Are you out of tomato sauce and trying to avoid a trip to the grocery store? Thankfully, you probably have something in your pantry or fridge that you can use in its place. Let's look at four possible substitutes for tomato sauce: The two best are tomato paste and canned tomatoes, while ketchup and tomato soup can be used for certain recipes when you are really in a pinch.
If you have a can of tomato paste in your pantry, you are in luck—this is the best substitution for tomato sauce. All you need is the tomato paste and water.
Mix together 1 part tomato paste and 1 part water until well blended.Then, season your "sauce" to taste. Tomato sauce is typically seasoned with herbs, garlic, and onion. You may even find the sauce benefits from a drizzle of olive oil or a pinch of sugar.
For the most authentic tomato sauce taste, cook some garlic and onion in oil until they're soft, add the tomato paste and water mixture, and heat through. Taking the time to add a few extra ingredients will greatly enhance the flavor and texture of your finished sauce.
It's easy towhip up a batch of tomato sauce—ideal when you have a bounty of fresh tomatoes in your garden. It requires no peeling, blanching, or coring, and it freezes beautifully. Divide it up into meal-size portions in airtight containers so it's easy to grab just what you need from the freezer. Allow it to thaw overnight, or defrost it in the microwave if you're in a hurry. Another option is to use canned tomatoes
Making tomato sauce from canned tomatoes is simple and the same process as using fresh. You can use whatever type of canned tomatoes you have. Whole, stewed, diced, or crushed canned tomatoes work wonderfully.
First, drain off the liquid in the can and put it aside. Then give the tomatoes a quick whirl in your blender or food processor. If the resulting purée seems wetter than a typical tomato sauce, just drain off some excess liquid, or cook the mixture downuntil you reach the desired consistency. If using crushed tomatoes, cook down until it thickens a bit.
Some canned tomato products have added seasonings and some don't. Taste your sauce and tweak the flavor as needed, adding salt, oregano, basil, or your favorite spices. Cook your sauce long enough to warm it through for a fresh tomato sauce, or cook it until it develops a dark color and thick texture if you want more of a jarred sauce consistency. If the sauce gets too thick, add some of the reserved liquid.
More Tomato Sauce Substitutes: Ketchup and Tomato Soup
The following substitutes won't stand in for tomato sauce if you're making a pasta dish, but they will give you satisfactory results if the tomato sauce is being mixed into a crockpot recipe, casserole, or something similar that just needs that touch of tomato taste. Here are a couple of options to try.
Ketchup: Use 1 cup of ketchup in place of 1 cup of tomato sauce. Add spices to tweak the flavor as needed. A bit of basil is a good choice.
Tomato Soup: Add a 10 3/4-ounce can of tomato soup. Then, cut one of the wet ingredients in the recipe back by 1/4 cup to account for the extra liquid. Tomato soup tends to be sweeter than most tomato sauces, so you may need to make some flavor adjustments.
Thankfully, you probably have something in your pantry or fridge that you can use in its place. Let's look at four possible substitutes for tomato sauce: The two best are tomato paste and canned tomatoes, while ketchup and tomato soup can be used for certain recipes when you are really in a pinch.
Thankfully, you probably have something in your pantry or fridge that you can use in its place. Let's look at four possible substitutes for tomato sauce: The two best are tomato paste and canned tomatoes, while ketchup and tomato soup can be used for certain recipes when you are really in a pinch.
Tomato-free swap: Roasted red peppers, refreshing cucumber slices, roasted beets, and figs are just a few options to replace that slightly sweet, juicy tomato. You might find that you prefer your gourmet tomato substitute! Tomato-free swap: Onion soup.
Marinara (also called red sauce) is tomato sauce's thinner, quicker-cooking sister. Recipes vary, but ingredients will often comprise garlic, onion, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, olive oil, oregano, and tomato paste. When you think of “spaghetti sauce”, you're likely thinking of marinara.
Although it is likely to change the flavor profile more than other substitutes, tomato soup can work as a tomato sauce substitute. A can of tomato soup can replace 1 cup of tomato sauce. However, because the soup has more liquid than tomato sauce, you should reduce another liquid ingredient by 1/4 cup if possible.
Cheese is an excellent way to add flavor to your pasta without having to rely on sauce. Try mixing your angel hair pasta with goat cheese, and toss in sun-dried tomatoes to make an amazing meal with just a few ingredients. Garlic butter is a terrific way to season all types of noodles.
Tomato paste. “I think of tomato paste as the garlic powder equivalent to fresh garlic,” Xie said, noting that it's highly concentrated and very dehydrated. ...
Tamarind. One of the best tomato substitutes in terms of spice is fresh tamarind. This flavorful ingredient has a wonderful tartness and sweetness that is similar to tomatoes, and packs quite a punch in its taste! Fresh tamarind paste can be used in faux curries, stews or to make a chutney.
For this swap, David Joachim, author of The Food Substitutions Bible, recommends you use ½ cup tomato paste and ½ cup water to replace 1 cup of tomato sauce—just keep in mind that you'll need to season your substitute to taste.
Dishes like bolognese or lasagna sauce are probably out. However, slow cooker meals, pot roasts, glazes, casseroles, meatloaf, and beans could all handle the swap. In these cases, you can substitute ketchup for tomato sauce in a one-to-one ratio, but adjust the recipe to balance out the sweetness.
Tomato puree is the basis for the two most common types of tomato sauce: the canned and jarred tomato sauces found on your supermarket shelves. This means that in the overwhelming majority of cases, tomato sauce is also tomato puree, but tomato puree is never tomato sauce until it's seasoned and slightly thinned out.
Instead of the usual tomato-based sauce, you can try healthier alternatives like pesto made with fresh basil, garlic, nuts (such as pine nuts or almonds), and olive oil. Another option is a sauce made from roasted vegetables like bell peppers, zucchini, and carrots blended with herbs and a little olive oil.
Because tomato paste is a concentrated form of tomato puree, you can dilute it to the consistency of tomato sauce without much fuss. Adding one cup of water to three-quarters of a cup of tomato paste will result in a tomato base with the same texture and thickness as tomato sauce (after some brisk stirring).
For example, 1/2 cup tomato sauce and 1/2 cup water to make 1 cup tomato juice. This alternative will give you a very close approximation of what you will get with canned tomato juice.
Rather than having a thin consistency like a traditional marinara, tomato sauce is often thicker and sits on top of your pasta dishes. The flavors of a tomato sauce are simmered together slowly, giving them time to develop. The end result is a red sauce that is traditionally a bit sweeter than a marinara.
Crushed tomatoes may be slightly concentrated or canned in tomato puree, resulting in a texture that is chunkier than tomato sauce but smoother and less watery than diced tomatoes.
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