Pasta Sauce- Made a balls of it

glic83

Hi all, I decide tonight to make a homemade pasta sauce. Normally we go for Lyod Grossman but I said I'd give it a go for a change.

I put 1 x Tin of Roma Chopped Tomatoes into the blender and put in some tomatoe puree, blended it all up, then added some chilli flakes and garlic powder and back pepper. Put in the pot and cooked for about 8 mins.

I thought I had added enough spices but while we were eating our dinner the two of us were of the opinion that it wasnt the nicest pasta sauce and something was missing. Texture wise it was fine but there wasnt the same flavour that we were used to.

So anyone any advice as to help me for the next time so I dont make a balls of it again?

Northern Monkey

I'm far from an expert, but I would normally let canned tomatoes simmer for at least 30 minutes when making a pasta sauce.

glic83

Well thats something I didn't do and was propbably my 1st mistake

Faith

Well, ordinarily you'd gently fry off chopped onion and garlic before adding tomatoes, a spoon of sugar per tin used, herbs and seasoning, maybe a squirt of tomato purée, maybe a dash of balsamic vinegar or Worchestershire sauce before cooking it for as long as possible (minimum 30 minutes for the flavours to develop). There's loads of threads on this forum on the same topic, so you can read them for inspiration, but the most important bits are frying off the onion and garlic first, then leaving it cook for ages.

glic83

Lads thanks very much off to do what Im guessing is a lot of reading , cheers

annamcmahon

Fry onion and garlic slowly. Add a bay leaf and a little oregano. Fry for a min. Add tin of tomatoes, chilli flakes, salt and pepper. Simmer gently for 30mins. Add a bunch of basil just before serving

DoctorBoo

You may also have been missing a good pinch of salt. Can be a bit bland without it.

glic83

It seems I was missing more than I orginally tought, cheers for the replies guys & gals

huskerdu

DoctorBoo wrote: »

You may also have been missing a good pinch of salt. Can be a bit bland without it.

True, but the basic problem is that a tin of tomatoes will not cook enough for the flavour to develop in 8 minutes. A heated up tin of tomatoes is not going to make a nice sauce, a pinch of salt would not be enough to rescue it.

Once you follow the instructions in the threads here, its a doddle and really worth the small amount of effort.

If you want a quick dinner when you come in from work, cook it the evening before let is stew for ages and heat it up while you are cooking the pasts tha next evening.

syklops

Also add some celery. it gives good flavour.

Back in the days when i could buy a litre of Spanish wine for about a euro, I would think nothing of pouring in a glass or two and let it reduce. Nowadays, I can't afford to be so extravagant, so when we open a bottle of Tesco's own brand wine entitled Red Wine, and it is less than enjoyable, instead of pouring it down the sink, I keep it and use it for bolognese as well.

Cooking it for 8 minutes was your biggest mistake though.

amber2

I use a stock cube & a few herbs bit of thyme, julian graves does a good italian seasoning also have to agree it does taste better if left overnight.

The Sweeper

For a very, very basic pasta sauce I put two cans of chopped tomatoes in a pot. Add two cans of water. Add a tablespoon of sugar, a good pinch of sea salt and a plentiful glug of good olive oil. Bring up to a simmer, and then blitz with a stick blender. Once blitzed, allow the sauce to continue to reduce until it's quite thick.

At this point, if so inclined, I'll add a couple of cloves of chopped garlic and a good handful of basil leaves, shredded.

This is a good base sauce for meatballs (mix separately and drop the meatballs into the simmering sauce without any pre-sealing in a separate pan) or pasta bake (cook some penne, drain it very well, then stir it through the sauce; pour the whole lot into a suitable oven proof dish, preferably broad and shallow - dot with torn mozzarella and halved cherry tomatoes, then top again with mozzarella and a little parmesan and bake for about 35 minutes until the cheese is gooey and the pasta that sticks out of the sauce and cheese has gone a golden brown).

You can go wild with pasta sauce and add all sorts of things - onions, fried garlic, worcestershire sauce, white or red wine, mushroom ketchup, beef stock cubes, so on - but I find that for a simple tomato sauce to coat pasta, keep it as simple as possible and get your acidity/seasoning balance right with salt and sugar and you're on a winner.

Overflow

You should always taste as you cook the sauce, that way you can easily add whats missing. Too bitter, more sugar etc etc

Gbear

You can cook onions for ages - nice and caramelised.

Don't go overboard with cooking the garlic though. It has a tendency to get bitter if overcooked on the pan. Better to leave it simmer in sauce.

mike65

Two tin tomatoes drained
Puree
Half a red pepper very finely sliced/diced
2 cloves garlic very finely chopped
A third small onion very chopped
2 large flat mushroom (not sure what they are called) thin sliced/chopped
Paprika, cloves, black pepper.
Wocestershiresheer Sauce

is what I use

C.K Dexter Haven

Garlic powder OP? Yuck- I'd start with dumping that and move to a handful of fresh garlic and even that will make a big difference.

glic83

C.K Dexter Haven wrote: »

Garlic powder OP? Yuck- I'd start with dumping that and move to a handful of fresh garlic and even that will make a big difference.

I normally use fresh garlic but didnt have any the other day so had no choice but to use garlic powder :mad:

C.K Dexter Haven

glic83 wrote: »

I normally use fresh garlic but didnt have any the other day so had no choice but to use garlic powder :mad:

Big bunches of fresh herbs can help, as can smaller amounts of dried herbs-parsley, basil will give good flavour.

I assume you had pasta with it? So, fresh Parmesan cheese is a must sprinkled over it and the pasta when ready to serve. These simple adjustments will make all the difference

spurious

Spoon of sugar and when all else fails, a lash of tomato ketchup (sorry, but it works).

oakshade

Has anyone tried adding anchovy to their sauce?

Gbear

I use honey as opposed to sugar.

GalwayGuy2

Bizarely, I kind of like the tast and texture a bit of dried mustard adds.

vicwatson

Mine gets a large handful of fresh chopped Basil and 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, along with 1 x onion, half tube tomato puree, 2 x oxo cubes, about 8-10 fresh tomatoes (preferably vine), 1 x tin plum tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste...

conorhal

oakshade wrote: »

Has anyone tried adding anchovy to their sauce?

You would for a basic Putanesqa sauce. It does add that salty note that really enriches the flavour.
On top of a couple of glasses of red wine that I consider no pasta sauce to be complete without, the best addition to create amazing depth of flavour is a good glug of Madeira. It adds sweetness to counteract the bitterness of cooked tomato (without having to add sugar) and creates a richness and depth to the sauce that can't be beat.

BailMeOut

a good splash of white wine is a great way to enhance tomato flavour.

I make mine with onions, celery, red bell peppers, garlic, tins of tomatoes, white wine and a huge fist full of flat parsley. Season with salt/pepper and sometimes need some sugar and/or balsamic vinegar to taste as cooking. It is all about balance.

Serve with fresh basil and a Parmigiano-Reggiano and always cook the sauce into the nearly cooked pasta. i.e. cook your pasta until nearly done, drain and then stir in the sauce and cook lightly until pasta is at your desired doneness.

Yum!

Neyite

If you want a quick pasta sauce the best way is to cook in bulk and freeze portions for defrosting for quick meals as you need them.

janja

We make a batch while we are doing it and use it for pizza base as well
tins of plum tomatoes
garlic
basil
thyme
sugar
oregano
leave to bubble and reduce at least 30 mins
oh and salt and pepper to taste

KatiexKOUTURE--

I usually cook sauce in small batches just as I need it, but a quick failsafe is to fry onion, garlic, a little red pepper and fresh tomatoes for a few minutes, add chicken stock and cook until it has simmered off. Then added chopped tin tomatoes, salt and pepper and cook for 7-8 minutes and finally toss in cooked pasta

BaZmO*

My super quick "go-to" pasta sauce is a simple Arrabbiata Sauce.

Tin of Tomatoes
Dried Chilli Flakes
Garlic
Fresh Basil
Tomato Puree
Olive Oil
Pinch of Sugar
Salt & Pepper

Heat some oil, add the crushed Garlic, Basil leaves, and Chilli flakes, and fry for a minute or two.
Add the Tomatoes*
Add a squeeze or two of Tomato Puree
Add about a teaspoon of Sugar
Cook at a light simmer for about 10 mins
Season with Salt & Pepper to taste

So simple to do and just as easy, and cheaper than a ready made jar.

*I always add some boiling water to the tin to get the last of the tomatoes out of the tin, but I keep the tin off to the side to add later in the cooking process to loosen the sauce.