Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce
User Reviews
5
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Prep Time
5 mins
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Cook Time
2 hrs
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Total Time
2 hrs 5 mins
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Servings
6
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Course
Main Course, Condiments
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Cuisine
Italian
Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce
Description
The recipe starts by preparing a soffrito, a finely blended mixture of onion, celery with leaves, carrot, and olive oil, which acts as the flavorful base for the sauce. This concentrated blend is cooked gently over low heat, allowing the vegetables to soften and the flavors to develop gradually without browning.
Tomato passata or blended peeled/chopped tomatoes are then added to the soffrito, bringing bright and fresh tomato flavor. The sauce simmers gently, thickening slightly and deepening in color as the soffrito begins to darken, resulting in a balanced, flavorful tomato sauce infused with fresh basil.
This sauce is ideal for coating pasta and can be used as a foundational tomato sauce in Italian dishes. It has a smooth consistency and melds herbaceous basil notes with the sweetness and acidity of tomatoes enhanced by the aromatic vegetable base.
Ingredients
- extra virgin olive oil EVOO
- onion
- celery
- carrot
- 75-100 grams basil 2.6 - 3.5oz, fresh leaves
- 2.5 kg tomato passata 10.42 cups. Store bought or Peeled/chopped Italian tomatoes, homemade
Instructions
- Tomato basil pasta sauce is made with a “Soffrito” which is a blend of fresh ingredients used at the very beginning of the recipe.
- To make the soffrito, chop up 1 carrot, 100g onion and 1 celery stalk (including the leaves!).
- Add all of these ingredients into the base of a hand blender with 100ml of extra virgin olive oil, until it becomes beautiful and creamy, like a puree. This will form a flavoursome base for your tomato basil pasta sauce.
- Next, turn the stove on to a very gentle heat and place the pot on top. Add 3-4 tablespoons of EVOO and pour in the soffrito mix.
- Gently stir the soffrito so it covers the base of the pot, cover it with a lid and leave it to simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- If you are using chopped or peeled tomatoes, blend them up so they become a beautiful thick passata. If you are using homemade or store bought passata to make your tomato basil pasta sauce, then you can skip this step!
- After ten minutes, the soffrito will start to darken in colour. Stir it using a wooden spoon (making sure it is not burning) and then leave it to simmer for at least another 5 minutes.
- When the soffrito is ready, mix through the tomato passata and stir very well using a wooden spoon.
- Sprinkle 10g/2.2 teaspoons of rock salt and some black pepper and mix through.
- Now, just cover the tomato basil pasta sauce with a lid and leave it to simmer slowly for 1-1.5hr, remembering to stir it every now and then.
- After 1hr, remove the lid and leave it for another 30-45min, simmering it without the lid.
- The finishing touch for this perfect homemade tomato and basil sauce is adding fresh basil at the very end. You can cut this up small or large depending on your preference – just make sure you don’t cut it with a knife! Add it with your hands before mixing through and leave this to infuse while the sauce is still hot – but the stove is now off.
- E ora si mangia, Vincenzo’s Plate….Enjoy!
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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