I was looking for recipes to make tomato jam and use up a glut of homegrown tomatoes and came across one for smoked tomato sauce that sounded really good. This is my version using ingredients I already had at home, aiming to increase the amount of vegetables in the sauce and reduce the sugar content slightly. You will need some special equipment for this recipe including a wok, foil, a large enough grill to fit into the wok, a domed lid and wood chips (the kind used in smoking meat). If you don't really fancy the faf involved in setting up the wok (instructions bellow), you can always make the tomatoes in a BBQ or use a little liquid smoke or smoked paprika.
Initial prep ingredients:
200 g wood chips suitable for smoking food, soaked overnight or as long as possible
1/4 cup loose black tea (I used mango flavoured one from The Camden Tea Shop https://camdentea.shop/collections/black-teas/products/ripe-mango-black-tea)
1 kg tomatoes, cut in half
The initial prep:
Wrap up a wok in foil. Drain your wood chips and place at the bottom of the wok. Top with the tea leaves. Place a grill on top and heat on the hob until you hear the chips crackling and some smoke starts rising. Place the tomato halves on the grill, skin side down, cover with a lid and smoke for 15 minutes on medium high heat. Turn off the heat and leave to rest for another 10 minutes. Do not remove the lid.
Ingredients for the rest of the sauce: 2 tbsp oil 3 onions, diced 2 carrots, grated 5 garlic cloves, grated 2 bay leaves 100 g light brown sugar 125 ml balsamic vinegar Salt, to taste Method to make the sauce: While waiting for the tomatoes in the last 10 minutes, heat the oil in a deep pot and fry the onions, carrots and garlic on low heat with a lid loosely covering them. This is to ensure they soften without burning by steaming slightly. Stir from time to time. When the 10 minutes for the tomatoes are over, open the lid and add them to the onion mixture, pressing them down with a wooden spoon to break them down. Add the rest of the ingredients, stir and bring to the boil on high heat. When bubbling, turn the heat back to low, loosely cover with a lid and let everything simmer for 40 minutes. Stir occasionally.
At the end, turn the heat off, and leave to cool for 15 minutes. Blend everything together and divide between sterilised jars. Store away for later use.
What can you use the sauce for I hear you ask. Options include:
Spaghetti Bolognese
Lasagne
Spaghetti and meatballs
Casseroles
My lentil soup https://www.stelladrez.co.uk/post/bulgarian-lentil-soup
My white bean stew https://www.stelladrez.co.uk/post/bulgarian-white-bean-stew
Pizza base sauce
Anything else requiring canned tomatoes or tomato sauce
Comments