Salsa Pomodoro

Mmmmm, if you love Italian cuisine, then you know there is nothing better than a homemade salsa pomodoro. In fact, there is no other WAY than the homemade pomodoro!

Yesterday I was inspired to make sauce and lasagna, so I turned this classic Italian pomodoro into a bolognese instead.

In this post I will guide you through some simple steps to make your own tasty sauce for pasta, meatballs, lasagna, ziti or anything else you would put tomato sauce on. The amount of ingredients I used yielded enough sauce for two large trays of lasagna. I made it in a deep sauce pan. See photos for reference.
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*Note* This is a simple, yet time consuming recipe, due to the fact that it must simmer for 1-2 hours for ultimate result. Also, a lot of love has to go into it. 😉

Ingredients:
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil for sautéing (could be a little less but I think thats about right)
2 Cans 28oz quality crushed tomatoes – I used TuttoRosso
1 Whole large onion, chopped
5 Garlic cloves, minced or chopped
1 6oz Can of tomato paste (I used 3/4 of the can)
1 1/3 cup water
Garlic powder (1 tablespoon or more)
Onion salt (1 tablesoon or more)
Crushed red pepper (1/2 tablespoon)
Sugar (1/2 tablespoon if you prefer to add some sweetness)
For Bolognese:
Add 2lbs ground beef/pork mixture

Steps:
1. Pour enough olive oil into your sauce pan to sauté your onion and garlic first, turn on the heat to medium high.
2. Once hot, sauté your chopped onion and garlic until translucent.
***If you’re going to make a bolognese, now is the time to add a little more olive oil and the beef/pork mixture to brown.
3. Next, turn the heat down to medium, scoop the tomato paste into the pan along with the crushed tomatoes. Stir.
4. Add your garlic powder, onion salt, and crushed red pepper. Stir.
5. Add the water. Stir.
6. Turn the heat down to under medium. Cover for 5 minutes
7. Uncover, lower heat all the way down to simmer, and turn on your timer for a total of anywhere from 60 minutes to 120 minutes(I cooked my sauce for about 2.5 hours. All the time does to the sauce is builds it’s flavor).
8. Stir occasionally, and after the first 45 minutes, give it a taste – if it needs more of something, go for it and add it! More red pepper flakes for a kick, more sugar for some sweetness.

Ta-Da! Magic. Again, you can put this sauce on meatballs,(make sure you cook those meatballs in the sauce!!!!) ziti, lasagna, pasta…. Ahh, the possibilities.

Anyways, hope you enjoy and give this a shot!
Let me know if you have any questions, I’m happy to answer them!