Bitter tomato sauce

[Alyce]

I make tomato sauce from Roma tomatoes that I grow in my garden. I add celery, carrots, peppers (hot and not), onions, and parsley that I also grow in my garden. I don't peel the tomatoes, which I understand can make the sauce bitter. I blend everything together in a blender and then cook it until it's quite thick. What can I add to this sauce to remove the bitterness? I don't want to peel the tomatoes. I'd like to find another way to remove the bitterness.

 

[Wyogal]

Remove the seeds, that is what could be causing the bitterness. Simply quarter the tomatoes and remove them with your hands if you want to keep the skins on.

 

[Uncle Bob]

What type (material) is the pan you are using?

 

[kadesma]

I don't know if you have ever tried roasting your tomatoes or not but I find I get a really good taste this way. On a cookie sheet, put your tomatoes that you have cut in half the long way, drizzle with a good evoo,salt pepper and squashed garlic cloves...That is all I do I then use a blender stick and make sauce and put it in the freezer, When I want pasta sauce I then add, my herbs,sauteed onions,we never add any peppers,but do use a pot roast or stew meat, and dried mushrooms soaked and the mushroom broth strained through an old cloth to catch sand if there is any.Use the broth it will give your sauce a dark brown color and the taste is special.Hope this helps you a little.
kadesma

 

[Alyce]

Bitter Tomato Sauce

I can't remove seeds, I can't roast the tomatoes - the sauce is already done. I've got the sauce in a deep stock pot that's made out of stainless steel. Is there any way to get the bitterness out of the sauce that I've already made?

 

[Alix]

Hmmm, can't remove it, but you might be able to disguise it. Try adding a 1/4 cup of brown sugar. I'd roast some garlic myself and add the resulting paste to the sauce. And maybe a smidge of cooking wine or brandy? Might smooth things out for you.

 

[Wyogal]

I second the addition of brown sugar.

 

[Alyce]

Ok, brown sugar sounds interesting. Just curious - why brown sugar instead of white? And what kind of proportions would you use?

 

[Wyogal]

we don't know how bitter your sauce is. you just may need to add some and taste it.

 

[Alyce]

Done. I had about 6 quarts of sauce. I added 1/2 of brown sugar at a time, giving it about 15 minutes to completely blend in between additions. I also added Merlot 1/2 cup at a time. I ended up using 2 cups of brown sugar and 1 cup of Merlot. It worked! The sauce still has a bite, but no longer has the bitterness. Thanks for your help!

 

[Michael in FtW]

Ok, brown sugar sounds interesting. Just curious - why brown sugar instead of white?

The molasses that coats the sugar contains several flavor components that are also found in tomatoes. It also helps to restore some of the sulfur components in the tomatoes that are destroyed during prolonged simmering. The sugar also helps to offset the bitter/acidic "taste", which is what the carrot usually does - it contains more sugar than any other vegetable except the sugar beet.

Your addition of wine also helped by releasing flavor components that are alcohol soluble and would never be detected by your taste buds without the wine.

 

[Alix]

YAY! I'm glad it all worked out Alyce. Now go enjoy that sauce.

 

[Argamemnon]

I don't know, but why not add some carrots when making tomato sauce or even cinnamon?