Any tips for making a really thick tomato sauce to go with meatballs?

[lucysmam]

Just that really, I fancy meatballs for tea with a really thick sauce but not sure how to make it thick

tia

Ha. I use dried ones too. I don't care who knows.

Time. Just cooking sauces for longer makes them nicer.

And herb snobs can feck right off.

Absolutely nothing wrong with dried herbs. That's the whole point of drying them, so you can use them out of season.

Der.

It's hardly herbs from last year. It's toenail clippings we had as students

I use dried herbs even though I don't like the taste . I seem to be under the impression that they're compulsory.

FreeButtonBee please share the buttery deliciousness!

I cook onion and pepper/aubergine in a high oven to slightly char them. Then simmer them with 2 cartons chopped toms, paprika, 2/3 lumps of frozen spinach, little bit of brown sugar, veg cube and some water. Once cooked I take a potato masher to it to make a thick and still lumpy sauce. (And no dried herbs!)

I wack in some cherry tomatoes if I have some before the simmering and that always makes it thicker and tastier.

smittenkitchen.com/blog/2010/01/tomato-sauce-with-butter-and-onions/

Love this sauce - as i said, I use passata as I like A smooth texture

Wow! Thanks very much, I didn't make meatballs yesterday in the end as rl got in the way a bit & I gave up.

It seems the secret is good quality toms and slow cooking so I will make a sauce with dd (using dried herbs for the mo as I really can't spend any extra) later on today

Thanks Bee!

I like to pop the meatballs and sauce in the oven with some mozzarella on top for 10-15 mins at the end. Not sure if that adds to the thickness but it tastes pretty good to me.

Passata definitely seems to make the sauce thicker and richer than tinned tomatoes.

I'm a skint student so 80p on fresh herbs that will go off is a total waste of money, compared to 10p on a tub of dried mixed herbs that will last ages. They taste fine, you just have to use them judiciously.

Passatta.

Fry onions, mushrooms, garlic whatever you like.

Ad passatta and simmer until it is as thick as you want. A slug of wine won't go amiss either.

If doing pork meatballs, roast a red pepper, puree it and add it to the tomato sauce, utterly delicious.

This is how I make meatballs in tomato sauce, about twenty minutes from getting in front door to the table (although I usually make sauce the day before if I can)

tyne-teas.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/spaghetti-and-meatballs.html