Im talking all the way from the fresh tomatoes to its home on the pasta. I make my own marinara with the San Marzano tomatoes and my own fresh stuff, but I'm always wanting to up my game and have fun.

My basic marinara uses Roma tomatoes, it takes 4-6 hours, it's a labor of love. I need a lot of free time to make it.

My Sunday gravy is a three day process, basically because I make my own sausage to put in it, make the sauce and meatballs on the second day, serve it on the third day. I use San Marzano tomatoes in the gravy. Everyone knows it tastes better after sitting in the fridge for a day to let the flavors meld.

You can make a great sauce with any red, ripe tomatoes, it doesn't matter if they're cherry tomatoes or beefsteak/slicer tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, or San Marzano tomatoes, all can make a good sauce.

If you want to up your game, start with a basic aglio e olio, then dice up some tomatoes (doesn't matter what type), saute them and stir, stir, stir until they break down. This is your basic foundation, olive oil, garlic, and tomatoes, you'll add seasoning (salt and pepper, oregano, basil, bay leaf, et al) to taste.

If you are looking for a quick pasta sauce, try this:

take 1/4-1/2 an onion and grate it on a box grater, saut the onion and garlic in a little olive oil, add a 28oz can of crushed tomatoes, a pinch of sugar and some dried oregano. Heat that through and add some fresh basil.

Not Sunday Gravy, but a good, basic sauce for pasta.

Got this recipe from on of my Italian friends who's family has roots to Altamonte Italy. They also have Italian restaurants in San Antonio


Meatballs
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1 pound ground veal
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 cup breadcrumbs

Sunday Gravy
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 pounds beef short ribs
2 pounds Italian sausage
1 large sweet yellow onion, diced
2 carrots, grated
6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup red wine
3 (28oz) cans Whole San Marzano Tomatoes with their juices crushed by hand
6oz tomato paste fried with the garlic in olive oil
3 cups beef stock
1 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 Tbsp dried oregano
salt to taste & pepper to taste

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and parsley. Add breadcrumbs and ground meats, and mix by hand until well combined. Do not overmix. Form the mixture into 1 1/2 to 2 inch same-sized meatballs. Cover them with cling wrap and keep in the refrigerator until ready to use.

In a large heavy bottomed pot or Dutch oven, heat 2 Tbsp the olive oil over medium high heat and brown short ribs on all sides. Remove to a plate, then brown sausage links. Remove to a plate, then brown meatballs. You will be adding these browned meats to the sauce at intervals, once cooled down refrigerate sausage and meatballs until they go in the gravy.

Add a dash of oil if needed and saut onion and carrots for 3-4 minutes. Add garlic and saut for a minute.

Add red wine and deglaze, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Cook until the wine is reduced by half, about 3-4 minutes.

Add crushed whole tomatoes, tomato paste, water, basil leaves, bay leaves, dried oregano, salt and pepper. Mix well.

Add the short ribs to the gravy. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 2-2.5 hours. Stir occasionally, making sure nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Add the sausages to the gravy and cook for 1 hour. If at any point gravy is becoming too thick, add a splash of water.

Add meatballs and cook for another one hour, stirring occasionally and making sure most of the meats are cooking, submerged under the gravy.

Maintain the heat throughout so the gravy is always on a gentle simmer.
Towards the end of cooking time, skim off the excess fat.

Taste and adjust for salt and pepper.

Serve Sunday Gravy over your favorite pasta

B-1 83 said:

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Im talking all the way from the fresh tomatoes to its home on the pasta. I make my own marinara with the San Marzano tomatoes and my own fresh stuff, but I'm always wanting to up my game and have fun.

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When I use fresh tomatoes (8-10 romas is about equal to a large can), I'll cut an x on the bottom then blanch them in boiling water until the skins come lose. Peel and seed them then cut them in half lengthwise. I'll leave them out on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray then drizzle them with olive oil and roast at 425 for about half an hour. Remove from the oven and pure in a blender, once that is done, I'll shave down a few cloves of garlic depending on how many tomatoes the. sautee on low in about 1/4c of olive oil until they just begin to turn color. Add in the pure tomatoes with four or five torn basil, leaves and salt to taste. If you're looking for a bright fresh taste simmer for 10 minutes. If you're looking for a deep sauce, you can cook it for hours adding water as needed.

Chat GPT Edit:

Roasted Fresh Tomato Sauce

This recipe highlights the natural sweetness of fresh tomatoes, elevated with roasted flavors and aromatic basil. Perfect for pasta or as a base for other dishes.

Ingredients
8-10 Roma tomatoes (or equivalent to 1 large can of tomatoes)
Olive oil (divided, approximately 1/4 cup)
Cooking spray
3-4 garlic cloves, thinly shaved
4-5 fresh basil leaves, torn
Kosher salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Prepare the Tomatoes:
1. Preheat your oven to 425F (220C).
2. Cut a small "X" on the bottom of each tomato.
3. Blanch the tomatoes in boiling water for 3060 seconds, or until the skins begin to loosen.
4. Transfer the tomatoes to an ice bath to cool. Peel and seed them, then cut them in half lengthwise.

2. Roast the Tomatoes:
1. Lightly coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. Arrange the tomato halves cut side up on the sheet.
2. Drizzle with olive oil, ensuring even coverage.
3. Roast in the oven for approximately 30 minutes, or until the tomatoes are soft and slightly caramelized.
4. Remove from the oven and puree in a blender until smooth.

3. Saut the Garlic:
1. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large skillet over low heat.
2. Add the shaved garlic and saut gently until it just begins to turn golden. Be careful not to burn the garlic.

4. Combine and Cook:
1. Pour the pureed tomatoes into the skillet with the garlic. Stir to combine.
2. Add the torn basil leaves and season with salt to taste.

5. Choose Your Flavor Profile:
Bright and Fresh: Simmer the sauce gently for 10 minutes to preserve its vibrant flavor.
Rich and Deep: Cook on low heat for several hours, stirring occasionally and adding water as needed to maintain your desired consistency.

Serving Suggestions

Use this sauce immediately or store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It also freezes well for up to 3 months.

When making Sunday gravy, you can use whatever meat you want. Pork, chicken, beef, it is whatever you have available, and depending on how many people you're feeding.

Sunday gravy at its core is a braise of meat in a rich, wine-infused tomato sauce that you adjust to your liking and what is available in the fridge. You can use short ribs, pork chops, pork shoulder, chicken legs, thighs, wings, beef chuck, veal, pork tenderloin, whatever you have on hand. Some people even throw in a braciole.


If you're using beef short ribs or pork chops or chicken wings or anything with bones, you don't need any type of beef stock. The bones simmering in the sauce will release their collagen, creating their own broth.

I'll also add that if you want a slightly healthier approach, you can bake the meatballs and sausage in the oven for 30 minutes and then add them to the sauce. My grandmother used to saute the ribs and sausage in olive oil years ago, and then my grandfather had a heart attack, so she switched to baking it to reduce his intake of fried foods. It honestly doesn't make a difference, the lack of fond from the baking approach doesn't diminish the sauce in any way.

I start everything with heat on low, some olive oil sauteing some garlic. Yes, it takes a little longer this way, but you don't hurry Sunday gravy. I don't use onions or carrots, but that is a personal preference.

I'd add that you want to remove the bay leaves before you serve the sauce. Those are for flavor, not consumption.

I put my pot in the oven on 350 for 4 hrs or so, until it "smells" done.

The smell from my kitchen right now. It would be blasphemy to turn the vent hood on right now. Spare ribs already in. Simmer time.