Jerry's Spaghetti al Pomodoro

I based this recipe on one in "The Top 100 Pasta Sauces" by Diane Seed. We got this when we lived in Italy and have always used it since then.  All her sauces are great.

I was (am) trying to get the basis for the perfect tangy marinara sauce. I got a sauce at Tino’s Greek Café in Austin that was nearly the perfection I am looking for. It was served in Greek meatballs rather than pasta, but the taste was amazing. The basic recipe is great, but not that great.

This recipe uses canned tomatoes, and in our experience Italians generally use canned too. There is another quick pasta sauce that uses fresh tomatoes, but I think it’s really a different dish. Also fresh tomatoes are much better when local and in season, but the rest of the time canned actually taste better.

“San Marzano” tomatoes from Italy are considered the top of the crop for sauces, but I’ve never tried it. In Italy the brand was “Pomi” in a soft container, the Pomi here does not seem to be the same though. We use Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted tomatoes, which are about the best canned tomatoes we found.

Based on the flavors, it seemed that I needed more tang, somehow. And sweetness. I started by adding wine – ½ cup Texas Cabernet Sauvignon for this recipe. I also deep caramelized the onion and garlic, which is a great trick for getting a great flavor. It was a lot better, but I think I need more. I want to figure out the PERFECT recipe every time! Thanks for tips and comments.

Stephen adds lemon juice too, and I bet this helps, I’ll try it next time.

America’s Test Kitchen fries the crushed tomatoes until they get brown and sticky and caramelized on the bottom of the pan. I’ll try that too.

I also added dried pepper flakes and Italian sausage since I had it. The pepper flakes alone make this into “Arabbiata” (“Angry” or “mad” = really hot) sauce, really popular for penne pasta.

Ingredients: 

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium chopped onion

2 cloves minced garlic

2 14 oz cans Italian plum tomatoes

1 tsp sugar

Salt and black pepper

1/2 cup dry red wine (my extra)

Preparation:

Heat the oil and gently fry the onion and garlic until softened.
I keep cooking them on medium flame until they are brown and very tangy.
(To make Arabbiata sauce, add 1 tsp dried crushed pepper flakes while frying)

Add the tomatoes with their juice, sugar, salt, and freshly ground pepper to taste
The sauce boils down so add less that you think and correct later.

Cook on a high flame, uncovered, for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When the sauce is reduced and thick, check the seasoning.

Then pass the sauce through the medium disk of a food processor.
You can also use a blender, but it will get more orangey and it’s not authentic.

Cook spaghetti or tagliatelle according to the package;

Warm up a serving bowl – it’s a lot better if it comes very hot!

Drain the pasta and put in the bowl.
Save a cup of the pasta water for later

Add ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Add the sauce

Add pasta water as needed to get to the right consistency.
The flavor it adds is important.

Stir thoroughly

Add another ½ cup Parmesan on top and serve.