Ready steady "Sofritto"

[urmaniac13]

I wanted to share my recent discovery of a trick for quick and easy every day cooking...

"Sofritto" is an Italian term for a well-sautèed mixture of finely chopped vegetables, the basic one is onion, carrots and garlic, also for a variation bell peppers, radicchio, shallot, celery etc. can be added.
It is a base for so, so many variety of recipes, or it is so in my kitchen, be it for pasta sauces, rice(risotto) and dishes with other cereal/grains, or lentils, or various stir-fries.

This is something I intended to try for a long time, but a while ago we bought some excessive amount of onion so finally I decided to go for it.
I made some extra batches of sofritto, put it in a few single dosage containers and froze it. Now, these ready-made packages of sofritto turned out such a handy, time/hassle saving weapon to whip up some of our favourite recipes, as chopping these vegs is very often one of the most time consuming, tedious task of many recipes. And this allows me to fix so many more variety of recipes when we get home late or tired fairly quickly and easily.

When you have some extra vegs (especially onions and garlic!) and extra time, I definitely suggest trying this out... you will be surprised how convenient they are!!

 

[shpj4]

Thank you for sharing your Ready steady "Sofritto" and freezing it is a great idea. As you said it is the basis for so many receipes.

 

[callie]

I do the same thing - but didn't know there was a "name" for it . Sometimes I find I've got too many onions on hand, so chop and freeze them. And celery isn't something I keep in the fridge all the time...so I buy it when on sale, chop and freeze. Fresh veggies are hard to come by where I live, so bell peppers, jalepenos, etc., I'll buy, chop and freeze for later use. You are so right - it comes in handy on busy days!

 

[Barb L.]

Thanks for the handy tip!

 

[Timothy Wilson]

The classic sofritto of the Emilia-Romagna region consists of equal amounts of onion, carrot and celery. Garlic is left out, as it is too assertive for many dishes. I use the Cuisinart to mince my vegetables, one at a time, and add them to a large skillet with abundant olive oil on LOW heat. Let them simmer about 15-20 minutes, until the room becomes fragrant (DON"T BROWN!) and there you have it. An excellent way to store sofritto is in ice-cube trays covered tightly in foil and/or plastic wrap. Just pop one or a few into the dish you're preparing and there you go. I find sofritto especially friendly to frozen vegetables, greens in particular.

 

[GA Home Cook]

I do the same thing with Carmelized onions. I put as many sliced onions in my crock pot as I can stuff in and get the lid on. PUT IT IN THE GARAGE (very important) and turn it on high. Stir every 3 hours or so. Whala carmelized onions. Divide up in freezer bags and pop them in a pot.

 

[Roll_Bones]

I was taught a "sofrito" was garlic, onion and bell pepper.

And that "mirepoix" was onion, celery and carrot.

And that "The trinity" was onion, celery and bell pepper.

 

[CraigC]

In any given region of Italy, there are probably as many sofritto recipes as there are nonnas. Just like there are as many sofrito recipes in Spanish speaking countries as there are abuelas.

 

[Roll_Bones]

In any given region of Italy, there are probably as many sofritto recipes as there are nonnas. Just like there are as many sofrito recipes in Spanish speaking countries as there are abuelas.

Makes perfect sense.
I have seen sofrito made so many ways. I have even seen people make it with tomato sauce or paste. Then they reserve it for later use. We made sofrito in the first step for several dishes in the pot we were cooking in.
We made it when we made a dish that required it.

When I think of sofrito, the first thing that comes to mind is frijoles negros. A Cuban/Spanish/Mexican bean dish.
The sofrito for that dish is just garlic, onion and bell pepper sauted in olive oil.

 

[CraigC]

Makes perfect sense.
I have seen sofrito made so many ways. I have even seen people make it with tomato sauce or paste. Then they reserve it for later use. We made sofrito in the first step for several dishes in the pot we were cooking in.
We made it when we made a dish that required it.

When I think of sofrito, the first thing that comes to mind is frijoles negros. A Cuban/Spanish/Mexican bean dish.
The sofrito for that dish is just garlic, onion and bell pepper sauted in olive oil.

My sofrito of choice for black beans is the same as yours but I also add seeded, diced tomato. I season with lots of fresh toasted and ground cumin.

 

[Roll_Bones]

My sofrito of choice for black beans is the same as yours but I also add seeded, diced tomato. I season with lots of fresh toasted and ground cumin.

I also on occasion add tomato even though it was considered taboo in my family. As were canned beans. I use canned black beans more than dry and kick them up.

Sofrito really is not a recipe, but more like a step in Mediterranean cooking.
Marinara sauce being a good example.
I always start my sauce with a "sofrito" of sauteed onion and garlic. Occasionally I add some chopped bell peppers. But since this sauce can be used for many other dishes, I try to keep the prep list very small.