One-Chop Tomato Sauce
I cannot recall who told me about this no-chop method, but I can assure you that now you know about it you too won’t look back. To whoever created it - I salute you! Ok, so you do have to chop an onion in half but that’s it, so you’re not slicing or dicing anything which makes it a great place to start if you’re new to the kitchen
While there’s often something deliciously therapeutic about the repetition of chopping, sometimes when you want a meal that involves minimal effort - yet still wholesome and delicious results - up you really can’t go wrong with this one. Yes, you can buy a jar of sauce, but once you’ve tried this I promise you you’ll never be tempted to buy crack open a jar again.
The great thing about this kind of sauce is that it’s flexible so you can eat it as it comes or you can add in additional ingredients at the beginning, or the end depending on what they are. Chilli flakes, anchovies or roasted veggies are all great additions but you do you and put in whatever you fancy. It’s always worth staring lovingly into your fridge thinking about what needs using up that day. Add in roast chicken and some chilli flakes and you’re well on your way to an arrabbiata, add in a bunch of roasted veggies and you’ve got cheats ratatouille. Got an old parmesan rind? Wonderful, that’s free flavour so get that in at the very beginning.
This recipe really can be used anywhere that calls for a tomato sauce, or marinara sauce as they say in America. You can very easily halve, double or even triple this recipe as it freezes well and once thawed needs to be simply reheated gently on the stovetop.
INGREDIENTS
Serves 4
800g Canned tomatoes - these can be whole or chopped (get the best you can afford)
1 Large white onion, skin removed and cut in half
4 garlic cloves, skin removed (or more if you’re a garlic fiend it’s up to you)
1 tbs Italian herbs
1-2 tbs Good-quality olive oil
1 bay leaf (to soak up the acidity in the tomatoes)
Optional - a handful of basil leaves, dried chilli flakes, roasted veggies. Go wild!
METHOD
Add the tomatoes to the pan, followed to the onions cut-side-down and then the rest of the ingredients ensuring they’re submerged into the tomatoes.
Bring to a gentle simmer then pop on the lid and reduce the heat to low and leave to cook for about 45 minutes to an hour.
Once cooked, remove the onion and bay leaf and discard them, they’ve done their job.
At this point, you have two options. Keep the sauce chunky or go super smooth. For chunky, use the back of a spoon to crush any larger tomatoes and each of the garlic cloves against the side of the pan and then stir into the sauce. If you want a sauce that’s lighter in colour and smooth, use a hand-held blender to whizz all the ingredients together ensuring you get the garlic cloves!
Serve as you wish, I recommend with pasta and lashings of parmesan.
