Authentic Italian Sauce
When my mother married my dad, my Grandmother taught my mom how to make Home-Made Italian Sauce. I mean, she was marrying a man who was 100% Italian, so, of course, she had to know how to make Italian Cuisine.
Over the years, my mother taught me how to make sauce. When she would make it for dinner, I would watch her and always had to break some bread and give the sauce a taste test. When I became a mom myself, I taught my daughters how to make it and, even my son, will break bread and give it the traditional test.
Over time, I've created my own sense of style. Many who have tried my sauce, always ask for the recipe: so here it is.
Ingredients:
2 - 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 - 6 oz. can tomato paste
6-8 cloves garlic
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper (optional)
Fresh Basil (2 basil leaves)
1lb Ground Chop meat (your choice: beef or pork or both combined)
Salt and pepper to taste
1. Heat olive oil in a large sauce pot over low heat. Saute' garlic and crushed red pepper in oil until the garlic and pepper flakes sizzle ( I like to infuse the pepper flakes).
2. Add tomato paste to the pot with garlic. Stir and quickly add 6 oz. can of water to the paste. Stir until the paste becomes smooth.
3. Add Basil and one 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes to the paste mixture. Raise the temp. to medium and stir well. Add 1 28 0z. can of water to the sauce - stir well and bring to a boil and lower heat. Add the other 28oz. can of crushed tomato and add 1/2 can of water. Stir and simmer. (add water as needed due to thickness preference and the evaporation of water).
4. Add salt, pepper and meatballs. Cook on low for two hours.
Meatball Ingredients:
1 large egg
1 Tbsp. chopped onion
3/4 cup of Italian Bread Crumb
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
1/3 cup Fresh Parsley, chopped
1lb Ground Chop meat (your choice)
Salt and pepper to taste
Combine all ingredients and mix with your hands. Add some water to the mix and wet hands with water as well. Form meatballs and put them in the sauce.
Tips and Warnings:
*Saute' garlic slowly. Burnt garlic could give off a bad taste to your food.
*You could fry meatballs and add to the sauce or place raw meatballs in the sauce as it gives the sauce more flavor.
***Personally, I like to cook the sauce for an hour to release the natural flavors of the garlic, basil, crushed red pepper and sauce before adding the meat. (Optional: you can add meat right away). If you enjoy the flavors, add Oregano and Italian Seasonings to the sauce. Be creative and make it your own.
Sugar or Baking Soda: that's the question:
*Sugar is Sweet. Baking Soda is a bit tart. It depends if you like a sweet sauce or not. I prefer neither, but if I had to choose, my Grandmother would say, an even demitasse spoonful of baking soda is best. Baking soda makes the sauce less acidic where sugar makes it sweet.
Types of Sauce in a Can:
*Tuttorosso
*Hunts
*Redpack
There are a variety of choices: Puree, Diced Tomatoes, Plum Tomatoes and Crushed Tomatoes.
**You can properly freeze sauce for up to 3-4 months.
Types of Meat:
*Meatballs
*Italian Sausage
*Pork Bones (my favorite as it adds SO much flavor)
*London Broil
*Beef Braciole
You can add fresh tomatoes to the mix.
Vegetarian/Vegan Options:
*Discard meat.