This is a great little tomato sauce. It’s the perfect recipe to keep in your back pocket for any number of dishes. While it is a simple recipe, the textures and flavors are quite interesting with the large wedges of onion and the smoky flavor of the whole charred cherry tomatoes contrasting with the soft cooked larger tomatoes. The oregano sprigs give a crunchy surprise to the dish as you serve it.
I prepared this with slices of fried polenta, but you could serve it over soft polenta or over pasta. The cheesier the polenta the better, I think.
This recipe is from Ottolenghi’s Shelf Love. The cookbook is excellent and available through your local bookstore or on Amazon here.
This is not Blue Cayenne’s first rodeo with tomato sauces. We previously featured Julie Child’s Provencal Marinara Sauce, another wonderful sauce. You can find that post here.
Here is the recipe as I prepared it in my kitchen.
Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
- 5 ounces cherry tomatoes
- 6 T. olive oil
- 1 onion (cut into 8 wedges)
- 6 garlic cloves (minced)
- 1 pound 10 ounces large tomatoes (chopped and cored--I used heirloom)
- 1 t. sugar
- 10 sprigs oregano
- 1 1/2 T. oregano leaves
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- Parmesan shards for garnish
- A sprig of fresh basil for garnish
Directions
- Step 1 Char cherry tomatoes in a hot pan for about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- Step 2 Using the same pan, add 4 T. oil and onion wedges. Stir and cook for about 15 minutes. You want the onions to be soft and golden. Add the garlic and stir with the onions for about 30 seconds. Add the chopped tomatoes, sugar and 1 1/2 T. oregano leaves. Cook for about 20 minutes. Stir this mixture a few times as the tomatoes are cooking. Add the charred cherry tomatoes and cook for another 10 minutes. Cook the tomato mixture until it thickens a bit.
- Step 3 Add remaining 2 T. oil to a separate pan and heat to medium high. Sauté the oregano sprigs until they looked cooked and turn a dark green.
- Step 4 Ladle the sauce over polenta or pasta. Top with sautéed oregano sprigs and shards of parmesan.
