• Miso paste: This fermented soybean paste is salty, nutty, fruity, and savory. Yellow miso paste, which is milder than red miso paste, is ideal for adding a bit of umami to pasta sauce. Stir in up to one tablespoon of miso paste when simmering the pasta sauce.
• Soy sauce: As with Worcestershire, a little bit goes a long way. Use a low-sodium soy sauce to keep the salt in check, and start by adding one teaspoon, then simmer.