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Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
as an addendum....
Kim Pierce at the Dallas Morning News
http://eats.beloblog.com/archives/2007/10/dop_means_real_san_marzano_tom.html
has great info on the San Marzano DOP tomatoes. worth reading
cheers,
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
Adam,
Mario really isn't checking back here on things.
So who actually is putting these posts together?
I believe he would know if something is from Italy or not, yes?
Someone - please clarify?
Mario Unclogged: A Great Meal at Seattle's Steelhead Diner
I'm so glad that great sammies made up for your family loss. And even happier that you shared it with all of us. Your dad must be so proud. His son comes to town for a funeral and ditches the family in favor of a po'boy and a bottle of Albarino.
DioCane!
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Recent Comments | Response to Comments
My daughter wants to be Mario Batali!
Make sure she's not more "trick" than "treat".
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
as an addendum....
Kim Pierce at the Dallas Morning News
http://eats.beloblog.com/archives/2007/10/dop_means_real_san_marzano_tom.html
has great info on the San Marzano DOP tomatoes. worth reading
cheers,
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
Adam,
Mario really isn't checking back here on things.
So who actually is putting these posts together?
I believe he would know if something is from Italy or not, yes?
Someone - please clarify?
Mario Unclogged: A Great Meal at Seattle's Steelhead Diner
I'm so glad that great sammies made up for your family loss. And even happier that you shared it with all of us. Your dad must be so proud. His son comes to town for a funeral and ditches the family in favor of a po'boy and a bottle of Albarino.
DioCane!
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
I cant imagine making a marinara without basil, oregano, fresh black pepper or crushed red flake, and a bay leaf. Is the purpose of the carrot to take the acidic edge off of the tomatoes?
Also, I have seen real Italians add celery to their sauce as well. Not for me, thanks. btw, my mother was born in Venice of Italian parents, so that makes me anglo-venetian, but I learned to make sauce from my southern Italian buds.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
I always put tomatoes through a food mill (smallest holes) to remove skins and seeds, which contribute the the bitter flavor people comment about. Nearly everyone I know puts sugar in their tomato sauce, even people "off the boat". Whenever I hear this, I know they aren't straining the tomatoes. It's a lot of work and makes a big mess, but I wouldn't make tomato sauce without doing it.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
I know I'm late to the party and I don't know if this'll ever be answered, but I'm correct in assuming that the tomatoes used are *not* seeded at all? I've seen so many recipes go back and forth on the issue, and I'm curious about what everyone is doing with this particular recipe.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
Ravara: Wut wut wut?!!! Of COURSE I have it! I've turned too many people on to Super Marzano not to have it Yes, yes, it's not technically San Marzano, it's better.....it's SUPER Marzano! Come on out to my tomato seedling sale and pick some up. I've always got a lot of Super Marzanos for peeps. www.GrowBetterVeggies.com
Does this constitute spam? Forgive me if so. Just trying to spread the tomato love....
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
In case anyone who might benefit sees this, I agree with gmunger that I'm sad to see Mario, who has seen the joys of California produce, claim you can't get good San Marzano tomatoes in the US. I assure you that Mariquita and twosmallfarms dot com have fabulous San Marzanos for cooking- they suck for raw stuff, they are TOO low acid, but holy jeez cooked.. Love Apple Farms doesn't have it on their grow list this season- http://loveapplefarm.typepad.com/growbetterveggies/love-apple-farms-2008-tom.html but I bet Cynthia can tell you something good...
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
This is the way I have always made my bacis tomato gravy (though not always with the carrot, though I can see using it for the sweetness it adds. This is a good basic tomato sauce. A good place to start off.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
I make a sauce from home-grown Roma tomatoes cut in half and layered with fresh basil and garlic cloves - slow cooked in the oven and then run through a food mill. I freeze as much as I can to get me through the winter. Don't add salt or pepper until you use it.
Add a couple heads of garlic to the roasting pan for other uses.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
I have been using this recipe since 1997 when it was published (exactly as written here) in the New York Post with the title "Mario's Secret Sauce Recipe." My note says "From Chef Mario Batali, Po's Restaurant." How far he has come since then!
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
I made this tonight. Excellent! Thanks for posting.
Unfortunately, I had a jar of leftovers ready to go in the freezer, dropped it, and it spilled everywhere! Ouch.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
I Google'd the cached page to see the picture that was removed and I've seen that brand at a local Italian market. In my opinion, the problem with those and most other canned tomatoes is the addition of citric acid. If you cook those down, the acid becomes more and more pronounced, making the sauce bitter. I have written it many times before on sites like this - the best tomatoes are the ones that have NO CITRIC ACID! Make a sauce with the precious San Marzanos like the ones pictured and a the same sauce with a can of regular tomatoes with no citric acid and see the difference. Now, if you can get San Marzanos with no citric acid (like you used to), it's Heaven.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
Mark Bittman wrote a piece on the whole canned tomato issue in Cook's Illustrated of March/April 1994. A tasting was held with Anna Teresa Callen; Arthur Schwartz; Anna Amendolara Nurse; Iris Carulli; Julia della Croce; Tina della Croce; Tina Aprea, Jack Bishop and Mark Bittman. Really interesting article.
The final question though is not one of which tomatoes are "best" or which tomatoes are "authentic" in this case, for when someone writes a recipe as Mario did here, it is his perogative to say "This is how I make it and it is important (in order to do it my way) to use the ingredients as written". Alter the ingredients and you've got a different recipe - maybe just as good in taste to you, but different.
The Whole Foods canned tomato thing is amusing, though.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
Ive made the same sauce all my adult life with the addition of fresh basil, unfortunately, in the wilds of Alabama, I cant find san marzano tomatoes. So i usually end up using a good brand organic, it seems to work out fine. also, instead or plain old kosher salt I really like gray salt, I know its probablty mind over matter, but I can taste the diff.
Mario Unclogged: Marinara Sauce
Neroda: They're Mario's words, and we try to add pictures to illustrate them. I made the mistake of using the wrong tomatoes. I apologize.
Mario Unclogged: A Great Meal at Seattle's Steelhead Diner
Hi Mario… I’m sorry to hear the reason you visited the Pacific Northwest.
It’s exciting to hear about your experience at the Steelhead Diner and the “killer” Abacela Albariño. They’ve pioneered the varietal in the Northwest and I suspect have found it hard to get the varietal noticed. It’s great to get feedback from someone with your palate that enjoyed it in a setting that almost begs for this type of wine. Kudos! Paula
PS. Their website shows 2006 still available.
Mario Unclogged: A Great Meal at Seattle's Steelhead Diner
The poutine is just ok, only because the fries at Steelhead are really weak. The fried grit cakes, on the other hand, are about as good as it gets.
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Make sure she's not more "trick" than "treat".