It’s the time of year when you might have a glut of tomatoes growing in the garden, or like me, noticed your local supermarket has a great offer on fantastic Italian San Marzano tomatoes, then it’s time for one thing and one thing only…try my easy tomato sauce recipe!

Bulk making sauce for the freezer is the best way to save that amazing flavour of summer and turn those tomatoes into a ready to go meal, and infinitely better than anything you can buy in a jar.

It is easy to do it just takes a bit of time now which is ultimately time you’ll save in the future.

Ingredients

• 1 Kilo (2 pounds) Fresh Tomatoes
• 1 Large Handful of Fresh Basil
• 1 Very good pinch of Sea Salt

Half the tomatoes and remove the central part that the stalk attached to, but don’t worry about remove the seeds or the skin. Dice them into rough small chunks and place in a large pan.

Chop or tear up the basil and get that in the pan too along with the salt.

Put on a low heat and after about 10 minutes you should see lots of liquid appear. This is what we want to reduce out of them. Give a good stir and continue cooking for about 1-1 ½ hours.

We want the sauce to have reduced by about 50%. At this point you can use a hand blender, but I prefer to use a spoon to smash up the bits of tomato. I feel it gives a more rustic, textured finish. Of course do what you need to get the consistency you like.

Now let that go completely cold before decanting into food bags or boxes. For reference about 200g/7oz is a healthy portion!

So next time you want pasta just soften some onion or garlic or both in olive oil and add you frozen sauce. The reason we don’t add these to the original sauce is you will get a much better, fresher flavour doing it this way, and it’s easily done in the time it takes to boil you pasta of choice.

Tell me how this worked out for you in the comments below, I’d love to hear!

Michael

Author information

The Food Curator

The Food Curator (AKA Michael Robinson) is an aficionado of all things food and bon viveur based in London. A passion for cooking and dining has driven him to put fingers to keyboard to bring you his thoughts on the world of food. When not writing, eating or cooking he has a love of American muscle cars. Pop on over to my Facebook page and let's start a Facebook food revolution together: http://tinyurl.com/thefoodcurator

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The post When life gives you tomatoes, make sauce! appeared first on Food on the Blog. Post by The Food Curator

There are lots of condiments out there vying for our attention and over the years more and more have been added to our tables.

As a starting point I’m looking at those little packets which pubs sometimes provide as a guide. There is a regular selection – mayo, mustard, tomato sauce, brown sauce and tartar sauce.

Mayonnaise is something which deserves to be right up on anyone’s favourite condiments list. It goes with so many things and it’s becoming more and more popular with fries thanks to our Belgium cousins. It can be flavoured up too, just mix a little garlic in and your sandwich or burger will take on a new lease of life. I love it with chicken, the creaminess works so well.

Tomato ketchup…what more do I need to say? It’s essential and works with just about anything. I know people who mix it into mashed potatoes, others simply can’t have a bacon sandwich without it. Everyone loves it with fries, just go peek in your local fast food joint. I just adore it on a fish finger sandwich it’s the perfect quick hot snack

I don’t think any of you out there won’t have mayo or tomato sauce in your kitchens. These are kings of condiments! I mean what would you do without tomato ketchup? I think life would be a duller place without it…

Tartar sauce is strictly for fish so lacks versatility although it’s the only thing I can eat with capers in. It’s a great condiment but for me it wouldn’t get near the top of my list.

Some people don’t like horseradish. I personally I love it, especially with roast beef. I recommend you add some to mayo for the ultimate roast beef sandwich. It also goes well with oily fish, mackerel especially.

Mustard is another love it or hate it condiment. I’m in the love it camp, It just goes with so many things and there are so many types out there to choose from. Whole-grain, French, German American, the list goes on. My favourite is good old English, well known for being the hottest mustard but it’s also the most flavourful in my book!

Hot sauces are another super versatile condiment and there are lots on the market now with sriracha becoming hugely popular over the last couple of years. Mexican chilli sauce brands seem to pop up everyday, I love trying the different ones, especially those with a heat warning on the front. I have tried some which were a little to hot, the worst offenders made me feel like Id been maced.

How about Tabasco? It’s THE classic hot sauce which has become a hit with people the world over, and for me perfect accompaniment to the delicate flavour of oysters despite its spiciness.

Whichever hot sauce you pick it will spice up and work with just about anything. A definite contender whatever your favourite.

Brown sauce is a British favourite, with brands like HP (which stands for Houses of Parliament) holding almost legendary status. I love brown sauce with sausages, so much so that I get a little disappointed if I don’t have any for my sausage sandwich…in this case, for me, tomato sauce just doesn’t cut it.

Salad cream something which divides people. It went out of popularity a few years back and provoked a clever marketing campaign which said it would be taken of the market forever. This prompted people to go out in their droves and buy as much of the stuff as they could. Suffice to say it didn’t disappear from our shelves after all. Some people don’t like it but I love it! It is also vital for making a great Marie Rose (seafood) sauce, when you mix a small amount with tomato sauce and mayo.

When you start thinking about your favourite you realise there are lots of others to choose from. How about A1, piccalilli, burger relish?

In my house the title has to go to tomato sauce. It’s the most versatile and really is simply fantastic. I have a favourite brand which I always buy too, it’s the most popular brand out there so shouldn’t be hard for you to work out

Remember to share your favourite condiments in the comments below!

Michael Robinson

Author information

The Food Curator

The Food Curator (AKA Michael Robinson) is an aficionado of all things food and bon viveur based in London. A passion for cooking and dining has driven him to put fingers to keyboard to bring you his thoughts on the world of food. When not writing, eating or cooking he has a love of American muscle cars. Pop on over to my Facebook page and let's start a Facebook food revolution together: http://tinyurl.com/thefoodcurator

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The post What’s your favourite condiment? appeared first on Food on the Blog. Post by The Food Curator