RECIPE: Tomato Sauce (really a stew)

At Cookery School we teach to empower so that everyone has the confidence to replicate recipes again and again at home. We also teach by principle – if you can understand how to make one soup, you can make a whole range of different soups using the same principle.

During our time at home, in isolation, these principles have never been more pertinent, when we all need to cook a lot more. We will be sharing simple, home-cooked weekly recipes with you, so that your experience of cooking during Covid-19 is a positive one, with new recipes learnt and delicious dishes enjoyed.

Stews: basic principles

• Brown any meat in oil on high and set aside
• Add water to the pan to remove all sediment and save this liquid with the meat
• Brown the onions in oil on a high heat and let them brown in colour
• Add garlic
• Return any meat
• Add herbs, spices etc.
• Add stock, water, liquid and bring to boil
• Reduce the heat and simmer on low for a long time – until tender
• Remove any meat and cook liquid down further, if there is too much
• Season with salt and pepper and taste!

Tomato Sauce (really a stew…)
Feeds 4-6 / Freezer Friendly

Ingredients
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 onions, peeled and chopped
450g/1lb fresh tomatoes or 1 x 400g tinned tomatoes or passata
3 tablespoons tomato paste
Large handful of chopped parsley
Pinch of dried oregano
Small bunch of fresh basil
Salt and pepper

Method
1. Pour the oil into a saucepan set over a medium high heat, add the onions and fry until golden brown.
2. Add the garlic and fry until translucent.
3. Add the tomatoes or passata and the tomato paste, which adds an extra tomato-ey flavour.
4. Add the parsley and oregano to the mixture and simmer for about 20 minutes (you can use dried mixed herbs or marjoram if you don’t have the ones we generally use).
5. If the sauce appears too think, add a little water and continue to cook until well mixed. A tomato sauce should be neither watery nor thick and heavy.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
7. If you have fresh basil, tear the leaves roughly and add to the sauce.

Use fresh tomatoes only when they are in high season when they have a good, full-bodied flavour.

Tomato sauce uses
Soups > tomato; lentil; minestrone
Stews > Bolognese sauce; bean ragout; tagine; fish stew
Sauces > arrabiata (add some chilli), pasta bake (if you can find pasta), fish pie
Bread > pizza topping (great to make with the children)

 

Cooking during Covid-19
We have a wealth of experience to share in these unprecedented times if you need help cooking during Coronavirus. We’ll be giving you tips and recipes on using store cupboard ingredients, preserving, pickling & above all making the most of your valuable ingredients & not wasting food. PLEASE let us have YOUR questions and SHARE on Facebook or Instagram what you’ve been cooking & our founder Rosalind will be able to get back to you with answers so we can all learn from each other.

Category
How To Recipes Sustainability