Spanish Tomato Sauce (Sofrito)
Fasting Recipes Budget Recipes Spanish Vegetables Sauces and Salsa
This tomato sauce is the base for many Spanish dishes, including paella. Interestingly, the tomatoes aren't the real stars (although you still need to choose ripe, sweet, deep red tomatoes), but rather the onion caramelized to perfection, which develops that intense, sweet flavor and gives it its distinctive sofrito aroma.
Ingredients
1.5 kg very ripe tomatoes
500 g onions
4-5 garlic cloves
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
olive oil (for cooking)
How to prepare spanish tomato sauce (sofrito)
- Grate the tomatoes on a box grater (or peel and blend them; or pass through a tomato mill).
- In a wide pan about 25 cm in diameter, add enough oil to cover the bottom and add the tomatoes. Let them simmer over medium heat, stirring only occasionally.
- In a wide pan (about 30 cm diameter), add enough oil to cover the bottom. Add the sliced onions and begin sautéing over medium heat, stirring frequently. When the onions have softened, reduce heat to low and continue sautéing until the onions turn golden. The whole process takes about 45 minutes.
- Add the crushed garlic and sauté for 1 more minute.
- After the onions have caramelized, blend them until you get a purée as smooth as you like. Add this purée to the tomatoes, which should have reduced quite a bit by now. If you want a super smooth final sauce, blend everything with an immersion blender.
- Season the sauce with salt, sugar, and bay leaves. Let the sauce simmer for another 30-40 minutes (medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, especially towards the end when it thickens) until well reduced and the oil rises to the top. At the end, you can drain off this oil if desired.
- Portion the sauce and store in the refrigerator or freezer for longer storage.
Cooking the tomatoes
Cooking the onions
The onions after 15 minutes
The onions after 45 minutes
Tomatoes with onion puree
Spanish Tomato Sauce (Sofrito)
