SUNDAY RED SAUCE!

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Sunday Red Sauce

Sunday Funday! In the wintertime, Sundays are our relaxation day. We don’t plan to much unless someone asks us to do something. It’s the day of the week that we like to sleep in, have a nice brunch, a late day happy hour and I nice dinner with a good glass of wine.

This Sunday was pasta day. I love pasta but rarely eat it because of the carbs and since Kate (my lovely wife) has a gluten allergy it has been hard to find a good rice pasta substitute that doesn’t fall apart when cooking it and have a good authentic pasta texture and flavor. We finally found a penne pasta (Kroger-private select brown rice and quinoa pasta) that does the trick so this weeks Sunday dinner was my Italian chicken that is your classic Chicken parmesan that I served with classic pasta primavera.

One of the other reasons for not eating a lot of pasta is your classic pasta red sauce. I abhor jarred sauces! To me they all have a weird background taste that never sits well with me and to pay $10 for one jar of really good sauce is like wow, I’ll make a batch of my own that will give me two or three quarts worth for the same price and I then freeze the rest so I have it for the future. I will freeze it in pint size containers so I always have just enough for a nice dish when we want it.

This post is just the sauce and I decided to post it separately so you can use this nice red sauce for any dish you may want. If you have a big enough pot, you can double this recipe to have plenty for a long time.

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SUNDAY RED SAUCE!

A light delicious red sauce recipe for any Sunday pasta! This sauce goes great with ragu, add your favorite ground meat for a bolognaise or veggies for a primavera! 

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 415oz cans of diced tomatoes
  • 2 TBS Olive Oil
  • 16oz can of tomato paste
  • 1 cup White wine (like a chardonnay) not pictured
  • 2cups water
  • 1/3 cup diced red onion
  • 2 – Cloves fresh garlic chopped
  • 3 – TBS Italian Seasoning (dry)
  • 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (add more for a spicy) or omit for no spice
  • 3 TBS good balsamic vinegar
  • 2 TBS cane sugar (not pictured)
  • 1 TBS dry oregano
  • 2 TBS fresh basil chopped
  • 2 TBS kosher salt and more for seasoning in between steps
  • 1 TBS of fresh cracked black pepper

Instructions

In a large 6 qt stainless steel pot (don’t use aluminum or cast iron unless it is enamel coated) heat to med low heat. Add 2 TBS of Olive oil and add the diced red onion and season with salt and pepper. Sweat the onion while stirring occasionally for about 3-4 minutes.

Add the garlic and sauté another 2 minutes until the garlic has bloomed well (it will start to smell wonderful in your house).

Next add the Italian herbs and cook another minute

Turn up the heat to med/high and add the tomato paste and cook another minute or two.

Next deglaze the pan with the white wine and stir with a wooden spoon while scraping the bottom of the pan to get any browned bits off the bottom. Remember, this is good flavor.

Your mixture will look smooth and thick. Next add the tomatoes, water, balsamic vinegar and sugar and salt and pepper and oregano. Stir well turn the heat down to a simmer. Let simmer for a couple hours and reduce the contents of the sauce by about a 1/2 inch. This will concentrate the flavors.

If I had all day and was summertime, I would use fresh tomatoes from the garden and cook for 8 to 10 hours and omit the sugar but since tomatoes are out of season and you can only get greenhouse, I use canned.

Once reduced by a 1/2 inch using an emersion blender or hand wand mixer like Cuisinart ($29 at a Meijer) blend the mixture until mostly smooth. I like to leave small chunks of tomatoes or if I over blend, I will add a few large spoonful’s after blending.

Add the fresh chopped basil and stir in with a spoon.

Check for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed to your taste. This is your finished product and ready for any pasta or dish you like. It’s great for spaghetti and meatballs, lasagna etc.

This sauce is great in my Pasta Primavera!

David Miller

Hey, I'm Chef Dave!

A retired chef of 27 years, I’m so excited to be able to share my love of cooking. My recipes are usually easy to follow, fresh, and simply delicious! Our kitchen is a gathering place where I love being with friends and family. A place filled with laughs, good conversation, great food, and a good glass of wine!

From my table to yours, Cheers!

Learn More About Chef Dave

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