SC - OOP:tomato sauce

[Philip & Susan Troy]

Angie Malone wrote:
> 
>    Does anyone have any ideas on how to make it less acidic since I still
> have a whole pot full, without mangling the taste, and secondly does anyone
> think/know what could've caused it. Could it be too much garlic and basil?
> I guess the tomatoes could've been more acidic than usual, but it's never
> happened before.
> 
>   BTW, can't add sugar to it.  That's a no...no....no....no...in my house.
> FBI won't let me do it, says his mother never did and he doesn't want it
> that way!

Seems to me that you could come up with a pretty interesting list of
things his mother never did, but let's not go there...

Yes, some people do add sugar in small amounts, and I believe there is a
Sicilian custom of occasionally adding a handful of raisins for the same effect.

Another possibility (and this may be something somebody's mother never
did, for all that it works and I have fooled numerous Italian
grandmothers in this manner) is to add a tiny pinch (1/8 tsp or less,
closer to 1/16th, even for a big pot) of baking soda. Keep in mind that
too much will add a soapy flavor, and even when the acids and bases
neutralize each other properly, there will be a slight increase in the
salt content. That being said, though, it does work. I often use this
method to cut down on the cooking time and make tomato sauce in a saute
pan in about six minutes, when I'm in a rush.

However, ultimately, the best way to cut down on tomato acid is to cook
the sauce gently for about two hours or more. A Sunday "gravy" with
sausage, brasciole or even meatballs, the Southern Italian-American
equivalent of ragu bolognese, is sometimes cooked very gently for eight
hours or more.

Adamantius
- -- 
Phil & Susan Troy

troy at asan.com