Mellow Tomato Sauce

 

 

 

Tomato sauce with organic garden-fresh San Marzano paste tomatoes originally grown in the volcanic, mineral-rich soil near Mount Vesuvius in Italy.

 

The perfect reason to make a clean, neutral marinara base — just tomatoes, aromatics, and olive oil — that cooks down and freezes or cans well. No sugar, no heavy herbs, so you can season it however you like later.

Tomato Sauce recipe

Ingredients

    30 pounds ripe tomatoes (Roma/plum preferred), cored

    1 cups olive oil
    2 large yellow onions, finely diced
    10 garlic cloves, minced
    3 tablespoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
    2 teaspoons black pepper, freshly ground
    2 tablespoons sugar (optional, to balance acidity)
    0.3 cups fresh basil leaves, torn (optional, added at the end)

Method

1 Prep the tomatoes: Wash and core all 30 pounds ripe tomatoes (Roma/plum preferred), cored. Score a shallow X on the bottom of each tomato.

2 Blanch and peel: Working in batches, drop tomatoes into a large pot of boiling water for 45 seconds 00:45, then transfer to an ice bath. Slip off the skins once cool enough to handle.

3 Rough chop: Roughly chop the peeled tomatoes, saving any juice. Set aside.

4 Cook the aromatics: In a very large, heavy-bottomed pot (or split between two pots), heat 1 cups olive oil over medium heat. Add 2 large yellow onions, finely diced and cook until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes 10:00.

5 Add garlic: Add 10 garlic cloves, minced and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute 01:00, stirring constantly so it doesn't burn.

6 Add tomatoes and simmer: Add the chopped tomatoes and their juice to the pot along with 3 tablespoons kosher salt, plus more to taste and 2 teaspoons black pepper, freshly ground. Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until reduced and thickened to your liking.

7 Puree (optional): For a smoother sauce, puree in batches with an immersion blender or food mill for a completely neutral, seedless texture.

8 Adjust seasoning: Taste and stir in 2 tablespoons sugar (optional, to balance acidity) if the sauce is too acidic, plus more salt as needed. Stir in 0.3 cups fresh basil leaves, torn (optional, added at the end) right at the end if using.

9 Cool, store, or can: Let cool slightly before ladling into freezer containers, or process in a water bath canner if canning (follow current USDA guidelines for tomato sauce acidity and processing times).

Notes: Yields roughly 12-14 pints depending on how much you reduce it. Kept intentionally neutral (no oregano/dried herbs) so it works as a base for pasta sauce, pizza sauce, or soups — season per-dish later. If canning, use bottled lemon juice or citric acid per USDA recommendations to ensure safe acidity, since tomato acidity varies by variety. 

 

 

Tomato broth recipe

 

The 6 cups of tomato skins and seeds seem too good to waste, so I found a recipe to

turn the skins and seeds strained out of homemade tomato sauce into a light, flavorful broth — nothing goes to waste.

Ingredients

    2 cups reserved tomato skins and seeds

    3 cups water
    0.5 small onion, roughly chopped
    2 garlic cloves, smashed
    1 bay leaf
    0.5 teaspoons black peppercorns
    1 teaspoons olive oil
    0.5 teaspoons salt

Method

1 Sauté aromatics: Warm 1 teaspoons olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add 0.5 small onion, roughly chopped and 2 garlic cloves, smashed and cook until softened and fragrant.
2 Add tomato scraps: Stir in the 2 cups reserved tomato skins and seeds, then add 3 cups water, 0.5 teaspoons black peppercorns, and 1 bay leaf.
3 Simmer: Bring to a gentle simmer and let it cook, uncovered, so the water pulls out all the tomato flavor.
4 Strain: Pour the broth through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl, pressing on the solids with a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the strained solids. Season with 0.5 teaspoons salt to taste.
5 Use or store: Use warm as a light tomato broth base for soup, risotto, or to thin your sauce. Store in the fridge up to 4 days, or freeze in an ice cube tray for future use.
Notes Amounts are flexible — this is a good way to use whatever quantity of skins and seeds you have. If you want a more concentrated broth, simmer longer or use less water. You can also roast the strained skins in a low oven until crisp, then blitz into a tomato powder for seasoning.
 
 

Tips to grow tomatoes

An avid gardener, Jim, with a green house needs 20 plants each year but since seed packets come in minimum 100, he starts germinating on Jan 15th. By mid-April the seedlings are already 12 to 18 inches tall, string, disease resistant unlike store bought seedlings that are less than 6” tall 

The textbook rule is don’t plant till mid-May because of the threat of frost which can decimate or at minimum debilitate seedlings, impacting the productivity. I rolled the dice, and buried all but top 4 inches (3 leaf whorls) which in turn makes a very robust root ball 

Start with a hole is 18” deep, and fill with water 3 times so it remains damp which encourages microbial activity

At the bottom of the hole put high P and K amendments like crushed bone meal, fish heads etc. That way the roots go deep and find nutrients during the fruiting stage

The rest leave to the California sun, making sure we deep water once a week no more flowers start to show 
 

Amend the soil with earthworm casting tea which made a world of a difference - the tomatoes were healthier and more luscious