Description
This Fresh Tomato Sauce recipe offers a vibrant and flavorful homemade sauce made with vine ripe or plum tomatoes, garlic paste, tomato paste, and fresh basil. Perfect for enhancing pasta, pizza, or any dish that calls for a delicious tomato base, this sauce is simmered to a rich thickness and balanced with a touch of sugar and spices for a harmonious taste.
Ingredients
Scale
Tomatoes
- 3 lbs vine ripe or plum tomatoes (about 8)
Base and Seasonings
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons garlic paste
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 basil sprigs (stems and leaves separated)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar (packed)
Instructions
- Prepare boiling water: Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat to blanch the tomatoes.
- Score tomatoes: Using a paring knife, cut 1-inch X’s on the bottoms of all the tomatoes to facilitate peeling after blanching.
- Blanch tomatoes: Add the scored tomatoes to the boiling water and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the skins start to split.
- Peel tomatoes: Drain the tomatoes in a colander and transfer them to a rimmed baking sheet. Peel off and discard the skins.
- Chop tomatoes: Cut the peeled tomatoes into chunks, and discard the cores.
- Cook aromatics: In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over low heat. Add garlic paste, tomato paste, basil stems, sea salt, ground black pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook and stir frequently for 2 to 3 minutes until garlic becomes fragrant and slightly browned.
- Add tomatoes and sugar: Stir in the chopped tomatoes with their juices and the light brown sugar. Increase heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Simmer sauce: Reduce heat to medium and let the sauce simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring frequently until it thickens.
- Finish with basil leaves: Remove the saucepan from heat, discard the basil stems, and stir in the finely chopped basil leaves.
- Season and store: Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Serve the sauce immediately or let it cool and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Choose ripe, flavorful tomatoes such as vine ripe or plum for the best sauce quality.
- Blanching tomatoes makes peeling easier and results in a smoother sauce.
- Simmering the sauce slowly allows flavors to deepen and helps thicken the sauce naturally.
- The brown sugar balances acidity in the tomatoes, but adjust or omit based on your taste and tomato sweetness.
- Fresh basil leaves added at the end preserve their bright flavor and aroma.
- This sauce can be refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
