A sofrito is a thick sauce made by simmering and reducing onions, garlic, peppers and tomatoes. It can be used to flavor rice, soups, stews or paella, added on top of a braised steak or roast, potatoes or onto sandwiches.
It is fragrant, hearty and so flavorful.
Let’s get it started…
To get started, gather 1 medium yellow onion, 3 cloves of garlic, 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, 1 small green pepper, 1/3 cup of beef stock, 1/2 teaspoon of fresh rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, salt, pepper and 28 ounces of tomatoes. I used a large can of mixed crushed and diced tomatoes, but if you cannot find that combination in one can, you can use one smaller can of crushed and another of diced to get the same result.
Begin by dicing 1 medium yellow onion and putting into a medium saucepan along with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook until the onions begin to soften. If the onions begin to brown at all, reduce the heat. You want the onions to become translucent, not brown.
Once the onions have started to become soft, add a diced green pepper, 3 minced garlic cloves and 1 tablespoon of tomato paste. Stir everything together and cook over medium heat until the vegetables begin to falling apart and the mixture reduces enough that it becomes a bit dry.
See how the vegetables will stay over to one side like in the photo above? This is what you are looking for. If they still feel loose and there is liquid on the bottom of the pan, let it cook a bit longer.
Once it has reduced, add 1/3 cup of beef broth, 1/2 teaspoon of very finely chopped rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes, 28 ounces of tomatoes and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir everything together and bring the mixture to a simmer.
The goal is to simmer the sofrito at the lowest temperature possible for about an hour, so once it begins to simmer, reduce the heat a bit and let it go. It doesn’t really need baby sitting, just check in on it every once in a while to make sure it is still simmering (lower the temperature, if possible) and give it a quick stir to make sure it is not sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Once the sofrito is super thick and well reduced, it is ready to be used. You can add it to tomato soup or swap out the beef stock for vegetable stock and use it in vegetable soup! Add it to stew or chili to enhance the tomato flavors or add it to your spaghetti sauce for another layer of flavor. Add it to paella, scoop some over a sandwich or just dip a crusty baguette into it. It is a great sauce to have around and I would love to hear how you use sofrito in your kitchen!
Italian Sofrito
Ingredients
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small green bell pepper
- 1/3 cup beef or vegetable stock
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary, very finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
- a pinch of salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the diced onion in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat
- Cook the onions until they start to soften (reduce the heat if they begin browning)
- Add green peppers, tomato paste and garlic. Mix to combine and cook until the peppers soften and the mixture begins to fall apart and dry out a bit
- Add beef broth, rosemary, red pepper flakes, tomatoes and a pinch of salt and pepper
- Mix to combine all of the ingredients and bring the mixture up to a simmer
- Once simmering, reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting that it will continue simmering at
- Simmer for 60 minutes, stirring occasionally to ensure nothing is sticking to the bottom of the pan
- Once the sofrito is thick and reduced, transfer the pan to a heat proof surface
- Use immediately or allow the sofrito to cool, transfer it into an air tight container and store in the refrigerator
