Comments on: Tomato Sauce Smackdown

By: Kasey

Kasey — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 18:43:10 +0000

I love homemade tomato sauce–sometimes I use diced fresh tomatoes and fresh basil, which comes out cheaper than using the canned tomatoes.

By: Daily Spud

Daily Spud — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 00:33:00 +0000

Yay – homemade wins hands down!

My latest thing is vodka in tomato sauce, and I do usually have onion in there and maybe some carrot and celery. All depends on the mood. Your straight-up tomato sauce looks great!

By: The Duo Dishes

The Duo Dishes — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 00:17:28 +0000

If you can make it at home, we think you should. It’s always better and cheaper.

By: megan

megan — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 21:15:33 +0000

Yeah, I’ve tried Batali’s recipe with the thyme and carrot – I don’t know, I am just against thyme and carrot in an Italian tomato sauce, I don’t have a rational explanation for it. When I stick to San Marzanos I find that the sauce doesn’t really need a lot of extra sweetness. And I feel like the addition of thyme is a French thing – I guess that’s why I don’t like adding it to my sauce. (Nothing against the French obviously, I was trained at a French culinary school where, yes, we put thyme in the tomato sauce.)

I do like the idea of a bit of wine – it doesn’t make it too acidic? Maybe then you’d need a bit of the carrot or a pinch of sugar.

By: Laura [What I Like]

Laura [What I Like] — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 20:10:07 +0000

Gorgeous photo! And glad that you’re not sending yourself to the poor house in the name of good tomato sauce. Love the idea of red pepper flakes…I tend to just stick with tomatoes, onions, garlic, lots of thyme and I stole Mario Batali’s idea of half of a grated carrot to add a little hint of sweetness

By: maggie (p&c)

maggie (p&c) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:59:18 +0000

What a good idea. Though I usually add a LOT of wine to my homemade sauce, which makes it slightly less cheap…

By: Kristina

Kristina — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:23:49 +0000

Well-done. I love tributes to doing things yourself. It’s great to find that making your own sauce is a money-saver.

Towards the end of the growing season, I was able to purchase 10-lb. boxes of Roma tomatoes for $10 apiece. There was no question in my mind that I was saving money as I simmered those beauties into sauce!

Kristina
Sweetfern Handmade

By: sivan harlap

sivan harlap — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 14:12:42 +0000

Megan, this sounds so good! And believe it or not, i don’t think i have ever made homemade tomato sauce. Miles is the saucier in the family. I do make a wicked fresh tomato sauce, no cooking required, for pasta. Oooh, can’t wait for tomato season!

By: megan

megan — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 14:02:37 +0000

I like canned tomatoes, too! It’s pretty much the only canned vegetable that is any good (aside from homemade canned vegetables – that’s a little different), don’t you agree? Especially in the winter months!

This sauce is super simple, but you can add all sorts of things too it – like Katie says, you can definitely add onion and carrot and celery (chopped fine). Sometimes I add shredded prosciutto or pancetta. Marcella Hazan has an amazing recipe that is basically butter, canned whole tomatoes (crushed) and a peeled, whole onion that you cut in half and stick in the sauce to simmer. I LOVE that version of sauce, but my husband is allergic to onions!

By: anna

anna — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 13:30:10 +0000

This sounds great. I’ve made my own sauce a few times but not enough to really tweak it to how I want it. My boyfriend hates all homemade sauces because he’s so used to one of the jarred brands. It’s sad!