How Not to Make Tomato Sauce
Michael Ruhlman's guest blogger, Bob del Grosso, gives his tips on how not to make tomato sauce, which I've translated into this how to list:
Use good canned tomatoes or fresh, ripe tomatoes
Cook sauce just long enough
Use fresh herbs
Do not brown the garlic
Use high-quality oil and plenty of salt
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4 Comments:
I have been following this thread, and in my opinion, there are many (not just one) ways to make tomato sauce. I cook a sauce that starts with lots of onion, sausage removed from the casing, plenty of garlic, and wine, that I cook for hours. The onions completely dissolve in the sauce, and add sweetness. I make meatballs, brown them and more sausage, and add them to the sauce an hour or so before the sauce is done. The meat adds flavor to the sauce, and the sauce adds flavor to the meat.
As my mother and grandmother did before me, I use dried basil and oregano, and crushed red pepper. I'm guessing they couldn't get fresh herbs, and, living in Puerto Rico, I can't either. I know this is more Italian-American than Italian, but it's what I grew up with.
Bob's recipe looks fabulous, and I can't wait to try it. His other points are right on: no browned garlic, whole canned San Marsano tomatoes, and plenty of salt. But I will certainly continue to make my "Sunday sauce".
Lou at 3:59PM on 04/05/07
First of all salsa di pomodoro is just that.
It is not "tomato sauce" or "gravy" or what ever.
Lidia B. gave a good explanation about this somewhere or on her sitelook it up.
Anyway I have had many people and some chefs INSIST that "SDP" has white wine,red wine,oregano,sugar,onion,bay leaf,tomato paste,some sort of meat,celery,carrot the list goes on and on.
They are all WRONG!!!
The correct way to make it is in the post.
Make it correctly and you will forget about all the "other" ways to make it.
Enjoy..
chameleonz at 12:57AM on 04/06/07
Salsa di pomodoro is the Italian phrase for tomato sauce. It's as exact a translation as you can get. I did look it up:
from Lidia's Italy
The difference between marinara sauce and tomato sauce (a recipe follows) is this: Marinara is a quick sauce, seasoned only with garlic, pepper and, if you like basil or oregano. The pieces of tomato are left chunky and the texture of the finished sauce is fairly loose. Tomato sauce, on the other hands is a more complex affair, starting with pureed tomatoes and seasoned with onion, carrot, celery and bay leaf, and left to simmer until thickened and rich in flavor.
It hurts me to do this, since I know how to capitalize and punctuate, but WRONG!!!
Lou at 7:08AM on 04/06/07
Yes, "salsa di pomodoro" literally translates to "tomato sauce". But to Italians this is a specific sauce prepared the same way everywhere. I can understand, though, how it can be interpreted to be any sauce with tomatoes.
In the states calling a sauce "tomato sauce" means different things to different people...there's no standard, except that it has tomatoes. Yes, it may be tweeked a little to suit the family's tastes or even by region but in general "salsa di pomodoro" has the same ingredients and is made the same way, it means the same thing to everyone. It's made of simple, fresh ingredients like olive oil, garlic, fresh tomatoes, fresh basil and salt (no meat, then it becomes a sugo or ragu) and simmers for a short period of time.
I'm just speaking from my background. Parents are italian, spent many summers in Italy, went to school there, etc.
So I say call tomato sauce whatever you like, when you're here in the states. Just don't call it salsa di pomodoro if it's not.
centanni04 at 6:01PM on 12/18/07