Tomato Sauce Seasoned with Lemongrass: Quick, Thick, and Easy!

5 lbs slicing tomatoes
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 teaspoons (or so) minced lemon grass 1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 medium onion, chopped
1 “handful” fresh basil leaves, chopped
5-6 turns of the black pepper mill
1/2 tsp salt

Slice the tomatoes in half, removing core, and grate into a lart bowl, sliced side on the biggest hole side of the grater. Discard skins.

Prep lemon grass as shown HERE, and mince enough for 2 teaspoons, mince enough garlic for 1 teaspoon, and chop the onion.

Heat olive oil and add lemongrass, garlic, and onion and cook over medium heat for about five minutes.

Add chopped basil and ground black pepper, cook for a minute or two, then add the grated tomato and simmer for  five minutes.

Strain mixture through a mesh strainer, in batches as need to get as much liquid out as possible. Reserve the pulp and pour the liquid back into the pan and simmer until reduced until the liquid is thick enough to stay apart so you can see the pan for a few moments after running a spoon along the bottom.

Add the pulp back to the pan, add salt, and simmer for a few minutes to reheat the pulp and meld the flavors.

We served the samples with Deano’s Pasta Fresh Egg Fusilli. The tomatoes, garlic, and basil were from Farmer Dave’s, the onion from Kelly’s Farm, and the lemongrass was from Flats Mentor Farm.

Folks really liked it, just showing once again that using simple seasonings and easy techniques are the best way to let the wonderful flavors of freshly picked local veggies and herbs shine.

(We forgot to take a picture until it was almost gone. But it sure was a thick and delicious sauce!)

To read the story behind this demo, see HERE.