Simple Red Sauce

Zia’s fresh cavatelli, finished in simple red sauce and topped with Parmiganio Reggiano and torn basil.

There’s just nothing cozier than a big bowl of pasta coated in a rich, sweet tomato sauce. I like to keep things super simple when I make a red sauce—when you’re using great ingredients, you don’t need to overdo it on flavor combinations! The real trick is time—allowing the flavors to develop and meld. Just an easy, tasty, homey meal, paired with a salad and a glass of red. Perfetto!

Ingredients

• Cooking olive oil

• 1 large onion, chopped

• 4–5 large cloves of garlic, smashed and peeled

• 2–3 tablespoons double-concentrate tomato paste

• 2 (28-oz.) cans of San Marzano tomatoes, or 2 jars of high-quality passata

• A handful of fresh basil (about 8–10 leaves)

• Salt, to taste

Instructions

(Makes enough sauce for 2 lbs. of pasta)

1. Warm oil in a medium or large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and a pinch of salt, stirring occasionally. Cook until softened and translucent—at least 5–10 minutes. You can turn the heat down slightly to prevent overcooking. You want the onions right on the verge of caramelization to extract their sweetness.

2. Once the onions reach your desired texture, add the garlic. Keeping it smashed rather than minced prevents it from cooking too quickly. Let it become ultra fragrant—this takes just a few minutes.

3. Stir in the tomato paste, which deepens the sauce’s richness and natural sweetness. Don’t be shy with it!

4. Add the tomatoes or passata and whole basil leaves. Now comes the important part: time. Turn the heat to low, cover if the sauce is making a mess of your stove, and stir every 10 minutes or so. Otherwise, let it be. You’d have to work hard to overcook this sauce—I usually let mine go for at least an hour on very low heat.

5. To finish, blend everything until smooth (either in a blender or with an immersion blender), adjusting salt and olive oil to taste.

6. Serving suggestion:

   • Tomato-based sauces pair beautifully with small, absorbent noodles. Zia’s Cavatelli is perfect for soaking up the concentrated flavors of this sauce! Just boil for 3–5 minutes, finishing the pasta directly in the sauce.

   • Leftover red sauce? Freeze it—it’s a lifesaver for easy future meals!

   • Top with freshly grated hard Italian cheese and a few torn basil leaves.