Editing Tomato sauce

{{Short description|Sauce made primarily from tomatoes}}
{{About||the table sauce referred to in some countries as tomato sauce|Ketchup}}
{{Redirect|Pasta sauce|other sauces used|List of pasta dishes}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox food
| name = Tomato sauce
| image = Fresh Tomato Sauce (Unsplash).jpg
| image_size = 250px
| caption = Fresh tomato sauce
| alternate_name = 
| country = [[Mexico]]<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Mexico's Early Cookbooks |encyclopedia=Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Latin American History |url=http://oxfordre.com/latinamericanhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199366439.001.0001/acrefore-9780199366439-e-655 |year=2019 |doi=10.1093/acrefore/9780199366439.013.655 |isbn=978-0-19-936643-9 |last1=Gomez-Rejón |first1=Maite}}</ref> 
| region = [[Aztec Empire]]
| creator = 
| course = 
| type = [[Sauce]]
| served = 
| main_ingredient = [[Tomato]]es
| variations = ''[[Salsa (food)|Salsa picante]]''
}}

'''Tomato sauce''' ({{langx|es|salsa roja}}; {{langx|it|salsa di pomodoro}}; {{langx|fr|sauce tomate}}) can refer to many different [[sauce]]s made primarily from [[tomato]]es. In some countries the term refers to a sauce to be served as part of a dish, in others it is a [[condiment]]. 
Tomatoes have a rich flavor, high water content, soft flesh which breaks down easily, and the right composition to thicken into a sauce when stewed, without the need for [[thickeners]] such as [[roux]] or [[masa]]. All of these qualities make them ideal for simple and appealing sauces. Tomato sauce typically has a thinner consistency than [[tomato paste]] and [[tomato purée]],<ref>Barbara Ann Kipfer  The Culinarian: A Kitchen Desk Reference  2012 - Page 561 "Tomato paste is concentrate of puréed tomatoes sold in cans or at double strength in tubes. ... The differences between tomato paste, tomato purée, and tomato sauce are texture and depth of flavor (the thicker the consistency, the deeper ..."</ref><!-- I copied this ref from the Tomato Paste article, I can't personally confirm it, but it is common sence -->, however tomato sauces may use either as an ingredient.

In dishes tomato sauces are common for [[meat]] and [[vegetable]]s such as in [[stew|stews]], but they are perhaps best known as bases for Italian [[pasta]] or [[pizza]] dishes, or in Mexican [[Salsa (food)|salsas]]. 

In countries such as the United Kingdom, India, Pakistan, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, the term ''tomato sauce'' is used to describe a [[condiment]] similar to what Americans call [[ketchup]]. In some of these countries, both terms are used for the condiment.

==History==
Tomato sauces, along with similarly related and prepared [[tomatillo]] sauces, are presumed to have been in use since antiquity by the peoples of Central and South America as bases for many dishes. However, much of [[Pre-Columbian cuisine]] history in Mexico, along with other culturally significant information, had been purged during the periods of conquest by Europeans, chiefly the Spanish.<ref name="conquest">{{cite journal |author1-link=Benjamin Keen |last1=Keen |first1=Benjamin |title=Main Currents in United States Writings on Colonial Spanish America, 1884-1984 |journal=Hispanic American Historical Review |date=1 November 1985 |volume=65 |issue=4 |pages=657–682 |doi=10.1215/00182168-65.4.657 |url=https://read.dukeupress.edu/hahr/article/65/4/657/148475/Main-Currents-in-United-States-Writings-on |access-date=27 April 2023|doi-access=free }}</ref> [[Bernardino de Sahagún]], a [[Franciscan]] friar from the [[Kingdom of Spain]], is believed to be the first European to write about tomato sauce after encountering it for sale in the markets of [[Tenochtitlan]] (today [[Mexico City]]).<ref name=berna/> 

The first Italian recipe of tomato sauce was published under the name "Spanish tomato sauce"<ref>{{Cite web |last=MacAllen |first=Ian |date=2020-02-12 |title="Spanish" Tomato Sauce by Antonio Latini |url=https://www.redsauceamerica.com/blog/spanish-tomato-sauce-by-antonio-latini/ |access-date=2024-07-16 |website=Red Sauce America}}</ref> in  ''Lo Scalco alla Moderna'' ('The Modern Steward'), written by Italian chef [[Antonio Latini]] and published in two volumes in 1692 and 1694. Tomato sauce also began to be used in the cuisine of the south of France at the same time, particularly in [[Provence]] and the [[French Basque Country|Basque Country]]. The Provençals who went to [[Paris]] for the National Federation Day of July 14, 1790, demanded tomatoes everywhere they went.<ref>{{Cite web |title=La tomate |url=https://www.naturosante.com/rubriques/conseils/conseil.php?3 |access-date=2024-07-16 |website=www.naturosante.com |lang=fr}}{{better source needed|date=July 2024}}</ref> The use of tomato sauce with pasta appeared for the first time in 1790 in the Italian cookbook ''L'Apicio moderno'', by [[Rome|Roman]] chef [[Francesco Leonardi (chef)|Francesco Leonardi]].<ref name=leo>{{cite book |lang=it |title=L'Arte della cucina in Italia: libri di ricette e trattati sulla civiltà della tavola dal XIV al XIX secolo |first=Emilio |last=Faccioli |publisher=Einaudi |location=Milano |year=1987 |oclc=18389061 |isbn=9788806598808}}{{page needed|date=July 2024}}</ref> 

The first written recipe for canned tomatoes comes from [[Vaucluse]], in southern France, it appears in a document written by an individual in 1795.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Davidson |first=Alan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ImPJrQEACAAJ |title=Oxford Companion to Food |date=2014 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-175627-6 |language=en}}</ref>

==Raw tomato sauces==
In Italy, there are many pasta sauces based on raw, uncooked tomatoes.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Buonassisi |first=Vincenzo |title=Il Nuovo Codice della Pasta |publisher=Rizzoli |year=1985 |isbn=9788817110389 |location=Milan |language=IT |trans-title=The New Manual of Pasta}}</ref> In Mexico, the best-known raw tomato sauce is ''[[pico de gallo]]'', also known as ''salsa cruda''.{{Cn|date=April 2025}}

In France, raw tomato sauce is known as ''saoussoun''<ref name="auto">{{Cite web |last=Secretsdethomery |title=le saoussoun (sauce tomate crue) |url=http://secretsdethomery.over-blog.com/article-le-saoussoun-sauce-tomate-crue-81121612.html |access-date=2024-07-16 |website=Thierry et Marie-Françoise |language=fr}}</ref> in the [[Alpes-Maritimes]]. [[Sauce vierge]] is another French sauce made from raw tomato, basil, lemon juice and olive oil, a bit similar to mexican pico de gallo.<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web |title=SAUCE VIERGE |url=https://www.thefrenchcookingacademy.com/recipes/classic-sauce-vierge |access-date=2024-07-16 |website=French Cooking Academy |language=en-AU}}</ref>

==Varieties==

===Mexico===
{{Main|Salsa (sauce)}}
[[Image:GranCocinaMiFonda01.JPG|thumb|[[Chile relleno]] covered in tomato sauce served at a traditional ''fonda'' restaurant]]

Tomato sauce was an ancient condiment in [[Mesoamerica]]n food. The first person to write about what may have been a tomato sauce was [[Bernardino de Sahagún]], a Spanish [[Franciscan]] friar who later moved to [[New Spain]], who made note of a prepared sauce that was offered for sale in the markets of [[Tenochtitlan]] ([[Mexico City]] today). He wrote (translated from [[Spanish language|Spanish]]), {{Blockquote
|text=They sell some stews made of peppers and tomatoes – usually put in them peppers, pumpkin seeds, tomatoes, green peppers and fat tomatoes and other things that make tasty stews.<ref name=berna>{{Cite web|url=https://www.historiacocina.com/es/historia-del-tomate|title=Historia del tomate|trans-title=History of the tomato|author-first1=Carlos|author-last1=Azcoytia Luque|website=Historia de la Cocina y la Gastronomía|date=4 September 2012 |language=es}}</ref>
|source=''Florentine Codex'' (1540–1585)
}}

Basic Mexican tomato sauce was traditionally prepared using a ''[[molcajete]]'' to puree the tomatoes. Food that is cooked in tomato sauce is known as ''[[entomatada]]''. Tomato sauce is used as a base for spicy sauces and ''[[Mole (sauce)|moles]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/RL/traditional-mexican-cuisine-ancestral-ongoing-community-culture-the-michoacan-paradigm-00400|title=Traditional Mexican cuisine – ancestral, ongoing community culture, the Michoacán paradigm – intangible heritage |publisher=Culture Sector – UNESCO|website=www.unesco.org|language=en|access-date=2017-03-23}}</ref>

===Italy===
[[Image:Penne Lisce Con Sugo.jpg|thumb|[[Penne]] pasta served with tomato sauce]]
Tomato sauce in Italian cuisine is first mentioned in [[Antonio Latini]]'s cookbook ''Lo scalco alla moderna'' (Naples, 1692).<ref>[[Elizabeth David]], ''Italian Food'' (1954, 1999), p. 319, and John Dickie, ''Delizia! The Epic History of the Italians and Their Food'', 2008, p. 162.</ref> Latini was chef to the Spanish viceroy of Naples, and one of his tomato recipes is for sauce "in the Spanish style" ({{langx|it|alla spagnola}}). The first known use of tomato sauce with pasta appears in the Italian cookbook ''L'Apicio moderno'', by the Roman chef [[Francesco Leonardi (chef)|Francesco Leonardi]], published in 1790.<ref name=leo/>

[[Garlic sauce#Tomato & Garlic sauce|Tomato-garlic sauce]] is prepared using tomatoes as a main ingredient, and is used in various cuisines and dishes. In Italian cuisine, ''alla pizzaiola'' is tomato-garlic sauce, which is used on [[pizza]], pasta and meats.<ref name="Anderson 2001 p. 154"/>

===France===
''Sauce tomate'' is one of the five [[French mother sauces|mother sauces]] of [[Cuisine classique|classical French cooking]], as codified by [[Auguste Escoffier]] in the early 20th century. It consists of [[Salt pork|salt belly of pork]], onions, bay leaves, thyme, tomato purée or fresh tomatoes, [[roux]], garlic, salt, sugar, and pepper.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Escoffier |first=A. (Auguste) |url=http://archive.org/details/cu31924000610117 |title=A guide to modern cookery |date=1907 |publisher=London : W. Heinemann |others=Cornell University Library |page=22}}</ref>

Tomato sauce can also be served raw, in this case it is named ''saoussoun'' (grated raw tomato with onions, olive oil and herbs)<ref name="auto"/> or [[sauce vierge]] (diced raw tomato with olive oil, lemon, garlic, and basil).<ref name="auto1"/>

===Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa===
[[Image:Australiantomatosauce.jpg|thumb|Various brands of Australian tomato sauce, along with Heinz ketchup]] Tomato sauce is a popular, commercially produced [[Condiment|table sauce]], similar to tomato [[ketchup]], which is typically applied to foods such as [[meat pies]], [[sausages]], and [[fish and chips]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.australianbeers.com/culture/tucker.htm |title=Tucker |publisher=Australianbeers.com |access-date=2010-11-17}}</ref>  Some sources say that Australian tomato sauce has less tomato than ketchup,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/food/whats-the-difference-between-tomato-sauce-and-ketchup/news-story/7f2bffc6826ce6aedc06674ecbf93b14|title=What's the difference between tomato sauce and ketchup?|newspaper=News.com.au|date=19 December 2017|access-date=2 April 2018|last1=Young|first1=Matt}}</ref> but this varies between brands.{{Cn|date=April 2025}}

Tomato-based sauces served with pasta are commonly referred to as "pasta sauce".<ref>{{Cite news |date=1992-11-01 |title=Experiment, until the sauce suits you |work=Canberra Times |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article126952894 |access-date=2023-07-26}}</ref>

===United Kingdom===
''[[Collins English Dictionary]]'' lists the term as "another name for tomato ketchup" in British English.<ref>{{Cite Collins Dictionary|tomato sauce|access-date=2024-10-05}}</ref>

===Canada and United States===
[[Image:Salsa ferment ingredients.jpg|thumb|Ingredients such as [[bell pepper]] and [[coriander]] that may be used in a sauce]]
[[File:Pasta sauce ingredients.jpg|thumb|Ingredients added to the sauce without browning]]
In Canada and the U.S., tomato sauce is typically sold jarred or canned, with minimal ingredients, and is not normally used as is. Related ingredients are [[tomato purée]] and [[tomato paste]], each of which is similar but paste has a thicker consistency.  Tomato purée and tomato paste have US FDA standards of identity (since 1939) for percentage of tomato solids, and historically did not contain seasonings other than salt; in recent decades variants with basil or other traditional Italian seasonings became common.  Tomato sauce is non-standardized.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://contadina.com/tips-advice/faq.aspx |title=Contadina – Tips & Advice – Contadina FAQs |publisher=Contadina.com |access-date=2010-11-17 |archive-date=2010-11-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101121040034/http://contadina.com/tips-advice/faq.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref>

====Tomato gravy====
Tomato gravy is originally an Italian American term for a tomato sauce cooked with meat, "gravy" being an Americanized form of [[ragù]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=MacAllen |first1=Ian |title=Red Sauce: How Italian Food Became American |date=2022 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=9781538162354 |page=76}}</ref> Tomato gravy was associated with Sunday dinner in Italian American households from the 19th century onwards, and was also called "Sunday gravy". Although the origins was a dish with more meat than tomatoes, tomato gravy soon developed into a tomato sauce that often had no pieces of meat, but included animal fat.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Tebben |first1=Maryann |title=Sauces: A Global History |date=2014 |publisher=Reaktion Books |isbn=9781780234137 |pages=93-94}}</ref> The cooked tomatoes, some fat (usually cured [[Lard|pork fat]]) and flour are cooked together until thick, and [[Seasoning|seasoned]] with salt and pepper. Onions or bell peppers may be added as well. Typically, tomato gravy is served over pasta.{{Cn|date=April 2025}}

===India===
Some Indian curries have a tomato-based sauce, notably many vegetarian style dishes.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Sengupta |first1=Sushmita |title=Here's Why Desi Tamatar or Indian Tomatoes Are Better Suited For Curries |url=https://food.ndtv.com/food-drinks/heres-why-desi-tamatar-or-indian-tomatoes-are-better-suited-for-curries-1879180 |website=Food.NDTV.com |publisher=NDTV |access-date=5 October 2022}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Food}}
* [[List of tomato dishes]]

==References==
{{reflist|2|refs=
<ref name="Anderson 2001 p. 154">{{cite book | last=Anderson | first=B. | title=The Foods of Italy: The Quality of Life | publisher=Italian Trade Commission | series=Naturalmente Italiano | year=2001 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c9d0AvIQiOcC&pg=PA154 | access-date=July 29, 2017 | page=154}}</ref>
}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{Cookbook|Tomato Sauce Piquante}}
* [https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/930 ''The Cook's Decameron: A Study In Taste, Containing Over Two Hundred Recipes For Italian Dishes''] from [[Project Gutenberg]]. This is from a "old" source, and reflects the cooking at the turn of the 20th century.
* [http://gianni.tv/sunday-gravy/ Classic, authentic Italian "Sunday Gravy"]

{{Tomatoes}}
{{Tomato sauces}}
{{French mother sauces}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tomato Sauce}}
[[Category:Italian sauces]]
[[Category:Mother sauces]]
[[Category:Tomato products]]
[[Category:Tomato sauces]]