Chef Mik's Pizza Sauce

Pizza has a really long history dating back to the Greek games. It was served as flat bread with honey, dried fruits or meats. This incarnation found its way to Rome and in that form it was enjoyed for centuries. Eventually when cheese became more of a staple, that to found it way onto the pizza. However the pizza we enjoy today almost didn’t happen as the tomato had something of a rocky start. Introduced first in the 14 hundreds when Columbus brought it back from the new world, as the tomato was in the nightshade family people didn’t warm up to it right away. It was only after the daughter of prince Ferdinand the duke of Genoa lent her name "Margarita" christening the delicacy, that the modern pizza and the tomato became synonymous with Italian cooking.

For my pizza sauce I like to keep it simple starting out with sautéed onions then simply add some spice, whole stewed tomatoes and tomato puree. That said you can also add tomato paste if you like along with fresh herbs and other flavor enhancers as desired. 

 

Shopping list

Extra virgin olive oil

Onion

Fresh garlic

Chili flakes

Dried oregano

1 800g can of whole or diced tomatoes

1 720 bottle of tomato puree, or 1 411 can of crushed tomatoes

Sugar

Bullion cube, powder, or demi glace (optional)

My Mad Method

Pizza Sauce: Sauté 1/2 an onions in 1-2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil until translucent

Add 1 TBSP garlic, 1-2 tsp each chili flakes, and oregano

Add .5L stewed tomatoes, .5L tomato puree, and 2 good sized TBSP tomato paste, bring to boil, lower temp and simmer 30 minutes, adjust seasoning with salt, pepper and a touch of sugar, when the sauce is dune puree it

Ready to use!!