How to make tomato sauce

Firstly, they are extremely versatile. Staples in Italian cooking dishes, there are so many meals you could make with a good tomato sauce. Consider a warming bowl of spaghetti coated in your fresh tomato sauce. Alternatively, use it as a yummy pizza base, to add to a breakfast dish and many more hearty options.

It is easy to assume that Italy is the original home of delicious tomato-based sauces, but instead, you can thank the Aztecs. They were the first credited with using tomatoes in cooking, making sauce very similar to Spanish gazpacho.

Eventually, Spanish conquistadors brought tomatoes to Europe in the 1500s.

However, it took until the 18^th century for Italians to start making their classic sauces. They really hit their stride in the following centuries, hence their massive popularity now.

The wonderful marinara sauce gets its name from the translation for ‘seafaring’ or ‘sailor style’ as, originally, it would be eaten with fish.

It would also last well on sea expeditions, making meals far more interesting during longer journeys.

The obvious base is, of course, tomatoes. The best options are plum tomatoes, but cherry tomatoes will also work extremely well. If you have had a particularly rich tomato harvest and want to use them before perishing, a sauce is the perfect solution.

A successful garlic and onion harvest can come in handy for adding flavour and texture to your sauce too. Plus, your herb garden will certainly be useful for crafting some delicious and fragrant flavours.