Fresh Tomato Sauce
There is nothing as wonderful as tomato sauce made from fresh summer tomatoes. It's pretty easy, too.
Calories per serving: 61kcal
Ingredients
- 4 quarts water
- 2 cups Ice
- 5 pounds tomatoes, fresh
- 2 tablespoon *olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon salt, kosher
- 1 teaspoon Tuscan Sunset
- ½ teaspoon anchovy paste
- ¼ teaspoon Balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 3 basil leaves
- ¼ teaspoon sugar, optional
Instructions
- Gather your mise en place.
- Put ice in a large bowl and put a smaller bowl in it. Also, have ready another bowl for discards. You need three bowls.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and put the tomatoes in the boiling water. As the skin breaks on each tomato, take it out with a spider strainer and put it in the bowl that is on ice. Do this for the remaining tomatoes. Some may be stubborn and not want their skin to break but be patient and this will happen to all.
- When they are cool enough to handle, remove the stem part with a strawberry huller. Remove the skin and break the tomatoes up with your fingers. Try to put the seeds and hard core in the discard bowl and the rest of the tomato in the large bowl. You won't be able to keep all the seeds out, but that's okay, too. When you have finished all the tomatoes, put your hands in the bowl and break them up more with your fingers. Yes, you could use a stick blender or food processor for this, but, hey, it feels good!
- Put the large saucepan on the stove and heat it. When it is hot, add the olive oil and let it get to the point where it almost smoking. Add the onions and saute them until they are translucent then add the garlic and cook it until it is also translucent but do not let it burn!
- Add the remaining ingredients and taste for seasoning. If the tomatoes were not very ripe, they may need a little sugar. Add the sugar a little at a time and keep tasting until you like it.
- Cook the sauce down on low heat until it reduces by about half, about 20 - 30 minutes.
Notes
You can add citric acid and sugar if you want to can using the hot water method. You do not have to add citric acid if you are going to pressure preserve.
The anchovies add umami to the sauce. They do not taste like fish. If you want the sauce to be completely vegan or vegetarian substitute Umeboshi paste instead.
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