Pasta Sauce in a New York Minute
Pasta Sauce in a New York Minute
Make pasta sauce in a New York minute! Well, almost. You can have this sauce finished in about 10 minutes if you're in a hurry. It doesn't have a lot of "bells and whistles," but the taste is very good. I've heard everything from, Ooh, it's good! to "Damn that's some great sauce! Where did you buy it?"
I normally avoid pasta sauce sold in jars. Unless you buy an imported or a high-end brand, you're not going to get a very good flavor from a bottled pasta sauce. And forget about cans! Ugh! Those have a metallic taste. Your best bet is to make it from scratch. I have a recipe that's a really long version that you cook for hours and also one that's a "cheater" version (which uses garlic and onion powder). This recipe is somewhere on the line in between those two.
Try it and you'll love it! So will your family and friends!
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup white or yellow, medium dice
- 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 15 oz. can diced tomatoes
- 15 oz. can (or 2 6 oz. cans), tomato sauce
- 6 oz. can tomato paste
- 2-3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (or vegetable oil)
- 1 Tablespoon fresh basil, finely chopped, (or 1 teaspoon dried basil)
- 1/2 Tablespoon fresh oregano, finely chopped, (or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano)
- Salt and pepper to your taste
- 1 dash Tabasco Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, optional
- Assemble all ingredients and kitchen tools. Recommended equipment: chef's knife, cutting board, 2 qt. saucepan, can opener, liquid measuring cup.
- Heat oil to medium-high heat in saucepan. Saute onions until soft (do not brown). Add garlic and saute about 1 minute.
- Add tomato paste and saute for 5 minutes or so. Let it brown a little bit--that adds more flavor.
- Add diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. stir well. If you're using dried herbs, add herbs at this point. (If you're using fresh herbs, add these at the last minute, just before serving.) Bring mixture up to a simmer.
- Add a dash of Tabasco & salt & pepper to your taste. Stir well. (2 or 3 drops of Tabasco will do. This is to enhance the flavor, not overwhelm it.)
- Add butter if desired. It's not necessary to use it but it does enhance the flavor.
- You're now ready to rock-n-roll! Enjoy your pasta sauce!
