Sauce recipe contest!

[Les]

Heh...I will try your sauce first.  When I was getting my tires changed at Walmart last weekend, I had the misfortune of playing this hyped-Xbox360.  I really wasn't that impressed, although I was limited to the demo games they had.  I say you should wait for the Playstation 3...now thats a pizza pie!Thanks for the recipe.

I agree about the PS3, but when is it going to be available?    My friend has the 360 and plays it on his HD plasma TV . . . wow!  The widescreen HD graphics are amazing.  Oops, we are supposed to be talking about sauce aren't we.   

One thing I'd reconfirm is the quality of Escalon 6 in 1 tomatoes.  I've done taste tests next to other brands looking for tomotoes that can be more easily bought in retail stores (including Stanislaus, which are readily available in stores around here) and the Escalons really stand out.  I had high hopes for the Parmelat brand (the ones sold in a box).  They are my favorite next to 6 in 1, and they don't add citric acid.  But the Escalon brand clearly had more tomato flavor.

[ihavezippers]

I agree about the PS3, but when is it going to be available?    My friend has the 360 and plays it on his HD plasma TV . . . wow!  The widescreen HD graphics are amazing.  Oops, we are supposed to be talking about sauce aren't we.   

One thing I'd reconfirm is the quality of Escalon 6 in 1 tomatoes.  I've done taste tests next to other brands looking for tomotoes that can be more easily bought in retail stores (including Stanislaus, which are readily available in stores around here) and the Escalons really stand out.  I had high hopes for the Parmelat brand (the ones sold in a box).  They are my favorite next to 6 in 1, and they don't add citric acid.  But the Escalon brand clearly had more tomato flavor.

Thanks Les.  I'm going to the restaurant supplier I got the hi-gluten dough from Friday...they are my only hope.  I think Peter said Kroger sometimes carries one of the two preferred brands...I dont have Kroger here, but I believe QFC is the same company, so I can check them out too.
From what I've heard, Sony is supposed to announce a release date on PS3 at their annual meeting this February...if not then, they would have to by this year's E3 convention, as Nintendo is announcing their release dates then.  Not that it matters; my wife won't let me have one...but I'll always have pizza.  Thanks for the info.

[ihavezippers]

One grocer in the Seattle area has Muir Glen tomatoes 28ounce for 99cents a can.  After reading all the good reviews on the forum for these, and with such a good price, this might be my tomato base for my sauce.  Still, I am going to check out the distributor I mentioned on Friday in hopes they have some good selection, and will check out QFC as well.

[ihavezippers]

I got my 6-pound can of Angela Mia crushed tomatoes today, and what a difference.  I'm sure it is no where near the Stanilaus or Escalon tomatoes, but it is world's better than the Hunt's or Contanida I have been using. 

One last question...can anyone give me a basic recipe for spices to use?  I dumped 3.5 pounds or so into a mixing bowl and just started adding spices as I had seen someone suggest (not that I should randomly dump spices in, but spice it to tastes).  Things were going great, and then I killed it with pepper.

So, I took the remaining crushed tomatoes and began again...and things were going great, and this time I used significantly less pepper, but I still overkilled it.  It isn't too bad where I can't eat it, but I want to approach it more systematically next week.
If anyone can give me a proportional listing using the basic home measurement tools I have (cup/tablespoon/teaspoon), I'd appreciate it.

My thanks though.  The tomatoes really do make all the difference.  I'm almost there...to that moment of clairevoyance when a perfect pizza emerges from the oven.  I might buy Angela Mias next week because I am so satisfied with them, and they are only a ten minute drive away, but I imagine I will be getting the Escalons or Stanilaus soon...from what I remember, they are about the same price as I paid for the Angela Mia today.

[chrisgraff]

This is my adaptation of Mario Batai's basic tomato sauce.  I get rave reviews with this one!

3 to 5 cloves garlic - sliced
1 Tbs Olive oil (or just enough to coat the pan)
1 Tbs dried Thyme
1 tsp dried Basil (optional)
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup wine (chardonnay works for me).....substitue chicken stock if going cheap.
kosher salt & pepper (eyeball it)
1/2 small can tomato paste

•Fry the garlic until soft, add the thyme, let cook for 30 seconds or so.

•Add tomatoes, wine, basil, S&P.

•Simmer for 30 minutes or until reduced.

•If you want a smooth sauce, now's the time to put it in a blender. I like a little bit of chunkiness myself

•remove from heat, add as much (or as little) tomato paste to get the consistency you want.

Adding the tomato paste at the end keeps it from being watery, and yields alot of tomato flavor.  I do not recommend adding sugar.

[Lydia]

I had to DIG to find my general measurement guide that I created a very long time ago to use with AngelaMia.
This is NOT A RECIPE it is a suggested amount to use IF you choose to use that seasoning/spice/herb etc.
Please do not add all of these to one batch

Amounts for 3 1/2 - 4 cups AngelaMia Concentrated Crushed tomatoes (about half the can)

   0-3 cups water
Tablespoons
   2 Tbsp dehydrated onion
   1 Tbsp olive oil
* 1 Tablespoon dried sweet basil
   1 Tbsp dried parsley
* 1/2 Tbsp dried oregano
* 1/2 Tbsp chili powder blend (usually contains cumin, cayenne, garlic and various chili powders)
Teaspoons
   2 1/2 tsp paprika
* 2 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
   2 tsp cayenne
   2 tsp cumin
   1 tsp salt (DO NOT use if adding garlic salt, celery salt etc.)
* 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
* 1/2 tsp granulated garlic, garlic salt or powder
   1/4 tsp celery seed

* Highly recommend using these ingredients and adjust to taste.

Black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and celery seed or celery salt are potent. Use sparingly.

Keep in mind that flavor will be enhanced after refrigerating over night and usually improves flavor.
The liquid in the sauce can evaporate, and you may wish to add water.

When you get you hands on Escalon or Stanislaus dont use sugar. The AngelaMia can benefit from it.

[foodblogger]

I really like the way fresh tomatoes taste on a thin crust pizza.  There are a lot of ways to go about making sauce, and in the end it is a personal preference thing.  Some people are content to take a can of tomato sauce and spice it up a bit.  Other people, http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,1931.0.html make extremely involved sauces.  Mine is somewhere in between.

I start with fresh Roma tomatoes.  The DOC specifies that they have to be San Marzano, but unfortunately I don't live in Naples so I can't get fresh San Marzano tomatoes, only canned.  A couple years ago I grew a strain of tomato in my garden called Super San Marzano.  They were amazing.  I canned a bunch of them up but they are all gone now.  When I can't get vine ripened garden fresh tomatoes I settle on vine ripened store bought roma tomatoes.  If you can't get vine ripened, oh well, you'll just have to make do with regular plum/roma tomatoes.  Let them sit on the counter for a few days ripening.

To process my tomatoes I preheat the broiler.  I take the tomatoes and wash them and put them on a cookie sheet.  I then broil the tomatoes under the broiler for a few minutes, turning occasionally, so that the skin blackens a bit on all sides.  There are usually a few spots of skin that stay red.  After the tomatoes cool, I peel most of the blackened skin off, leaving a little behind.  Then I run the tomatoes through a food mill to grind them into a thick chunky sauce.

The next part of my sauce making involves a little tasting to get the flavor right.  If I used 4 plum tomatoes, I add a teaspoon of sea salt to the ground tomatoes along with 1 t freshly ground black pepper and 1 t very finely ground fennel seed.  After stirring for a while, you have to taste the sauce.  The flavor that you will be adjusting for will be the saltiness.  BE VERY CAREFUL.  You don't want the salt to be too overpowering.  Add just a little at a time.  4 plum tomatoes makes more than enough sauce for a 12 inch pizza.  You can serve the remainder as a dipping sauce for crusts.

Actually I wrote that wrong, for 4 tomatoes its more like 1/4 t pepper and 1/4 t ground fennel

[Locke]

The sauce I use(not my recipe) is pretty similar to what chrissgraff posted

Jazz's tomatoe sauce
5 cloves of garlic
1/2 of an onion
2tbs olive oil
2tps salt
1can(28oz) whole tomatoes
1tbs dried oregano
1tps dried basil
2tps dried thyme
2tbs sugar
2tbs balsamic vinegar
1/4cup of white wine(I'm told tomatoes contain alcohol-soluble flavor compounds)
a dash of cayane(I go very very light on this)
Tomato paste as desired to thicken

Chop the onion and garlic then sweat with a bit of the oil and salt.
While the onion and garlic are sweating you can deseed the tomatoes if you feel like it, but I never bother.
Dump everything else in the pot and let simmer gently for a good 40+ minutes(reduced by 1/4). Break the tomatoes up a bit in the pot but try to leave them mostly whole. The idea behind this is to provide a bit of fresh tomato flavor at the end.
Once you're done cooking go ahead and blend to the desired consistency adding a tbs or two of tomato paste if you need to thicken the sauce.

[chrisgraff]

I have decided that omitting wine from tomato sauce is a crime around my house.  Any offense punishable by 30 days of chef-boyardee.   

[BigV]

ihavezippers (and anyone else in Washington)

Lookup a store called Cash-n-Carry.  It is a resturaunt supply store, but is open to the public.  You will find a lot of the ingredients you are looking for at much better prices than the grocery store.

Only drawback is the same as costco, big quantities.  On the plus side you get twice as much for the same price.  They also stock screens, peels, cutters, pans etc...

[ihavezippers]

ihavezippers (and anyone else in Washington)

Lookup a store called Cash-n-Carry.  It is a resturaunt supply store, but is open to the public.  You will find a lot of the ingredients you are looking for at much better prices than the grocery store.

Only drawback is the same as costco, big quantities.  On the plus side you get twice as much for the same price.  They also stock screens, peels, cutters, pans etc...

BigV, I just discovered Cash n Carry a month ago or so, about ten posts into this thread actually.  Unfortunately, the only decent canned tomatoes they have are AngelaMia...but you are right, they are fantastic.  Just today I locked myself in their walk-in-freezer checking out their ice cream.

Do you know of any other restaurant suppliers in the Seattle area, or for that matter, any way to get the Stanilaus canned tomatoes locally (or the other highly revered canned tomatoes on this forum...can't remember the name offhand...Escalano?...something like that)?

As far as cheap groceries go, you can't beat Cash n Carry and Grocery Outlet...I used to make the weekly trek out to Federal Way to the WinCo, and even then wasn't really saving much.

[beckysuea]

I have never made my own sauce before today but I think I turned out something pretty tasty.

I grew up on Shakey's Pizza and their sauce always had a slight spicy kick to it so that was what I wanted.

1 can of 6-in-1 tomatoes
1 small can of hot tomato sauce
plastic sppon of King Arthur Pizza Spice
plastic spoon of granulated garlic
A really good sprinkle of Italian Seasoning
Dash of black pepper.

Mixed it together and stuck it in the refrigerator for later hoping the flavors will meld together.   This sauce has a slight kick, not overpowering and it would make very good marinara.   I am actually surprised at how good uncooked pizza sauce really is.