Homemade Tomato Sauce

It's been a while. I'm sorry. I totally flaked on "The Challenge" updates. It wasn't unbearable, but not the easiest of events. The challenge, that is, not the blogging of it. That, obviously, proved impossible. I did survive, though I wouldn't want to do it again. That means, before too much longer, hubs is going to have me attempt it again. That's just my luck.

In any case, back to the issue at hand. It's been a long time coming and many, many unused pictures, but I need to do a write-up about how I make tomato sauce. I'm constantly posting pictures from various stages of the process on my Facebook page, specifically on my "Restock Thursday" posts, so I figured it's about time. And I updated another one of my blogs, so I had to even it out. Forget the other four....

So, here we go!

The process is pretty basic. Grab veggies (ahem, tomatoes are fruits), cook down, purée, and can, er, jar in my case...

I don't measure much. If you've been following my blog or Facebook page, in the same manner as my chili, I just throw in what seems good in arbitrary amounts. Thus far, it has served me well.

Onward!

So, here we have tomatoes, garlic, onion, and some bell pepper (not pictured). You read that right, bell pepper. I love the bit of flavor it adds. Not too much though, you still want it to taste mostly like tomatoes. For this batch in particular, if you like measurements, I used about 5 lbs of Roma tomatoes, half an onion, most of that head of garlic, and about half a red bell pepper. I also always use salt and pepper. I don't know how much, maybe a tsp each? Or less... Most of the time I'm going to be adding salt and pepper to whatever I make with the tomato sauce, so I don't really stress about how much I do or don't add here.

Ok, so, first step, wash the tomatoes and cut the top bits off. I used to leave the seeds and skins, but after the natives kinda made a mention about not caring for the seeds in the final product, I started taking those out too. I chop the tomatoes into big chunks and use water running from the tap to help me clear out the seeds. The skins I leave on. I chop the onion into big chunks and add that. Then, I peel as many garlic cloves as I feel like at the time and toss those in too. When it comes to the red bell pepper, I add it if I have it. I cut those tops off and take the seeds out and usually cut it into strips. I've actually had quite a few lately as I've taken advantage of sales and stocked up. I've found that they freeze quite well, just chopped up which has really expedited fajita nights (and having the frozen peppers means fajitas more frequently too!) or when I need them to toss in with stir fry. So, in any case, I'll grab a small handful 1/4-1/2 a pepper's worth and add that to my pot as well. I top with salt and pepper and that's it for prep work!

Let's get going! Just add heat!

The next part of the process is long and drawn out. The pot goes on the stove to cook away on med/low heat. It takes hours, so make sure to do this on a day where you have time to be at home. You could cook it faster, but the hotter it gets, the more nutrients you can lose to overheating, not to mention, it could burn. Low and slow is the way to go. Like with brisket. Not that I've ever made one, but I'm Texan, so I know that's how to cook one. The tomatoes have plenty of water content, so you don't need to worry about starting them off with some. Just check the pot periodically and stir it if you feel like it. Eventually it will start to look like mush. I like to wait to allow as much extra moisture to evaporate off as possible. I like the sauce to be pretty thick and the amount that releases when it gets puréed is astounding.

Mushy veggies, liquid mostly gone.
If I have the time, I'd let it go longer.

Cooked down, but very liquidy

So, after you have some nice mush, it's time to purée. I will typically remove from heat and let it cool if I've got the time. My blender instructions indicate that you shouldn't use it with hot ingredients, so I try to give the manufacturer the benefit of the doubt that it actually makes a difference. It's probably a good idea to let it cool at least some. That does allow extra liquid to evaporate and prevents the top of you blender from exploding off due to extra pressure and steam building as you blend. Just sayin'.

Ok then, away you go with the puréeing! I like to go at the highest speed my blender achieves. Then I mix it up a bit with the lower speeds, for no real reason, just because.

Now, at this point, I deviate from a lot of other people. If you like to do the canning thing, go for it. I don't. I probably could, but fear of the unknown keeps me at bay. And I don't like the fact that it requires the use of lids that have to be replaced. However, if you are lacking the deep freeze that I use as the lifeblood of my kitchen, canning is a great option for storing at room temperature.

So, yeah, my sauce goes into pint sized mason jars. I use mostly pint sized jars because of convenience. Most cans in the store are 12-15 oz., so this is pretty equivalent if you use recipes that call for canned ingredients and you like to substitute your own like I do. Tomato sauce is usually available in 8 oz. and 15 oz. cans, so one pint sized jar is equivalent to two 8oz. cans. There ya go, I did the math for you. So, that's about it for me. I cap the jars and freeze.

Total yield varies, but I get roughly one jar per pound of tomatoes. It makes a difference how much liquid content there is, which is why I try to grab paste tomatoes when I can. Roma tomatoes are just the most commonly available. The extra veggies will add bulk as well as nutrients and flavor. We can discuss costs, if you want to go there. Most of the time, making your own sauce not going to be cheaper than buying conventional tomato sauce. I'm sorry. That's just how it is. If you can get an amazing deal on your tomatoes as in $.59 per pound, you might get comparable pricing, especially if you typically purchase organic. Finding organic tomatoes for that price is highly unlikely. I could be wrong. My solution to this issue is to limit tomato sauce uses when my stash is low. I try not to purchase tomatoes for sauce if I can't find them for less than $1 per pound. At that price I'll just get a small amount. When it's $.30-$.40 cheaper, I stock up and make more to have on hand later. This is one area where having the extra freezer space is a true blessing since I can maximize these types of sales and seasonal pricing. Even if it's not cheaper, making your own means it'll taste fresher and you avoid cans, not to mention you control the salt and additives, so there is that.

I hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think and if you have any questions!

Extra little tidbit for entertainment purposes... I actually had almost an entire blog post about how I make tomato sauce just waiting for me to review and post. I discovered it after publishing this one.

Extra little tidbit 2... I used pictures from at least 4 different tomato sauce making sessions, so please forgive me if quantities seem to change from image to image. They quite likely were very different. Like I said, a lot of unused photos. Some of these are from as far back as April 2015. Oops.

Homemade Chili

"You make your own chili?" I get asked. "What recipe do you use?"

Um… Recipe?

Well…

The truth is I don't think I've ever made chili the same way twice. There are basic components that I add every time I make it, but something is always a little bit different and the end result always has its own unique flavor.

Tonight's meat selection was 1 lb pork sausage,
1 lb ground beef, 1 lb ground venison

On a typical weeknight when I'm cooking for family of four, I start out with 3 pounds of meat. This is definitely a high meat to person ratio, but for the purposes of chili that's just how it works out. Of course, that also means plenty of leftovers for easy lunches for several days. The actual meat that I use changes depending on what I have in the house. I almost always have at least 1 pound of sausage. The other 2 pounds are usually some type of burger. My favorite thing to use is game meat, especially elk because it adds is a fantastic flavor. Venison would be my second favorite. Of course, there are plenty of other types of game meat that I have yet to try which could create a truly phenomenal chili, but I'm thankful when I can get game meat because neither my husband nor I hunt. 

Next on the list is tomatoes. This is where I "sneak in" veggies because my family typically doesn't care for them. As such, I prefer to use my own homemade tomato sauce. When I make it up, I usually store it in pint-size mason jars and one jar is plenty for the 3 pounds of meat. Because my homemade tomato sauce is whole fruit tomato sauce with several other added veggies, we get the benefit of all of the fiber and all of the goodies that those veggies and fruit have to offer.

The next component of the chili is where I fail as a Texas citizen. I typically add beans. Everyone knows real Texas chili does not have beans. While I still tend to prefer my chili without beans, I add them as another attempt to add more veggies, especially fiber, to the diet of my boys. We'll just ignore right here that I don't even consider mature beans to be a real veggie anyway. I typically opt for small red beans for my chili, but I've used pintos in a pinch. I like to cook up a bunch of dry beans all at once and store in pint-size mason jars. 1 jar works for this amount of chili.

So that pretty much covers all the major components the next thing which certainly can't be left out would be the seasonings. So here are the seasonings that I typically use for my chili.

What, measure? Nah...
I mostly just season to taste. I
couldn't tell you actual amounts.

Notice anything strange? You probably do. While I do use the typical chili powder and garlic salt in a large quantities in my chili there are several other things that I add. Also not particularly surprising are the onion powder and pepper. Given that I use sausage and garlic salt (and likely salted the beans), there really is no need to add any more salt to this chili. I like to add oregano because well, hey, lets add more healthy nutrients! Also, something I learned from making spaghetti sauce from my mom - don't underestimate the spiciness that you can get from oregano. May sound strange, but it adds a nice touch. So, here is where the unusual ingredients come in. I use a dash of cumin, because well, I like cumin. It adds a unique flavor, but it's one of those things that are added such that you get the undertones, but don't really taste it or smell it above anything else. It blends nicely, but it has to be used sparingly. Even more sparingly used is the cinnamon. One might think that cinnamon doesn't belong in chili, but the tiniest amount can help balance out the flavor. The tiniest amount is all that's needed. You won't taste or smell it at all (unless I added too much), but it really helps to round things out. This was a suggestion from my hubby and I thought he was off his rocker when he mentioned it the first time, but wouldn't you know, he was right.

So, to put it all together, I typically put the tomato sauce in the crock pot, add a bunch of the spices, and stir it all together. I put the crock pot on high and let it work on heating up. Then I brown the meat. I usually do just one pound at a time simply because it's easier to handle with the size of my fry pan. I strain off some of the fat, but I don't stress about it too much, especially if I'm using mostly venison since it needs all the extra fat it can get so it's not too dry. I add the meat to the crock pot stirring after each addition. After all the meat has been added, I usually switch the crock pot to low. I'll taste test every 30 min or so to see how everything is coming together and add more spices if needed. The chili will sit for several hours or just one depending on how on top of things I am and how early I started.

Fritos scoops are the best for eating
chili sans spoon. =)

Chili in my house is always served with Fritos and cheese. If you are weird like me, you add sour cream. I passed this on to my kids. Hubs is not amused.

So, there you have it. Yummy chili! If you try it yourself, don't stress if you don't have all the things I do. Make it your own. If you are more crunchy, you'll skip on the Fritos and use organic meat, cheese, spices, etc. If you are less crunchy, feel free to use canned tomato sauce and canned beans. It's all good. =)

Yum! Lots of sour cream. I know I'm unusual on this one.