How do I make a proper Italian pasta tomato sauce?

[BQ91]

I’ve tried making various tomato sauces using various chopped tomatoes etc but can’t seem to replicate anything close to what I’ve eaten in Italy! Any ideas would be much appreciated!

Chopped tomatoes x2
splash of wine
oxo cube
splash of soy sauce
crushed garlic
dried mixed herbs
salt and pepper
gently simmer,
also get some decent fresh pasta makes all the difference, that industrial food bank grade dried pasta will destroy any delicate sauce,
hope this helps 👍

Now I really want pasta & tomato sauce! Love fresh basil.

Question for those of you who use fresh tomatoes in summer. What happens to the tomato skins? Do you peel them
before use or do they disintegrate while cooking ?

https://amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2013/aug/01/how-to-make-perfect-tomato-sauce - I always do a variation of this one but don’t use sugar.

We soak the whole tomatoes in hot water then the skins come off.

I add cinnamon powder

Quality of tomatoes - it really isn't possible to get lovely tomatoes in the UK for most of the year in the UK. Even catering supply companies (such as those who supply Ocado) can't do it, I've tried them and they are often over-ripe and have lost their flavour. The nearest are the fresh plum tomatoes in the supermarkets as they have usually been grown in a sunny country.
I've resorted to using more expensive tinned tomatoes, using Mutti finely chopped which are full flavoured and naturally sweet. They're not the same as good fresh tomatoes but better than using poor quality fresh ones.

Interesting that most of these chefs say to use tinned tomatoes in the absence of good fresh ones.

I agree, I always use Mutti now and stock up when they're on offer. I prefer the finely chopped ones, simply for ease of use.

I make passata with home grown tomatoes and freeze for when the season is over. The wishy washy tomatoes in supermarkets out of season would not have the same flavour. San marzano tomatoes are usually used so try Mutti or Cirio tinned tomatoes, more expensive than a tin from Tesco but it may help with the flavour you are looking for.

Either soak and peel as mentioned by a PP or grate the tomatoes, the skins stay on the grater.

I only use fresh tomatoes for one type of sauce (crudaiola), where you leave the chopped fresh tomatoes to infuse with garlic, oil, salt and pepper for an hour or so, then mix into the cooked pasta. No cooking required and lovely and fresh in the summer.

For all other sauces I’m lazy and use Mutti. I never add sugar, with Mutti you tend not to need it, but if the tomatoes are tart just add a tiny pinch of bicarbonate. Make sure you use a good quality extra virgin olive oil and if you use a soffritto (chopped onion, carrot and celery) make sure it’s chopped really finely and soft and sweet before adding the tomato.

There is no hard and fast rule for the herbs or spices, every family has their recipe. Herbs are usually fresh basil or a pinch of oregano, as for spices the only one I’ve seen used is a pinch of nutmeg as that also takes down the acid. It’s usually used in ragù (bolognese sauce) and I only tend to use it in veggie ragù. Wine is used for more structured sauces usually, for a simple tomato sauce it’s left out, not least because it can add to the acidity.

Thanks you Relentless. I had never seen that tomato sauce link before.

marcella's sauce is amazing! Sainsburys stock Mutti and sell at about £1:30 but they regularly have it on a discount at £1 so if you keep an eye out you can stock up when it's cheaper

It's only after doing an Italian cookery class I've realised how much olive oil goes in it. Not a drizzle like we would normally use - they put huge glugs of it in, and it tastes amazing 😋

I’ve just finished a book called ‘from scratch’ which is a true memoir about an American woman married to a Sicilian chef and a lot of it is about food. It has the tomato sauce recipe- I’ve taken a picture. I haven’t tried it yet though! It says on the next page you can add dried oregano or pepper flakes.
Also in sauces I’ve made quickly- to add a tomato boost I blend in sun dried tomatoes.

There is a sauce that uses butter and rosemary, I think it’s alla modenese. I usually use it for gnocchi (will then use passata and not chopped tomatoes) but I add a knob of butter to extra virgin olive oil, otherwise I find it too rich. I then cook gnocchi directly in the sauce, with a splash of water added to cook the gnocchi, then reduce down on a low heat.

Tomato oil and salt. You’d really be surprised how much olive oil. U.K. grows amazing tomatoes these days but good quality tinned is absolutely fine. Bronze cut pasta, in other words, pasta with little ridges, gives sth for the sauce to cling to. It’s dead easy to make your own pasta - even tiny kids can make rough papadelle using a pizza cutter or butter knife, anything. Flour, oil and water gnocchi is also super satisfying for kids, just using a fork.

I lived in Italy for a few years and I was taught a very simple tomato sauce, batch cooked and bottled to be used as a base for a number of recipes. Good quality tinned tomatoes, whole peeled onion, carrot, celery. Salt and a good pinch of sugar, fresh rosemary and a glass full of olive oil. Chuck everything in saucepan, no chopping or frying and cook slowly for a couple of hours until carrot and onion are soft and the sauce is reduced by about a quarter. Then pass it through a sieve ( I use an old fashioned mouli) and discard all the bits. Great on its own, or add garlic, olives, bacon, chilli or whatever you fancy!

Bronze cut doesn't have to have ridges. It's just a different manufacturing process to give a rougher finish.

I sauté onions add a squish of tom purée and a splash of wine vinegar. Sometimes I add a finely diced red or orange pepper and always chopped fresh tomatoes. Tinned tomatoes are like food of the devil to me. I add salt, lots of pepper, ground coriander, oregano and basil or pesto if I have it. Also add a little wine if I have any open. If I want it creamier I add one of those small Philadelphia cheese portions which gives it some bite

Generally, Northern Italy, loads of butter. Further South, all about the olive oil.

True Italian sauces are simple in the extreme. Quality fresh ingredients, but rarely over complicated by additions, much beloved of TV chefs.

I cooked a prawn pasta last night.

Base was fresh cherry tomatoes and garlic, cooked down in super glug of extra virgin oo, glug of white wine, a couple of spoons of Mutti, salt, pepper, a little sugar. Added the prawns at the last minute, served with a sprinkle of flat parsley. Devine.

What 😂 butter and tomatoes what kind of sauce is that

Thank you for the thread OP.

I'm taking the suggestion of adding mascapone to my next sauce.

I bought the Marcella Hazan book for this reason. Mine were only passable before.