Perfect Italian Red Sauce

If you look at the rows and rows of jarred red pasta sauce on the supermarket shelves, you might feel a bit overwhelmed by the array of choices. What should you grab? Marinara? With peppers and onions? Garlic and basil? Etc, etc, etc. It can be more than a little confusing.

What makes the perfect Italian red sauce?

The answer is, less is more. It took me a long time, and an Italian boyfriend, to understand that concept, and to understand that making sauce from scratch is super easy. And very simple.

The trick to perfect sauce, to any recipe that relies on only a few ingredients, is to use the absolute highest quality, most delicious and flavorful ingredients you can find. So let’s talk about what those are.

First, the olive oil. The flavor of the olive oil is an integral part of the flavor of the finished product. You want to use only Italian, extra virgin olive oil. That’s not to say that olive oils from other places aren’t good, but they do taste different. By the way, did you know that many, in fact most, of the oils on the market that claim to be extra virgin, are not? You’ve got to read the labels. First, you want to know that the oil comes exclusively from Italian olives that are grown, pressed, and bottled all in the same place. Then, you need to look for certification.

In my somewhat humble opinion, one of the finest Italian extra virgin olive oils that is readily available commercially comes from…yes…Costco. And not the organic one. The regular Kirkland Italian extra virgin olive oil. You’ll notice the certification is right there on the front of the bottle. This stuff is fruity, fragrant, and delicious, and reasonably priced. If you haven’t got a Costco membership, it’s available on Amazon, but it’s more expensive there.

And, resist the urge to reduce the amount of oil. You may be inclined to use less in order to conserve calories, but you’ll do so at the peril of the final result. The oil isn’t there simply to keep the garlic from sticking or burning; it’s an integral part of the flavor and texture of the sauce.

Then, there are the tomatoes. Only buy San Marzano tomatoes. Not San Marzano style. You want the real thing. Again, with the certification on the front of the can. They’re naturally sweeter, less acidic than other varieties. That means, you won’t need to add baking soda, sugar, or any of the other tricks that are used to ameliorate the bitterness/sourness of the tomatoes in your sauce.

Can you use fresh tomatoes to make sauce? Yes, you can, but it probably won’t be nearly as good, because it’s hard to get tomatoes of that quality at the grocery store. And they’re inconsistent, so, you never know how your sauce will turn out. You can depend upon certified San Marzano tomatoes for consistent, delicious, results.

Avoid using pre-chopped garlic in a jar, or even a bag of pre-peeled garlic. Those are a convenience, and they have their place, but not here. Only a fresh head of garlic will do. And you need a lot!

The only herb you really need to use here is basil. In specialty sauces, such as seafood sauce, pizza sauce, or other sauces specific to a particular dish, other herbs are appropriate, but not in this basic sauce. And please, only use fresh basil. The dried stuff has a completely different flavor.

Do use kosher salt. It has a cleaner finish than “table salt.” As for specialty salts, they’d be wasted here. Save those for applications where they will make a statement.

Besides all of this, the only other thing you need is some hard grating cheese. Locatelli Romano, Parmegiana Reggiana, or Gran Padano all work. Don’t use anything less. (If your sauce will be used with a meat meal and you keep kosher, eliminate the cheese.)

What’s the difference between this and marinara sauce? With marinara, everything is put into the pot at once. We’re going to first sauté the garlic in the oil, to release all of its garlicky goodness. Then we’ll add the tomatoes, a little salt, and a few grinds of the pepper mill, and we’ll let it cook until the oil and tomatoes are no longer separate. We’ll then purée the sauce to our preferred texture, anywhere from chunky to perfectly smooth. Finally, we’ll add the basil and the cheese, let it simmer for another five minutes, and adjust the salt and pepper as needed. Remember that the cheese is salty. Note: Basil is delicate. If you add it too soon, the flavor will be lost.

The sauce is ready to serve as is, over pasta or in your favorite dish. I like to make a big batch and freeze it in quart sized containers. Then, I can defrost it to use as is, or doctor it up for special use.

Here are a few variations:

• To make vodka sauce, add a generous splash of vodka to the pot before adding the tomatoes. Then, after the sauce has been puréed, add a generous splash of heavy cream with the basil and cheese. To make vodka sauce with defrosted basic sauce, just add the vodka and cream into the defrosted sauce and heat it all together.

• You can also sauté some chopped onion with the garlic. Don’t let it brown!

  If the sauce is going to be used in a specific dish, try to have it complement the dish. For example:

• If you’ll be making eggplant parmesan, add some finely chopped eggplant in with the tomatoes. (If you’re starting with pre-made sauce, sauté a little bit of eggplant in olive oil, add it to your defrosted sauce, and simmer it for about 20—30 minutes. You can then purée it if you’d like to.

• If there will be chicken or beef in your dish, add a little stock, either chicken or beef, when you add the tomatoes.

• Depending upon what your sauce is for, you might want to add other herbs, such as thyme, rosemary, parsley, and/or oregano. Use a light hand with these, and add them with the tomatoes.

• You can also add a little cayenne pepper or some red pepper flakes to the sauce while it’s cooking, if you want to add a little kick.

• For a sauce that goes nicely with fish dishes, sauté some chopped onion, ½ red bell pepper, chopped, and 1—2 carrots, peeled and chopped, with the garlic. Then continue on as usual. Adding some cayenne or red pepper flakes is nice with this sauce.

• For meat sauce, many people start by browning some ground beef in the oil with onions and the garlic, and then add the tomatoes and let it simmer. Personally, I don’t love the texture of the meat like this, so if I want meat sauce I first make a meatball mix with the meat, and cook that in the oil, chopping it with a wooden spoon, before adding the tomatoes.

Now, without further ado, here’s the recipe for Homemade Italian Red Sauce.

Ingredients:

• 3—28 ounce cans of whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes

• 15 cloves of garlic, peeled and thinly sliced

• ¾ cup 100% Italian extra virgin olive oil

• ½—⅓ cup best quality Italian grating cheese (see above)

• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

• Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

• Warm the oil in a large sauce pot or Dutch oven,. 

• Add the garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Don’t let it brown. 

• Separate the tomatoes from their juice. Add the juice to the pot.

• Crush the tomatoes. You can chop them with a knife and then add them to the pot if you’d like to, but I prefer to squish them in my hands, one at a time, right into the pot.

• Add a little salt and pepper. You can add more later, if you decide it needs more.

• Allow the sauce to simmer over low heat for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally so that it doesn’t stick.

• Some people like their sauce a bit chunky; others like it silky smooth. Use an immersion blender (or a food processor) to purée the sauce to your preferred consistency.

• Stir in the basil and cheese and cook 5 minutes more. If you’re a fan of a strong garlic flavor (like me), add another clove or two of garlic, minced, grated, or through a garlic press.

• Taste for salt and pepper. If the sauce tastes flat, it needs more salt. You may want to add more basil as a garnish, at the end.

  Note: The amounts given for the garlic and herbs are a guideline. Adjust them according to your taste.