Many people feel intimidated by the thought of making fresh tomato sauce from scratch, but it's actually pretty easy. The secret to making a tasty sauce is using fresh ingredients and ripe tomatoes. Try to invest in a good quality extra virgin olive oil, as it can substantially affect the final result. By following the recipe's steps to the letter, the tomato sauce will have that characteristic fresh and intense flavor.
Ingrediants
- 4 tablespoons (60 ml) of extra virgin olive oil
- 180 g of finely chopped sweet onion
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
- 1, 2 kg of San Marzano tomatoes
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- A handful (about 10 leaves) of chopped fresh basil
Doses for 5-6 pasta dishes
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Prepare the Tomatoes
Step 1. Get everything you need
The sauce made with fresh tomatoes is one of the easiest and most delicious sauces to make to season a pasta dish. This recipe takes about 45 minutes in total. The preparation work takes 20, while the cooking time is 25 minutes. It allows to obtain about 600-700 ml of sauce.
- Each serving of sauce is approximately 120ml.
- This recipe allows you to season 5-6 pasta dishes.
Step 2. Mark the tomatoes
Rinse one tomato at a time to remove all dirt. Once they are clean, mark them one at a time. To mark them, just cut a small "X" at the bottom of the tomato with a sharp knife. This will make the peel much easier to peel off after blanching. The "X" does not have to be perfect: just engrave a simple cross at the bottom of the tomato.
- Blanching vegetables means immersing them in boiling water for a few minutes, then rinsing them with cold water.
- Make sure you use ripe tomatoes for best results.
Step 3. Boil a pot of water and blanch the tomatoes
Once the water has boiled, cook several tomatoes for 2-3 minutes. Carefully remove them from the water with tongs once the peel has begun to peel off. Put a colander or colander in the sink and start moving the blanched tomatoes into it.
- You will probably need to divide them into groups before blanching them.
- Run cold water over the ones you put in the colander while you finish blanching the remaining tomatoes.
- In addition to facilitating the removal of the peel, blanching allows you to preserve the texture and color of the tomatoes.
Step 4. Peel the tomatoes with the help of a small knife
Run cold water over the blanched tomatoes until you can touch them without burning yourself. Remove the peel with a sharp knife (it should come off very easily), then throw it away. Cut the peeled tomatoes in half, then core them with the knife.
- Use your fingers to remove most of the remaining seeds and discard them.
- Cut the tomatoes into large pieces.
Part 2 of 3: Cook the Salsa
Step 1. Brown the onion and garlic in the olive oil
Finely chop the onion and chop the garlic. Pour 4 tablespoons (60 ml) of extra virgin olive oil into a large saucepan and heat it over medium heat. When it starts to sizzle, cook the onion for a few minutes until it wilts. Stir often; the onion will be ready when it appears soft and slightly transparent.
- Cook the minced garlic and stir frequently.
- Brown it for about 60 seconds or until it begins to give off its characteristic smell.
Step 2. Cook the tomatoes, seasonings, and basil
Peel and cut the tomatoes, put them in the pot. Add a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste). Chop the basil and add half to the pot.
- Save the other half of the fresh basil to complete the recipe.
- Stir the sauce well to make sure the basil is incorporated completely.
Step 3. Turn the heat down to low and let the sauce simmer
Put all the ingredients to cook, lower the heat to low. Simmer the sauce for about 20 minutes without covering it. To simmer a food means to cook it over a very low heat, with only a hint of boiling.
- When you allow food to simmer, small bubbles form on the surface of the liquid every 1-2 seconds.
- Raise or lower the heat as needed to maintain this cooking mode.
Part 3 of 3: Prepare the Final Dish
Step 1. Check the consistency of the sauce
Once you have let it simmer for 20 minutes, it will have thickened sufficiently. It will contain chunks of tomato and should be bright red. Continue to simmer it for another 10 minutes, stirring it occasionally if you prefer it to be slightly thicker. The more you let it simmer, the denser it will become.
- Once the desired consistency is reached, incorporate the rest of the chopped basil into the sauce.
- Remove the sauce from the heat.
Step 2. Boil the water and cook the pasta
Pour the water into a saucepan and bring it to a boil, then toss the pasta. Any type of pasta will work for this sauce, such as fettuccine, tagliatelle and spaghetti. As cooking times change, check the times indicated on the package and follow the instructions, letting the pasta cook until soft.
- Once the pasta is cooked, remove the pan from the heat.
- Drain the pasta well before serving.
Step 3. Plate the pasta and pour the sauce over it with a ladle
Distribute the pasta carefully among the various dishes you intend to bring to the table. Pour about 120ml of gravy over each serving using a large spoon or ladle. Serve the dish with grated Parmesan or pecorino.
- Garnish with fresh basil leaves and / or lightly toasted pine nuts (optional).
- Crispy garlic bread and Caesar salad (well mixed) go well with this dish (optional).
Step 4. Try variants
You could replace regular pasta with wholemeal or gluten-free pasta. Add other fresh herbs to the sauce, such as rosemary and thyme, or use a small additional amount of fresh herbs to garnish each dish. You can incorporate as many vegetables and greens as you like. Mushrooms, for example, are perfect; just integrate them immediately after browning the onion and garlic. Meatballs are also ideal for this sauce, for example those of beef, pork, chicken and turkey.
- To start, prepare the meatballs and brown them until golden brown. Make the sauce and let it simmer for about 20 minutes. Add the meatballs to the sauce once they are golden brown and simmer for another 20 minutes.
- Vegans can try replacing cheese with nutritional yeast. Just sprinkle a small amount on the pasta and sauce just before serving. The flavor of the yeast is somewhat reminiscent of that of cheese.
- This sauce is also great for homemade pizza or for dipping breadsticks.
