NationStates Jolt Archive

Spaghetti sauce, at pizzarias and pasta house restaurants where I live, has become a joke. Every place uses the exact same sauce, as if they are all getting it from the same supplier, out of the same bottle or can. It's not a bad sauce, and I'm sure it meets some sort of nutritional requirements, but it is always the same sauce, and it's not terribly good. This began back it the early 1990's, and I have been very patient, I think, waiting for some restaurant to come up with a home-cooked sauce, the likes of which we had when I was a kid.

I visited Melbourne, Victoria, recently and there was a pasta/pizza place a couple of blocks away from the hotel. Real pasta sauce! It was such a treat, after the long train ride from Sydney, to sit down to a heaping plate of spaghetti with a real bolonaise. I was so impressed, I ate there twice. When I got home, I tried making my own spaghetti sauce from scratch, with some success. But I still wish I could go to any restaurant and get anything but the new standard of "generic" sauce they all seem to have. *sigh*

Haha, sauce.

Mom knows best! :p

The sauce is not the real problem. It's all of the food.

I've seen catalogs for restaurants - partially prepared food.

The sauces, the meats, the salads - everything "partially" prepared. Just heat, arrange on a plate, and serve.

Baked potatoes partially cooked, sliced open, slathered in butter, and then frozen for later use.

Chicken breast marinated, partially cooked (including burning some grill marks uniformly on the meat).

Since labor is the major cost of operating a restaurant, and a real chef costs real money, you can hire a crew of idiots and operate using the partially prepared factory food.

The sauce is not the real problem. It's all of the food.

I've seen catalogs for restaurants - partially prepared food.

The sauces, the meats, the salads - everything "partially" prepared. Just heat, arrange on a plate, and serve.

Baked potatoes partially cooked, sliced open, slathered in butter, and then frozen for later use.

Chicken breast marinated, partially cooked (including burning some grill marks uniformly on the meat).

Since labor is the major cost of operating a restaurant, and a real chef costs real money, you can hire a crew of idiots and operate using the partially prepared factory food.
This is so true! Most all have the packaged foods. The restaurants want to get food onto your plate as soon as they can, minimizing your wait and so maximizing their patronage.

Since labor is the major cost of operating a restaurant, and a real chef costs real money, you can hire a crew of idiots and operate using the partially prepared factory food.


Unfortunately, this is precisely what too many places do. And they also save money by hiring a disinterested and immature kid to answer the phone or work the register/counter. They usually chase a load of business away with their personality and people skills.

To us I-talians, the red stuff is "gravy".

An easy way to make good gravy:

1. Get a nice big stockpot.
2. Pour into it enough olive oil to coat the bottem.
3. Saute, until GOLDEN (not brown) 1-3 garlic cloves (more or less, depending on how garlicy you like it.)
4. Dump in one can of either crushed tomatoes or tomato puree (again, your choice as to the texture you prefer.)
5. Fill the now empty can with water. Dump in the water.
6. Stir.
7. Add, to taste: salt, oregano
8. Stir and let simmer a bit (ten minutes or so?)
9. Taste.
10. If it seems too bitter, do NOT, for the love of humanity, add sugar! I prefer to add fresh basil, fennel seed, and/or white wine or Sambuca Romana to sweeten it up.
11. Let simmer a LONG time.

Note: If you intend to put shrimp, squid, or octopus in, do it at the last moment before serving. A bit of red pepper gives it some zing!

Further Note: If, instead, you intend to put sausages in, I suggest pricking them and cooking in a microwave for 10 minutes to get the fat out, then throwing them in the gravy and cooking them for at least a half hour - 40 minutes.

Final Note: The plain gravy freezes well, and can be put in ziplocks and frozen in blocks in your freezer, to later have things added, to be a simple accompaniment to pasta, or to make any variety of "parmagiana" dishes.

To us I-talians, the red stuff is "gravy".


Bingo. Hence my "haha, sauce" comment. :D

To us I-talians, the red stuff is "gravy".

10. If it seems too bitter, do NOT, for the love of humanity, add sugar! I prefer to add fresh basil, fennel seed, and/or white wine or Sambuca Romana to sweeten it up.
11. Let simmer a LONG time.




Good... NEVER ADD SUGAR.

A trick I learned after many years of practice- I peel a large carrot and add it to the sauce. This mildly sweetens and takes a bitter edge off.

I never crush my garlic- I peel it, then shave half very thin into the oil, then add the rest whole after the pot has simmered a while.

Ah you silly Italians...gravy is BROWN and relies heavily on animal fat:)

I'd like to definately (as WL has) extend this rant to all crappy food. No wonder I never eat out! It all tastes bland! When I DO find a restaurant with some real food, it inevitably 'sells out' after a couple years and serves the same crap as everywhere else :(

Maybe this is why food is my favourite thing to 'delve into' when I travel...less prepackaged, partially prepared crapolla.

Ah you silly Italians...gravy is BROWN and relies heavily on animal fat:)


Hey Sin- you have some Italian in you, right?

I think I'm the only Italian who doesn't care for tomatos. I tolerate sauce, but I don't particularly like it. Forget about raw tomatos.

Good... NEVER ADD SUGAR.

A trick I learned after many years of practice- I peel a large carrot and add it to the sauce. This mildly sweetens and takes a bitter edge off.

I never crush my garlic- I peel it, then shave half very thin into the oil, then add the rest whole after the pot has simmered a while.

I've never even heard of people adding sugar to the gravy. That just seems so insane to me.

Hey Sin- you have some Italian in you, right?
Yes, as we speak, Drunk Commies is giving me the old heave-ho.

Punk. That is so OLD:)

(edit: The last time I heard it actually was from Drunk Commies when I was HerPower...then I got to go on a rant about how he was trying to 'dominate me sexually' *giggles*)

I'd like to definately (as WL has) extend this rant to all crappy food. No wonder I never eat out! It all tastes bland! When I DO find a restaurant with some real food, it inevitably 'sells out' after a couple years and serves the same crap as everywhere else :(

Maybe this is why food is my favourite thing to 'delve into' when I travel...less prepackaged, partially prepared crapolla.


A majority of people settle for crap. It becomes the norm.

I find a good place I like and become a regular.

Hahahaa Sadaeriji...I can just IMAGINE what you had suggested:)

Yes, as we speak, Drunk Commies is giving me the old heave-ho.

Punk. That is so OLD:)

(edit: The last time I heard it actually was from Drunk Commies when I was HerPower...then I got to go on a rant about how he was trying to 'dominate me sexually' *giggles*)

Cant blame me for trying. I can see we'll have to do it the hard way.

Hahahaa Sadaeriji...I can just IMAGINE what you had suggested:)

I don't think it's too hard to imagine what I might have said.

I've never even heard of people adding sugar to the gravy. That just seems so insane to me.


Many do. And a lot of the canned sauce restaurants use has damned high fructose corn syrup in it. I cant stand it. Tomato acid doesnt seem to bother my stomach. When they add sugar or too much salt I get indigestion.

Well, Willamena and Whispering Legs, the thing is -- never, under any circumstances, go to a business that owns more than one resturaunt! (sp?)

You see, the family owned places around here are quite good. You just have to find the right spots -- they're hidden in places where no one will find them.

If that fails, go to your mom's house for dinner. :) (It helps if, like me, you're only fifteen, and live with your parents.)

I think I'm the only Italian who doesn't care for tomatos. I tolerate sauce, but I don't particularly like it. Forget about raw tomatos.


Whatever you dont like about it is probably what people that do like it like about it. People either love or hate tomatoes-there isnt much in between.

Many do. And a lot of the canned sauce restaurants use has damned high fructose corn syrup in it. I cant stand it. Tomato acid doesnt seem to bother my stomach. When they add sugar or too much salt I get indigestion.

SUGAR?!?!?

Herecy! I'm not even Italian and I'm not that dumb!

It's easy enough to make home-made sauce.
Over the year I've discovered what makes the biggest difference: vegetables.

My best sauces always contain about one cup of finely chopped vehgetables: onion, mushroom, green/red bell peppers, carrot, leek, celery. You can include zucchini, red onion, capers, chopped olive, cauliflower if you wish.


Start by dumping a 7-8 tomatoes into boiling water. After a few seconds, get the tomatoes back and peel them. It'll be easy. Next, dice them.

Put 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil in a pan. Add crushed garlic. Add the finely chopped vegetables, stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Then, add the tomatoes. Add 2 bay leaves, ground clove/cinnammon, dried herbs (any italian or provence mix will do). Cover it, let it simmer at low temperature for about 2 hours. Stir from time to time.

Some people add a pinch of sugar; it is totally useless if you have enough vegetables (as some of them contain natural sugar).

It if becomes too thick, add some water. If it becomes too liquid, add more olive oil and tomato paste.

Taste it, add salt if you like.

Whatever you dont like about it is probably what people that do like it like about it. People either love or hate tomatoes-there isnt much in between.

THat's how it is with a lot of the "basic" foods. Basically all veggies can be substituted for "tomato" and applied to someone.

Many do. And a lot of the canned sauce restaurants use has damned high fructose corn syrup in it. I cant stand it. Tomato acid doesnt seem to bother my stomach. When they add sugar or too much salt I get indigestion.

I wouldn't know. I refuse, out of principle, to ever get a dish with red sauce when I eat out at one of those chain restaurants. I couldn't even imagine what sugar would do to gravy.

It's easy enough to make home-made sauce.
Over the year I've discovered what makes the biggest difference: vegetables.

My best sauces always contain about one cup of finely chopped vehgetables: onion, mushroom, green/red bell peppers, carrot, leek, celery. You can include zucchini, red onion, capers, chopped olive, cauliflower if you wish.


Start by dumping a 7-8 tomatoes into boiling water. After a few seconds, get the tomatoes back and peel them. It'll be easy. Next, dice them.

Put 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil in a pan. Add crushed garlic. Add the finely chopped vegetables, stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Then, add the tomatoes. Add 2 bay leaves, ground clove/cinnammon, dried herbs (any italian or provence mix will do). Cover it, let it simmer at low temperature for about 2 hours. Stir from time to time.

Some people add a pinch of sugar; it is totally useless if you have enough vegetables (as some of them contain natural sugar).

It if becomes too thick, add some water. If it becomes too liquid, add more olive oil and tomato paste.

Taste it, add salt if you like.

*drools* :D

However, I'm American, and require meat. Add some good sausage and you'll be fine. :)

I wouldn't know. I refuse, out of principle, to ever get a dish with red sauce when I eat out at one of those chain restaurants. I couldn't even imagine what sugar would do to gravy.

Rarely, but sometimes, will you find a good chain resturaunt. It's a matter of finding that shiny penny in the pile of mud. Look hard enough and you'll find it.

Rarely, but sometimes, will you find a good chain resturaunt. It's a matter of finding that shiny penny in the pile of mud. Look hard enough and you'll find it.

I'd rather just not run the risk. :)

I wouldn't know. I refuse, out of principle, to ever get a dish with red sauce when I eat out at one of those chain restaurants. I couldn't even imagine what sugar would do to gravy.


I agree, but it goes further to sauce used on pizza as well as meatballs and parmagiana sandwiches, etc... Its likely you've had it without knowing it. And had heartburn later...
I think sugar is acceptable to people who didnt grow up with two grandmothers and their own mother making gravy on a regular basis. My mother made her own bread too.

An easy way to make good gravy: *snip*
Thank you for the recipe! I will try it (albeit without garlic).

I'd rather just not run the risk. :)

Use a metal detector. :p

I agree, but it goes further to sauce used on pizza as well as meatballs and parmagiana sandwiches, etc... Its likely you've had it without knowing it. And had heartburn later...
I think sugar is acceptable to people who didnt grow up with two grandmothers and their own mother making gravy on a regular basis. My mother made her own bread too.

Pizza, yeah. I stay away from meatball and parmagiana subs, but I have had Pizza Hut and Dominos and that kind of crap.

*drools*

However, I'm American, and require meat. Add some good sausage and you'll be fine.
This is a basic recipe. You can add cooked ground beef by the end.

Or cooked ground pork, veal, sausage meat.

Or extra portobello mushroom. Red wine.

White wine and clams.

Cheese.

Spinach.

Well, Willamena and Whispering Legs, the thing is -- never, under any circumstances, go to a business that owns more than one resturaunt! (sp?)

You see, the family owned places around here are quite good. You just have to find the right spots -- they're hidden in places where no one will find them.

If that fails, go to your mom's house for dinner. :) (It helps if, like me, you're only fifteen, and live with your parents.)
Nothing beats mom's. :)

It's not easy to find a restaurant in the city that isn't a chain. I can't think of any around, but I'll look.

It's easy enough to make home-made sauce.
Over the year I've discovered what makes the biggest difference: vegetables.
*snip*

That is basically like the sauce I made from scratch, except without garlic, of course. It was too thin, because the vegetables "leak" a lot of liquid into it, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Pizza, yeah. I stay away from meatball and parmagiana subs, but I have had Pizza Hut and Dominos and that kind of crap.

Pizza Hut and Dominos should be outlawed. Has anyone ever eaten there and NOT had diarrhea?

In my opinion, The Olive Garden should be as well.

Carrabas in my town is decent and I've eaten at a Romano's Macaroni Grill a few times. Both are alright.

Oh good heavens no , NO SPINACH, what is it with that green leafy thing that people pretend is a food source.

In ohio all the restaraunts get there stuff from GFS. If youve been to a reception, a corporate meeting , or a small restaurant you've had the same thing. It comes in bulk bags. How is that quality?

Thank you for the recipe! I will try it (albeit without garlic).

You're welcome. Remember: cook with a low flame, for a long time. And stir to make sure it's not burning on the bottom.

Pizza Hut and Dominos and that kind of crap.

Lo, and Sdaeriji mentioned pizza-like food, which hath little resemblance to the GOOD STUFF. ;)

Pizza Hut and Dominos should be outlawed. Has anyone ever eaten there and NOT had diarrhea?

*raises hand*

Actually, though, my favourite pizza chain is Papa Johns. However, Anilie's Pizza in a nearby town is REEEEEAAAALLLLLLYYYYY good. Awesome stromboli, too.

However, my stromboli is better. :)

That is basically like the sauce I made from scratch, except without garlic, of course. It was too thin, because the vegetables "leak" a lot of liquid into it, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
That's why it's better to stir-fry the vegetables first, in oil. You get rid of the water fast, since the vegetables are chopped extra small. And add some more olive oil later.

Getting rid of the extra water is the most difficult part in Spaghetti Sauce Science, I think.

Lo, and Sdaeriji mentioned pizza-like food, which hath little resemblance to the GOOD STUFF. ;)

Bah, pizza r00ls. :D

*raises hand*

Actually, though, my favourite pizza chain is Papa Johns. However, Anilie's Pizza in a nearby town is REEEEEAAAALLLLLLYYYYY good. Awesome stromboli, too.

However, my stromboli is better. :)
What is stromboli? Is that like a rolled thing?

You're welcome. Remember: cook with a low flame, for a long time. And stir to make sure it's not burning on the bottom.


And stir with a WOODEN SPOON only!!

What is stromboli? Is that like a rolled thing?

o.0

stromboli with a proper sauce poored over the top. MMMMMMMMMMM
and some fresh garlic bread. YUMMMMMMM

And stir with a WOODEN SPOON only!!
Absolutely! I remembered that rule of thumb.

Pizza Hut and Dominos should be outlawed. Has anyone ever eaten there and NOT had diarrhea?

In my opinion, The Olive Garden should be as well.

Carrabas in my town is decent and I've eaten at a Romano's Macaroni Grill a few times. Both are alright.

Only ever been to Olive Garden once, and they burnt my chicken, those bastards.

Lo, and Sdaeriji mentioned pizza-like food, which hath little resemblance to the GOOD STUFF. ;)

Yeah. I prefer to go to local places, but I've occasionally gone for the convienence of a pizza chain. Especially when I worked at Dominos. It was way too easy to just make myself a free pizza after a night of work than go home and actually cook food.

*raises hand*

Actually, though, my favourite pizza chain is Papa Johns. However, Anilie's Pizza in a nearby town is REEEEEAAAALLLLLLYYYYY good. Awesome stromboli, too.

However, my stromboli is better. :)


Maybe you're younger then and it hasnt hit you yet. I guess it didnt bother me when I was in my twenties. When I hit 30, that stuff started cramping me up when I ate it.

Did you get a pizza stone for your oven? It makes a big difference. I make home made pizza and calzones- with the pizza stone, a peel and some coarsely ground corn flour, I get some good results and no sticking.

Only ever been to Olive Garden once, and they burnt my chicken, those bastards.


and they actually advertize those bread sticks. I'm also very suspicious of "Hospitaliano" too.... Italian food that hospitalizes you?

and they actually advertize those bread sticks. I'm also very suspicious of "Hospitaliano" too.... Italian food that hospitalizes you?

Haha, not quite.

Maybe you're younger then and it hasnt hit you yet. I guess it didnt bother me when I was in my twenties. When I hit 30, that stuff started cramping me up when I ate it.

Did you get a pizza stone for your oven? It makes a big difference. I make home made pizza and calzones- with the pizza stone, a peel and some coarsely ground corn flour, I get some good results and no sticking.

CL, I'm fifteen. :D

And yes, pizza stones are great. Definitely noticed an improvement, as the crust of the pizzas I made no longer flopped like a wet noodle (I gag when I eat crust like that).

Haha, not quite.

Don't be too sure about that. ;) :eek:

CL, I'm fifteen. :D

And yes, pizza stones are great. Definitely noticed an improvement, as the crust of the pizzas I made no longer flopped like a wet noodle (I gag when I eat crust like that).


I'd love to be 15 again, my friend. All those years of abusing my body caught up with me-so thats why I avoid Pizza Hut and Dominos.

I am impressed that you make your own strombolie and pizza at 15- Good Show ! I hope my kids want to cook when they hit 15.

I'd love to be 15 again, my friend. All those years of abusing my body caught up with me-so thats why I avoid Pizza Hut and Dominos.

I don't go there much. My mom can make pretty good pizza, so I don't have to. :)

I am impressed that you make your own strombolie and pizza at 15- Good Show ! I hope my kids want to cook when they hit 15.

Thank you! I learned to cook from my mom and my friends' parents, mostly. And some experimentation at the Boy Scout Camps. :) Some weren't quite ... uh ... happy at what I concocted, but what the heck, you don't know unless you try.