Here is the recipe I have been following, but most of them seem similar:
I think they are overshooting quite a bit on this one with the 4 to 5 28 ounce cans of San Marzanos. Maybe they are thinking of whole peeled tomatoes and not the ones canned with tomato sauce? Additionally, I found it sort of unusual that this recipe did not call for any onions, so I added a whole chopped yellow onion, sautéed prior to adding the garlic, and then glazed with a bit of cab.
In any case, I ended up only using three cans, added an additional whole onion chopped and sautéed and doubled the garlic just to balance out those three cans. It still didn’t taste right, so I added a bunch of different spices and seasonings. I used salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, and a Italian seasoning. I also added some Worcestershire, a couple drops of fish sauce, and crushed red pepper along with chopped fresh basil and parsley .
Did I do something wrong, is it always going to be very tomatoey upfront but then it will gradually balance out after simmering? It tastes great to me now, but I want to do it the traditional way. I am a perfectionist and I want to get it right regardless of what my taste buds might be telling me.
Here are the tomatoes I am using:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Cento-San-Marzano-Peeled-Tomatoes-28-Oz/15716659
by SwiftCricket
3 Comments
I’m not sure what the problem is if the sauce is tomato forward. It’s a tomato sauce after all. What do you want it to taste more like?
That link was dead.
It sounds like you just don’t like the taste of tomato sauce.
I would never add onion to a tomato sauce unless it’s also got meat in it. I’m team garlic. But for me I would never (an Italian recipes would never) add s bunch of spices. One herb usually or just some garlic or onion. The tomato does the heavy lifting.
It’s ok not to like that but that’s how Italian tomato sauces are done. Adding fish sauce and whatever else you added is just a totally different thing. If you want to be a perfectionist then follow a recipe fully and see if you like it at the end, otherwise just cook for your tastes.
That recipe is made so that the flavor of the tomatoes, particularly San Marzanos, can shine.