Why it works: Olive and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓
Tomato Sauce for Pasta
Ingredients
Directions
Slice onions as you like them, fry gently but well with a pinch of sugar in olive oil.
Add either tomato puree or fresh, skinned tomatoes (for fresh use 2× onions, for puree use half the amount of the onions).
Fry gently but very well, until the oil and tomato merge and are obviously cooked.
Then add a large dash of Commanderia (usually half a wine glass to 2 medium-sized onions) and season sparingly with mixed herbs, celery salt, and pepper.
Add a stock cube and water. Cook for a further 10 minutes, or all day.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 7 of 8 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| Celery | 1 stalk (40g) | 6 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Water | not in our table | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
-
Olive + tomatotop 1% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,539 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
-
Tomato + celerytop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,377 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Celery + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together16,012 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Onion + celerytop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,518 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Onions
- Soften and sweeten as they fry, forming the flavour base of the sauce.
- Olive oil
- Carries heat evenly and helps the tomato and onion cook into a smooth sauce.
- Tomato puree
- Adds concentrated tomato flavour, colour and body to the sauce.
- Commanderia
- Adds sweet, fruity wine acidity and aroma that deepens the sauce.
- Stock cube
- Adds savoury depth and salt to the liquid as the sauce simmers.
The step that matters
Fry the tomato until the oil and tomato merge. Frying the tomato long enough drives off excess water and caramelises its sugars, so the sauce tastes concentrated rather than raw and watery. Stopping early leaves a thin, sharp sauce.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, olive, tomato, celery, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Carrotfits better
- Eggplantfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, olive, tomato, celery, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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