The Simple Ingredient That Makes Jarred Tomato Sauce Taste Like a $30 Dinner

Culinary pros like Melissa Clark and J. Kenji López-Alt have been using fish sauce as an all-purpose umami booster for ages. They use it in the same way French chefs use anchovies, as something you add for impact.

Inspired by their approach, I splashed a little into my store-bought pasta sauce one night. I love using fish sauce in other non-traditional dishes, like López-Alt's 15-minute chili or beef stew, so I was expecting a similar oomph—and boy was I right. The sauce tasted deeper and smoother, like I'd been simmering it all day instead of just quickly heating it up.

Why I Use Fish Sauce To Make Pasta Sauce Taste Better

Jarred sauce is convenient, but it often tastes a little flat or one-dimensional. Even a tiny amount of fish sauce amplifies all the ingredients. The sauce tastes more cohesive and well-rounded, and the tomato flavor becomes richer and more pronounced.

If my sauce feels a little thin or watery, fish sauce fills in those gaps and gives it a more substantial backbone. If you're still skeptical—or your kids are—I promise that no one can taste the fish sauce itself. They'll notice that the sauce is better (or good, if they don't have a comparison point). 

Why It Works

Fish sauce is made by fermenting fish and salt for months, which breaks down proteins into free glutamates. And despite what you might expect, fish sauce doesn't make the sauce taste fishy. The fermentation process cooks off most of the compounds that create that seafood aroma, leaving a concentrated savoriness.

Tomatoes are already naturally high in these glutamates, which is why tomato sauce is inherently savory. But when you combine the two, you get flavor synergy, and the umami becomes exponentially stronger than it would be from either ingredient alone.

It's the same reason Parmesan cheese tastes so good on pasta. Parm is also loaded with—yes, you guessed it—glutamate. So when you sprinkle it over tomato sauce, it makes everything taste richer and more satisfying. But because fish sauce is in liquid form, it distributes evenly throughout the sauce.

How To Add Fish Sauce to Jarred Pasta Sauce

Start with half a teaspoon for a standard 24-ounce jar of sauce. Warm the sauce on the stove, stir in the fish sauce, and simmer for a few minutes. The heat helps everything meld together more cohesively.

The key is to stop before you can actually identify the fish sauce as a flavor. After stirring it in, step away for a minute or two before tasting. Stepping away allows your palate to reset. When you return, the scent of the fish sauce will have mellowed, and you'll be tasting the effect of the umami, not the fish sauce itself. If it needs more depth, add another quarter teaspoon.

Fish sauce is extremely salty, so go easy on any additional salt until you've tasted the sauce with it. And if you're still nervous about trying it, start with a quarter teaspoon. You can always add more, but you can't take it away. 

If you accidentally add too much fish sauce, the easiest fix is to dilute the pot with more tomatoes, like canned or jarred whole, peeled tomatoes (squished with your hands into smaller bits), passata, or jarred marinara. Then, rebalance with a splash of vinegar and a little butter, if needed.

Acid brings back brightness, and fat softens any overly salty or umami-heavy notes. Adding fish sauce to your pasta sauce is a low-effort move with a big payoff—my favorite kind of kitchen trick. Once you try it, you'll never look at jarred sauce the same way again.