Rao's Marinara Sauce

Ingredients

Four 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes with basil, preferably from San Marzano

½ cup olive oil

6 tablespoons minced onion

4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

12 leaves fresh basil, torn (optional)

Pinch of dried oregano

Directions

Remove tomatoes from can and place in a large bowl, reserving juices. Crush tomatoes using your hands; remove and discard the hard core from stem end, and any skin and tough membrane; set aside.

Place oil in a large, nonreactive saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion, and cook until soft and just beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Stir in garlic, and cook until softened, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and reserved juices; season with salt.

Increase heat and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat to low and simmer until slightly thickened, about 1 hour.

Stir in basil, if using, oregano, and season with pepper; continue cooking 1 minute more. Remove from heat and serve.

Source: https://www.marthastewart.com/328007/raos-marinara-sauce





FY(and everybody's)I, Marcella Hazan had a trio of tomato sauces in The Classic Italian Cookbook. They are all fabulous, with subtle changes yielding completely different results. None had meat, herbs, or spices. The butter and onion version that everyone thinks of as MH tomato sauce was tomato sauce III.

Sauce I is the most strongly flavored. Simmer half a medium yellow onion (E: chopped) in a half cup olive oil just until soft. Don't heat the oil first! Stir in one finely chopped carrot and one finely choppen celery stalk. Add two cups canned pureed plum tomatoes, two treaaspoons salt, 1/4 teaspoon sugar, and simmer 45 minutes.

Tomato Sauce II is fresher and more delicate. Roughly chop half a medium yellow onion, one small carrot, and one stalk celery. Simmer together with two cups canned plum toatoes with their juice, two teaspoons salt, and one quarter teaspoon sugar for 30 minutes. Puree everything, add 1/2 cup olive oil, and simmer another 15 minutes. Season to taste.

Sauce III delivers that pure, sweet tomato taste. Simmer two cups canned pureed plum tomates, one stick* butter, one medium yellow onion peeled and cut in half, and 1/2 teaspoon salt for 45 minutes. Marcella said if you cook it too long you'll ruin the tomato. I can confirm. :(

* later versions called for five tablespoons

For any of the sauces you can use two pounds fresh plum tomatoes simmered until cooked through. Marcella rolls over in her grave when I do it but chiles and toasted spices are great additions.

People have reported eating sauce II or III at room temp or straight from the fridge.






https://www.thekitchn.com/marcella-hazans-amazing-4ingre-144538
Marcella Hazan's Amazing 4-Ingredient Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

    1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes, no salt or herbs added
    5 tablespoons unsalted butter
    1 small white onion, peeled and cut in half
    Kosher salt

To serve:

    Cooked pasta
    Shaved Parmesan cheese
    Cooked pasta

    Place the tomatoes, butter, onion halves, and a pinch of salt in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, stirring and crushing the tomatoes lightly with the back of a spoon occasionally, until droplets of fat appear on the surface of the tomatoes, about 45 minutes. Remove and discard the onion. Serve over hot pasta with Parmesan and black pepper, if desired.