Tomate frito
Tomate frito is the basic sauce of Spanish cooking — shops sell it in cartons, but homemade tastes much better. It is ripe tomatoes fried slowly in olive oil with onion and green pepper until they reduce and thicken, then blended into a smooth sauce. A pinch of sugar balances the acidity. In Spain it goes with rice and a fried egg (arroz a la cubana), scrambled eggs, fried fish and pasta, and serves as a base for stews. Make it in August from cheap, very ripe tomatoes and freeze it in portions.
Your own work in that: 10 min.
- Preparing the vegetables 20 min
- Frying the onion 15 min
- Frying the tomatoes 60 min
- Blending and jarring 10 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneGrate the tomatoes
Halve the tomatoes and grate them cut side down on the coarse side of a box grater into a bowl — the skin stays in your hand. Discard the skins and tough stem cores.
Ingredients: 2000 g very ripe tomatoes · 60 ml olive oil · 1 pcs large onion · 1 pcs green pepper · 2 cloves garlic · 1 tsp sugar · 1½ tsp salt
The Spanish way — the skin stays in your hand.Chop the vegetables
Finely chop the onion and pepper and slice the garlic.
Ingredients: 2000 g very ripe tomatoes · 60 ml olive oil · 1 pcs large onion · 1 pcs green pepper · 2 cloves garlic · 1 tsp sugar · 1½ tsp salt
Soften the onion
Heat the olive oil in a wide pot or deep frying pan. Fry the onion and pepper over low heat for 15 minutes, stirring, until very soft but not browned.
Ingredients: 2000 g very ripe tomatoes · 60 ml olive oil · 1 pcs large onion · 1 pcs green pepper · 2 cloves garlic · 1 tsp sugar · 1½ tsp salt
Soft and translucent — no browning.Add the garlic
Add the garlic and fry 1 minute until fragrant.
Ingredients: 2000 g very ripe tomatoes · 60 ml olive oil · 1 pcs large onion · 1 pcs green pepper · 2 cloves garlic · 1 tsp sugar · 1½ tsp salt
Fry the tomatoes
Pour in the tomatoes, add the salt and bring to the boil. Fry uncovered over low heat for 50–60 minutes, stirring every few minutes and more often towards the end so it does not catch. The sauce is ready when it is very thick and the oil starts to pool at the edges.
Ingredients: 2000 g very ripe tomatoes · 60 ml olive oil · 1 pcs large onion · 1 pcs green pepper · 2 cloves garlic · 1 tsp sugar · 1½ tsp salt
Oil at the edges — a sign the water has gone.Blend
Blend the sauce smooth with a stick blender or pass it through a food mill — that also removes the seeds.
Ingredients: 2000 g very ripe tomatoes · 60 ml olive oil · 1 pcs large onion · 1 pcs green pepper · 2 cloves garlic · 1 tsp sugar · 1½ tsp salt
Season
Taste and adjust with sugar and salt. Add only enough sugar to soften the acidity, not to make the sauce sweet. If the sauce is too thin, fry it a few minutes more, stirring.
Ingredients: 2000 g very ripe tomatoes · 60 ml olive oil · 1 pcs large onion · 1 pcs green pepper · 2 cloves garlic · 1 tsp sugar · 1½ tsp salt
Jar it
Spoon the hot sauce into clean jars or containers. Cool it quickly in a bowl of cold water and refrigerate or freeze it within 2 hours. Do not fill freezer containers to the brim.
Ingredients: 2000 g very ripe tomatoes · 60 ml olive oil · 1 pcs large onion · 1 pcs green pepper · 2 cloves garlic · 1 tsp sugar · 1½ tsp salt
Before you start
From canned tomatoes
Out of season use 4 cans (400 g each) of peeled tomatoes — that is roughly what 2 kg of fresh tomatoes give once skinned. Blend them before adding and fry 40–50 minutes.
How to use
Serve with rice and a fried egg, scrambled eggs, fried fish, meatballs and pasta. It is also a good base for chickpea or bean stew.
Storage
The sauce keeps 5 days in the fridge or 6 months in the freezer. Do not keep it in the pantry: onion, pepper and oil lower the acidity, and home water-bath canning is not safe for a sauce like this.