Quick Fresh Tomato Sauce
Updated July 1, 2024
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
- Total Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
5 pounds tomatoes
¾ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 garlic clove, halved
1 basil sprig
1 bay leaf
Nutritional analysis per serving
19 grams carbs; 133 calories; 4 grams monosaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 6 grams fat; 6 grams fiber; 397 milligrams sodium; 4 grams protein; 12 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Cut tomatoes in half horizontally. Squeeze out the seeds and discard, if you wish. Press the cut side of tomato against the large holes of a box grater and grate tomato flesh into a bowl. Discard skins. You should have about 4 cups.
- Step 2
Put tomato pulp in a low wide saucepan over high heat. Add salt, olive oil, tomato paste, garlic, basil and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to a brisk simmer.
- Step 3
Reduce the sauce by almost half, stirring occasionally, to produce about 2 ½ cups medium-thick sauce, 10 to 15 minutes. Taste and adjust salt. It will keep up to 5 days in the refrigerator or may be frozen.
Private Notes
Comments
Rather than grate the tomatoes, immerse them for three to five minutes in a very hot bath and then watch the skins glide away from the tomatoes. Probably a lot cleaner and there's less waste.
I buy 60-80 plum tomatoes. Quarter, salt, lots of olive oil. Roast at 400 degrees for 2.5 hours, moving the tomatoes around. Using immersion blender or potato masher soften the mix and return to oven at 350 for another hour. Remove, mash some more. I store in 2 cup boxes (yield is about 5)in the freezer. Tweak the sauce depending on dish: ginger, onion, garlic and garam masala for indian dishes, sumac for a med touch, garlic for pasta sauce and eggplant Melanzane and many others.
Sorry Mr Tanis, but we all think we know the best way for this recipe, and I think it is a rustic, quick, fresh sauce: no tomato paste or long simmering please. Use very ripe heirloom/beefsteak tomatoes, chunk them into 1/2" or bigger pieces (the skins add flavor, nutrition and texture); briefly saute 1 clove garlic (at least)/2 pounds tomatoes in EVOO; add tomatoes and turn up the heat to high to reduce rapidly to half: 10 min max. Salt to taste. Basil is optional.
I made this for the first time this morning, followed the recipe exactly (using the box grater, which I never would have thought of), and it's outstanding! I want to eat it with a spoon, like soup, it's so good. Can't wait for dinner! I'll be making this for the rest of the summer with fresh tomatoes. My husband said it's the best sauce I've ever made, and I make a decent sauce. Thank you for a fabulous recipe!
No onions?
Very flavorful -- I added oregano and pepper, and used a good olive oil -- but quite runny, which meant it did not adhere to the pasta, even though I cooked the pasta in the sauce for its last 2 minutes.