Description
Marcella Hazan’s classic Butter, Tomato, and Onion Sauce is a simple yet deeply flavorful Italian tomato sauce made by slowly simmering ripe tomatoes with butter and onion until rich and velvety. This recipe yields a luscious sauce perfect for pasta or as a base for other dishes.
Ingredients
Scale
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ripe tomatoes, or 3 cups canned whole peeled tomatoes with their juice
- 1 medium sweet yellow onion
- 5 tablespoons butter
- 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
Instructions
- Prepare the tomatoes and onion: If using fresh tomatoes, peel them by scoring an X on the bottom, blanching in boiling water for about a minute, then plunging into ice water to loosen skins. Coarsely chop the peeled fresh or canned tomatoes. Trim both ends of the onion, peel it, and cut it in half lengthwise.
- Combine ingredients in saucepan: Place the tomatoes, halved onion, butter, and salt into a 4- to 5-quart saucepan over medium heat.
- Simmer the sauce: When the tomatoes begin to bubble, reduce the heat to a slow but steady simmer. Cook uncovered, stirring every 10 to 15 minutes to prevent sticking and encourage even cooking.
- Reduce until thick and separated: Continue simmering for about 45 minutes, depending on your pot’s size and shape, until the sauce is no longer watery, the butter has separated from the tomatoes, and no liquid remains. The sauce should be thick, smooth, and flavorful.
- Remove onion before serving: Discard the onion halves from the sauce before serving so that only the silky tomato sauce remains.
Notes
- Using ripe tomatoes is crucial for the best flavor; canned whole peeled tomatoes are a convenient alternative.
- Stirring periodically during simmering prevents the sauce from burning or sticking to the pan.
- The cooking time may vary depending on pot size and heat, so watch for the butter to separate and liquid to evaporate as key doneness indicators.
- This sauce is excellent served over pasta, especially butter-rich pastas like tagliatelle or pappardelle.
- Do not puree or blend this sauce; the texture is intentionally rustic with coarsely chopped tomatoes that break down during simmering.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: Marcella Hazan, tomato sauce, butter tomato sauce, classic Italian sauce, simple pasta sauce, Italian cooking
