No Food Mill

[mcFreid]

I'm at college and trying my second attempt at a really good tomato sauce. I'm following Marcella Hazan's Tomato Sauce II recipe which calls for whole plum tomatoes pureed through a food mill. I have the tomatoes imported in a can from Italy (was really happy I could find this), but I now am facing a dilemma. I have no food mill here at college. I was wondering if I could still make the sauce by maybe crushing the tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon and stirring?

 

[Claire]

A simple strainer and a big spoon will do the trick. But for some really great tomato sauce, just chop the tomatoes and leave it a little rustic. Mom used to actually wash the can, then open it and use the lid to chop the tomatoes (in the can) before we'd put them into the sauce.

 

[mcFreid]

Yeah I don't have a strainer either :/

So chop instead of crush?

 

[Andy M.]

I use whole tomatoes and use a wooden spatula to break up the tomatoes in the pan as they begin cooking.

You could also break them up using a spoon or your impeccably clean hands.

The food mill is primarily used to separate skin and seeds. With canned tomatoes, skin is not an issue. Don't worry too much about the seeds. You can get a lot of them out as you crush them.

 

[Claire]

I don't mind the seeds, either. BUT, and this is a big "but", if you are cooking for someone with severe diverticulitis, all those seeds may have to go. I do have a food mill, but only because I put up a lot of tomatoes in the fall and it is a great shortcut. Upon freezing those skins get very tough, and sometimes the seeds get bitter, but mostly I am short on space and want to concentrate the tomatoes and this is a good step. I would never bother to seed canned tomatoes unless Mom or someone else with intestinal problems was coming to dinner.