What Is Passata? How to Use Sieved Tomatoes

A plain-language guide to passata — smooth, uncooked sieved tomatoes — and how to use it for fast, silky sauces, soups and pizza.

What passata actually is

Passata is simply raw tomatoes that have been crushed and passed through a sieve to remove the skins and seeds, leaving a smooth, pourable purée. It isn't cooked and it isn't concentrated like paste — it's pure strained tomato, ready to become sauce. The Italian word means “passed”, as in passed through a sieve.

Passata vs the other tomato products

• Passata: smooth, uncooked sieved tomatoes — no skins or seeds; pourable
• Crushed tomatoes: broken-up tomatoes, thicker and more textured than passata
• Diced or whole: pieces you crush yourself, for chunkier results
• Tomato paste: tomatoes cooked down and concentrated; intense, used by the spoonful
• Pasta sauce: already cooked and seasoned, while passata is a blank canvas

Why cooks reach for it

Because it's already smooth, passata makes a silky sauce with no blending and no chunks — ideal when you want a refined texture. It cooks quickly, so it's perfect for a fast weeknight sugo, a pizza base, or thinning a stew. Its fresh, bright tomato flavour also makes it a good base for soups.

How to use it

• Quick sauce: simmer with olive oil, garlic and salt for 10–15 minutes
• Pizza base: season with salt, oregano and a little oil — no cooking needed
• Soups and stews: stir in for body and a smooth tomato backbone
• Shakshuka and braises: a pourable base that coats evenly
• Soffritto sauces: add to a soffritto for a smooth, fast ragu

Tips

• It's uncooked, so it tastes best simmered briefly to round out the flavour
• A pinch of sugar softens acidity; a knob of butter adds silkiness
• Once opened, refrigerate and use within a few days, or freeze
• No passata? Blend canned whole or crushed tomatoes and strain

Passata, made simple

Keep a bottle on hand and a smooth sauce is always minutes away — no blender, no straining. Unico passata gives you a ready-to-cook, sieved-tomato base for sauce, pizza and soup.