ITALIAN FAST FOOD
In Italy, fast food often means cooking pasta and making tomato sauce from scratch.
I know.
It sounds absurd.
But once you’ve made a simple tomato sauce a few times, you’ll understand why.
While the pasta water comes to a boil, the garlic gently perfumes the olive oil.
The passata goes into the pan.
A few basil leaves wait nearby.
And twenty minutes later dinner is ready.
Not opened.
Not reheated.
Cooked.
PASSATA OR TOMATOES?
Authentic Italian tomato sauce is most commonly made with passata, the smooth tomato purée found in virtually every Italian pantry.
But canned whole tomatoes work beautifully too.
Simply crush them with a fork before adding them to the pan.
The result is slightly different.
Passata creates a silky sauce that clings perfectly to spaghetti and other long pasta shapes.
Crushed tomatoes produce a chunkier sauce that pairs wonderfully with short pasta.
Both are authentically Italian.
A CONFESSION
I should probably not admit this.
My family certainly wishes I wouldn’t.
But sometimes, when I’m unbearably hungry, I skip the sauce entirely.
I add a spoonful of passata directly to hot pasta.
Then olive oil.
Salt.
A generous snowfall of grated Parmesan.
The heat of the pasta softens everything just enough.
Not as good as a proper sauce.
But surprisingly satisfying.
Please don’t tell my relatives.
FIVE INGREDIENTS ARE ENOUGH
A traditional tomato sauce needs very little:
- passata;
- extra-virgin olive oil;
- garlic;
- salt;
- basil.
Sometimes oregano.
Sometimes a little chili.
Nothing more.
The beauty of Italian tomato sauce lies precisely in its simplicity.
authentic Italian tomato sauce
homemade tomato sauce with tomato paste
Ingredients
- 17.6 oz tomato paste 500 gr or 2 cups + 2 tablespoons
- 1 garlic clove
- 4-5 basil leaves
- extra-virgin olive oil
- salt
Instructions
-
Peel and crush the garlic clove with the blade of a big knife.
-
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium pan.
-
Add the garlic clove and brown it a couple of minutes.
-
Remove the pan from the heat and wait a couple of minutes for the temperature to decrease a bit. Add the passata (careful, it might splatter).
-
Add a teaspoon of salt, mix and cook, lid on, medium heat, for 5 minutes.
-
Turn off the heat.
-
Cut the basil leaves in 3-4, with your hands, and add them to the sauce. Mix and taste for salt. Cover and let the basil relieve its aroma for about 5 minutes.
-
Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions.
-
Drain the pasta and season it with the DIY tomato sauce and sprinkle it with grated Parmesan cheese as per your taste.
Enjoy your sugo!
Claudia