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6 Min
09/02/2026
If you need an excuse to hog on pizza, then February 9 is pizza day! You’ve got the base, and you’ve got the ingredients, but where is the sauce? Sure, the usual pack of ‘pizza sauce’ is good, but why not take it a step further when you are baking one at home? Marinara, with its luscious tomatoes, is the norm, but there are so many other pizza sauces loved by Italians and pizza lovers worldwide.
Pizza lovers worldwide have long relied on tomato-based marinara as their go-to sauce. While marinara remains a classic choice, expanding your sauce repertoire can transform home-baked pizzas into entirely new and exciting experiences. If you want creamy, there’s the good old bechamel sauce, for some spicy Indian flavour, there’s curry sauce, and for herby, there’s the reliable pesto. All of these pizza sauce recipes have certain toppings, minimal or packed to the bursting point, that will upgrade your pizza nights.
The classic choice after marinara is pesto, which hails from northern Italy, and is perfect for those who love herb flavours, with a garlicky and nutty echo. The best part of this sauce is that you can put it into pasta, salads and even use it as a spread and dip. What goes into the pesto sauce is fresh Italian basil leaves, fresh garlic, olive oil, pine nuts, and parmesan cheese. This vivid green sauce is by no means flashy but has a dominant presence that lets the meats, fresh mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, roasted bell peppers, and artichokes shine.
Bechamel is one of the French mother sauces, made with a combination of flour, butter, and milk, with no cheese involved. This is the perfect sauce when it comes to cheesy pizza; say you are making a pizza with different kinds of cheeses. This white sauce has a velvety texture that complements mushrooms, spinach, and roasted chicken. You can add cheese to this sauce by building on the bechamel. You can add cheddar or Gruyère, and it works well with bacon, sliced apples, and a drizzle of honey. Another popular sauce is the alfredo, which is prepared with heavy cream and parmesan, delivering a rich and indulgent flavour.
Another versatile ingredient, barbecue sauce is perfect as a pizza sauce as it introduces sweetness and smokiness to pizza, pushing it to be more American than traditionally Italian in flavour. The sauce goes well with grilled chicken, pulled pork, red onions, and smoked mozzarella. If you want a sauce on the sweeter side, barbecue sauce will be the perfect sauce for your pizza party. There are varying flavours in this sauce too, and you can tweak it to make it more ketchupy. As for pizza toppings, bacon, roasted chicken, pulled pork, and even jackfruit are good options.
Consider this similar to marinara sauce but spiked, as vodka sauce mixes heavy cream, tomatoes, and vodka to create a light sauce with velvety texture. The alcohol is what adds a subtle complexity, while the cream provides richness to the sauce. This sauce is a cross between the traditional marinara and white sauces, and it's one sauce that does not need too many toppings, for the sauce is the main star. All you need is fresh mozzarella on top of the pizza and a sprinkling of some herbs, and you have a stellar pizza. If you want to add ingredients, you can add Italian sausage, roasted vegetables, and various cheeses.
This might seem like baby food, but pureed vegetables create a nutrient-dense sauce. You can pick bell peppers, red onions, carrots and beans and hide them in sauces matching their colours, like for red onions and carrots, you can put them in a harissa-based sauce. You can also add seasonal vegetables like root vegetables of sweet potatoes and turnips when in season. For veggies like roasted beet and pumpkin marinara brings seasonal goodness with slightly sweet notes. These vegetable-based sauces often appeal to those seeking healthier options while maintaining flavour.
This kind of sauce (or rather a thin spread) that goes on a white pizza, sometimes called pizza bianca, includes olive oil, garlic, herbs, and sometimes cheese or cream brushed onto the dough before baking. This kind of base is common with pizzas with a variety of cheeses. The olive oil layer adds a subtle, smooth flavour, helps brown the crust, and acts as a barrier from moisture, so the toppings don’t make the crust soggy. It brings out the best of the toppings rather than masking them, and is ideal if you want a lighter, crispier pie with delicate cheeses or veggies.
If fusion is something you like and you are a pro at making pizza and Indian cuisine, then this one is a must-try. You can capture that same depth of flavour that comes with curry on a pizza by creating a simple curry sauce. For a tomato-centric version that reminds you of traditional pizza sauce, add in a bit of tomato sauce. If you want it spicier, swap in a spicier curry blend instead of a milder, sweeter one. Whatever route you choose, aim for a sauce that’s thick and spreadable as thin, watery sauces just won’t hold up on pizza.
If you like garlic and Mediterranean flavours, then you should pick aioli, which is a garlic sauce originally made by emulsifying garlic and olive oil into a thick, creamy paste. The name actually comes from the Catalan or Provençal words for garlic (ail) and oil (oli). It’s simply garlic and oil, sometimes with a bit of salt and no egg. When egg yolks, lemon juice, or mustard are added in contemporary versions, it becomes similar to a flavoured mayonnaise. This sauce has a strong garlic flavour and rich texture, unlike plain mayonnaise, making it a popular dip or spread for seafood, fries, sandwiches, grilled meats, and vegetables
Red sauce, which is typically marinara sauce, is no doubt delicious, but it makes for monotonous pizza. With a little experimentation and willingness to step out of your comfort zone, you can unlock new flavours for your pizza— from herby to creamy to sweet. So, this pizza day, go all out, make these sauces in bulk and add any extras to your other creations.
