The Secrets Behind a Good Homemade Tomato Sauce
With your bumper crop of tomatoes, why not use this excess to cook a homemade sauce that will serve as a base for many recipes in the months to come? Recommended varieties, ingredient selection, cooking and storing tips; we’ve got the tips you need for a foolproof sauce, every time.
Selecting Your Tomatoes
Given that tomatoes are the key ingredient, it’s important to choose a variety that is best suited for a sauce. Italian San Marzano or Romanello tomatoes are preferred. They’re meaty, contain little water and few seeds, and stand out with their low acidity and sweet taste . They also peel well and their cooking time is shorter.
Optimal Variety and Ripeness
The Andine Cornue tomato lends itself well to a sauce. This vegetable-fruit, originating from the South American Andes Mountains, has a dense flesh and sweet flavour. Whichever variety you choose, what’s important is that your tomato is fully ripe.
How to Ripen Them
A batch of Italian tomatoes weighing 44 lbs (20 kg) will yield around 12 to 14 4-cup (1 litre) Mason jars of sauce. We recommend purchasing your tomatoes 3 or 4 days in advance to allow them to ripen and develop their flavour even more. Simply spread them out in a well-ventilated area, either indoors or outdoors, away from direct sunlight.
Ingredients for a Basic Sauce
Simple ingredients are all you need to make a flavourful tomato sauce. The list includes fresh tomatoes, olive oil, minced garlic, chopped onions, basil, and salt and pepper . Other aromatic herbs such as rosemary, thyme, bay leaves and herbes de Provence are great at enhancing the sauce. You can also add a bit of sugar to balance out the flavours.
How to Easily Peel the Skin
Peeling tomatoes is a simple technique. Make a cross-shaped incision at the base of each tomato before plunging them into a pot of boiling water for approximately 30 seconds, or until the skin starts to detach from the flesh. Remove the tomatoes and immediately immerse them in a bowl of ice water. You can now peel and seed them.
Watch the Video:
Ricardo’s Tips: How to Peel a Tomato
Once your sauce is cooked, you can also pass it through a fine sieve to remove any skin and seeds that remain.]
Making a Purée
Use a food processor to purée the peeled and seeded tomatoes. A manual tomato press can separate the skin and seeds from the pulp, making the task easier. Simply blanch the tomatoes in boiling water beforehand and then pass them through the machine for a purée that’s ready to be cooked.
Cooking the Sauce
Once you’ve browned the onions and garlic in olive oil, add the tomato purée and the aromatics. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally. The quantity of sauce, the size of your pot and your preferred consistency will affect the cooking time , which can range anywhere from 90 minutes to 3 hours.
Canning
If making large quantities of tomato sauce, prepare glass Mason jars for canning by properly sterilizing them first in boiling water. For everything you need to know, from essential tools to sterilizing steps, be sure to read this article:
Read the Article: Canning 101
Cooking Outdoors
If it’s sunny outside, consider cooking your sauce outdoors. For large quantities, rent a gas burner like the ones used to cook corn at corn boils. It can be worthwhile.
Get inspired by this recipe to stock up on jarred homemade tomato sauce:
Get the Recipe:
Homemade canned tomato sauce