Why it works: Sauce and anchovy are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and 2,057 recipes mention both. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a slow oven”. The 300°F (150°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the pulp
Gather ripe tomatoes.
Bake them in a slow oven at 300°F (150°C) until tender.
Rub the baked tomatoes through a sieve to obtain the pulp.
Make the sauce
For every quart of pulp, add cayenne vinegar, shallots, garlic, and salt to taste.
Boil the mixture until the garlic and shallots are soft.
Sieve the mixture again.
For every six quarts of the liquid, add 1 pint of soy sauce and 1 pint of anchovy sauce.
Boil the entire mixture for about 20 minutes.
Bottle
Bottle the sauce.
Seal the corks carefully.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
-
Sauce + anchovytop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together2,057 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
-
Tomato + garlictop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together14,076 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
-
Vinegar + garlictop 11% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together9,115 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
-
Garlic + anchovytop 13% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together623 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
-
Tomato + saucetop 15% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together5,469 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Tomatoes
- Provide the bulk of the pulp and the main body of the sauce.
- Cayenne vinegar
- Adds sharp acidity and heat that balances the sweetness of the tomatoes.
- Shallots (in the method)
- Add savoury depth and sweetness as they soften during boiling.
- Garlic
- Adds aroma and savoury pungency that mellows as it cooks.
- Soy sauce
- Contributes salty, savoury umami depth to the sauce.
- Anchovy sauce
- Adds concentrated savoury depth and saltiness.
The step that matters
Boil the mixture until the garlic and shallots are soft. Under-cooking leaves raw, harsh allium flavour and firm texture, while the sauce still needs enough reduction to concentrate its flavour and thicken slightly. Soft aromatics blend smoothly into the pulp.
Flavor stand-ins for the garlic
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, vinegar, sauce, anchovy):
- Capersabout as good a flavor fit
- Garlicthe original
- Tarragonabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, vinegar, sauce, anchovy. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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.
More tomato sauce recipes
You might also like
Delicate Cake246 recipes
Boiled Frosting69 recipes
Citron Cake68 recipes
Scotch Cake63 recipesThe Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.