| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 40 min |
| Prep: | 10 min |
| Cook: | 30 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 5 yellow beefsteak tomatoes, washed, core removed, a small “x” cut on the bottom of each
- 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 10 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thin
- 3 large shallots, peeled and sliced
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground white pepper
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 pound dry pasta, such as penne or cavatappi
- 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 cup water
- 25 to 30 basil leaves, washed and dried
- Grated Parmesan, to taste
Instructions
- Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and salt the water generously. Prepare an ice bath for the tomatoes by filling a medium bowl with cold water and some ice cubes. Use a slotted spoon to plunge the tomatoes into the boiling water for about 1 to 2 minutes. The skin should show evidence of peeling away from the flesh of the tomatoes. Remove them from the water and plunge them into the ice bath. Allow the tomatoes to sit in the cool water so they stop cooking.
- In a medium skillet, heat a tablespoon of the olive oil and add the garlic, shallots, and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the oregano and sugar. Stir to blend. Allow to cook, over low heat, until the shallots and garlic become tender and translucent.
- Meanwhile, remove the tomatoes from the ice bath, peel off and discard the skin from each. Place them on a flat surface, quarter them and scoop out the seeds and “jelly” from each piece. Gather all the seeds in a strainer and push through the liquid that naturally surrounds the seeds. Discard the seeds. Reserve the liquid and tomato flesh.
- Add the tomato and liquid to the shallot mixture and stir in about 1 tablespoon of salt and 1 teaspoon ground pepper. Turn the heat down to medium and cook until the tomato flesh starts to lose shape, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the water and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. If there are still some hard pieces, add a little more water and cook for a few more minutes. Taste for seasoning.
- In a large pot, bring 6 quarts of water to a rolling boil. Add a generous amount of salt. The pasta water should taste like sea water. Add the pasta to the pot and stir so none of the pieces stick to the bottom as they cook. Cook the pasta until “al dente”, chewy but not hard or raw tasting, 8 to 10 minutes, and drain the pasta in a colander until the sauce is finished. Reserve a little of the pasta cooking liquid in case you need it later.
- Put the tomato sauce in the blender and puree until smooth. Slowly add the vinegar through the top of the blender as the sauce is blending. Next, pour the remaining olive oil through the top in a slow, steady stream. Blend in another cup of water then remove the sauce from the blender and taste for seasoning.
- Pour most of the sauce into a large skillet and add the pasta. Toss to blend with a wooden spoon. If the sauce is too thick, add some of the pasta liquid to thin it out. Taste for seasoning. Add the basil leaves and sprinkle with cheese, if desired.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 866 |
| Total Fat | 43 g |
| Saturated Fat | 6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 104 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 8 g |
| Sugar | 13 g |
| Protein | 18 g |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg |
| Sodium | 991 mg |
Reviews
I have made this twice. The first time I added more red pepper did not add oil and I liked it better that way. This was was hands down my favorite tomato sauce I have ever had. I loved the spicy way but my kids preferred it more mild. The second time did the same thing and it was fantastic but my husband talked me into adding the oil and it really brought out the vinegar flavor. I also used twice as many tomatoes and really cooked it down and did not add water at the end. We love it over ravioli.
I tried this recipe with fresh from my garden yellow tomatoes. This is a fairly mild sauce. I needed to really cook the liquid down because it was quite watery. I would recommend using half the vinegar. I used the full amount called for and found it overpowered the other flavours. Otherwise, a very nice sauce.
So good. We added ground lamb. Even our 3 year old ate all his!
Excellent, I didn’t use as much vinegar as called for other than that “perfect”
It’s a keeper and will do again..
Thank you Alex
It’s a keeper and will do again..
Thank you Alex
This sauce was worth the extra effort! My family loved it too. I didn’t add the olive oil or vinegar either, watching the calories. Delicious without it!
I loved this recipe but before I completed it I did read reviews first and did not add olive oil or vinegar at the end because my tomatoes were so juicy to begin with. It turned out delicious minus those two ingredients!! My family loved the sauce !!
Very good and easy. Used white wine instead of vinegar.
I liked the potential of this recipe but using a third of a cup of vinegar for 5 tomatoes seemed like too much. I used less than half that amount and it was still overpowering. Hard to taste the tomatoes over the rice vinegar, in fact. Also, not sure why it called for an additional cup of water during the blending. My sauce was a very nice consistency without it, and adding 8 more oz of water would have turned it to a watery, vinegary soup. Hmmm… perhaps using double the tomatoes would work better. Not sure. But I disagree with the proportions.
This is a great change of pace as far as tomatoe sauces go. I did have to use a different kind of yellow tomato, unfortunately yellow beefsteaks aren’t readily available where I live. I used orange oxhearts. It worked great.
I love this because the yellow tomatoes aren’t so rough on my tummy. Had to steal them out of my sister’s garden, however!