When you are cooking your favorite Italian dish, you need to make sure it tastes as good as always.
One of the key components is the sauce. Whether it is for pasta or pizza, a flavorful tomato sauce can be the difference between an average meal and one that will have everyone begging for more.
If you’re looking to thicken up your tomato sauce without using any paste, this blog post has some tips on how to do just that.
How to thicken tomato sauce without paste?
Different sauces are not that much different when it comes to thickening methods. Here are some ideas for thickening your tomato sauces without tomato paste:
Use pasta-cooking water for thickening
1) Put a small amount of the water in with the tomatoes and stir over medium heat. The starch from the pasta water isn’t enough to thicken alone, but you want to add some before adding your dried herbs or other spices that may be watered down by more liquid.
2) Let the sauce simmer for a minute, watch it thicken slightly. Then add more of the pasta water (you can also put this water in with your tomatoes).
3) Keep adding the pasta water until your sauce reaches the consistency you want. If you want to make sure it’s thick enough, pour some sauce onto a spoon and let it sit for a minute. If it’s too runny, continue adding the pasta water.
This method is great for getting a rich and thick sauce that will please everyone! You can also use it as a base for other sauces like arrabbiata or vodka sauce; just add whatever herbs or spices you want to give it that little extra flavor punch.
Bring in some cornstarch
Cornstarch will make your sauce thick and not taste starchy. You don’t need to add any oil to it first. Just stir some cornstarch into a little water and then put it in the sauce.
When you make tomato sauce with cornstarch, remember to use 1 part of water for every part of cornstarch. Mix the two together until they are smooth.
Add more if you want your sauce to be thicker or richer. Wait a minute or so, then taste it before deciding if you need more cornstarch.
The roux method
This is a type of flour and fat that cooks for a short period. It is used as a thickener for sauces and soups. Roux provides a nutty flavor and silkiness to the sauce.
To make a roux, you need flour and butter or oil cooked together over low heat. Then you add liquid, such as milk or broth, to make your sauce thicker. The more liquid added means the thinner the sauce will be when it’s done cooking!
To make a roux, use one part flour and one part fat. You can store the roux if you want. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, you can measure with measuring cups or spoons.
This recipe is for a small batch. You will need a saucepan and oil or fat. Start by putting the flour in the pan and heating it on medium heat.
When your oil starts to bubble, you can put more flour in the pan until you have 3 ½ tablespoons of all-purpose flour. Cook this mixture with low heat and don’t allow it to bubble up quickly or else it will burn.
Try using mashed potatoes for sauce thickening
If you are making pasta sauce, try using mashed potatoes instead of flour or cornstarch. The potatoes will thicken the sauce and bring a better flavor at the same time.
Just reduce the excessive water
Reducing your homemade spaghetti sauce is probably your favorite way because it is easy. If you let the sauce simmer for 20-30 minutes more, a lot of water will evaporate as it boils lightly.
This technique will also make the spices and herbs in your sauce stronger. Any starches in your sauce can activate when you reduce them.
When you use this method, you do not have to worry about cooking times at all because 20-30 minutes can already do so much to your sauce.
If you want your sauce to reduce faster, try using a shallow pan or a pot that is wider.
You can make your pasta sauce thicker by using a larger surface area. When you do this, the heat will get to the whole batch of the sauce more quickly because it is not having to travel as far. You can use any pan that has a lot of space like a frying pan or sauté pan.
FAQ’s
Do you need tomato paste for sauce?
If you are out of ready-made stuff, you can use tomato paste. Tomato paste is just like tomato sauce, but it takes more water to make the same amount of pasta than it does with fresh tomatoes.
What can I use instead of tomato paste in beef stew?
You could use tomato sauce, tomato puree, canned tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, or ketchup.
What is the purpose of tomato paste in sauce?
Tomato paste is a thick, salty substance made from tomatoes. It makes sauce taste better. Tomato paste is good for spaghetti sauce because it can make the sauce thicker and more flavorful.
Conclusion
Remember, here are the methods to thicken tomato sauce without paste:
- Use pasta-cooking water
- Use cornstarch
- Use roux
- Use mashed potatoes
- Use the reducing method
Have any of them worked for you? Let me know the results.