Fresh tomato sauce
This Fresh Tomato Sauce is a basic tomato sauce, it is versatile and both an ingredient and a dish.
Ingredients
- 800 g fresh whole tomatoes 10-12
- 1 small carrot
- ¼ cup olive oil vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion 1/2 cup finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dry chili pepper
- ½ teaspoon dry thyme
- ¼ teaspoon dry Oregano
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup water
- 2 seasoning cubes
- Fresh Basil or fresh parsley optional
Instructions
- Wash, peel and grind tomatoes and carrot.
- Pour oil into a dry pot, and place over medium-low heat. When hot, add onions. Fry slowly till soft.
- Add chopped garlic, fry until you perceive the aroma about 30 seconds.
- Stir in the tomato puree and fry for 5 minutes, stirring so it won't burn.
- Pour in the blend of tomato and carrot.
- Add dry pepper, dry thyme, dry oregano, salt, black pepper, water and seasoning cubes.
- Stir, bring to a boil and reduce the heat to a simmer.
- Simmer sauce for 20-30 minutes stirring, if it is getting dry, add a little water and continue cooking till done.
Notes
Note
- To peel tomatoes easily, blanch them. It is explained here, How to blanch vegetables.
- Do not rush the frying of the onions, the slow cooking helps draw out the sweetness of the onions which also helps balance the acidity of the tomatoes.
- If using a blender, add just enough water to grind the tomatoes and carrots. Also, don't bother adding the extra 1/4 cup of water. With a food processor, you don't need to add water.
- Try and use non-reactive cookware anytime you are cooking tomato sauce or stew-like Stainless steel pots, seasoned cast iron pots, and wooden spoons. Tomato is acidic and will react with the aluminium to give the sauce or stew a metallic taste.
