Pomodoro
Serves 4.
Pomodoro is a simple Italian tomato sauce. Meant to be prepared as a quick and simple meal, Pomodoro is as good as its ingredients. Use good ingredients. The pasta will reward you.
Ingredients
Method
Pour tomatoes into a bowl. Add a pinch of salt and crush tomatoes with your hands.
Allow to sit for 30 minutes to fully season the tomatoes.
Set a saucepan over medium-low heat, then add oil and two garlic cloves. Cook the garlic cloves slowly until golden brown. If you notice them colouring quickly, lower the heat. Once garlic is golden brown, add diced onion. Raise the heat to medium and cook gently until soft but not browning. Add chili flakes and basil. Stir for one minute. Add your salted tomatoes, stir and bring mixture to a fast boil. Reduce heat and allow sauce to simmer until it reaches the desired consistency.
For light sauce: simmer sauce gently for 15 minutes. Best paired with light flavours and delicate proteins such as ricotta-stuffed pasta or fish. A light pomodoro is sublime with fresh, in-season tomatoes.
For medium sauce: simmer sauce gently for 1 hour. Medium sauces are versatile: dress fresh pasta or coat aubergines for silky eggplant parmesan.
For rich sauce: simmer gently for 2 hours. The resulting sauce will be heavy, assertive, and dotted with oil. Glaze hearty ridged pasta shapes or spoon over manicotti.
Buon appetito!