Why it works: Shallot and thyme match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and 1,476 recipes mention both. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓
Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Melt 1 oz. of butter in a sauté pan.
Wash and slice the tomatoes, then add them to the sauté pan.
Finely chop the lean ham and add it to the pan.
Peel and finely chop the shallots, then add them to the pan along with the ham, peppercorns, salt, vinegar, thyme, and bay leaf.
Cook and strain
Cook over medium heat, stirring until reduced, about 15 minutes.
Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a basin, then return it to the sauté pan to warm through.
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.
-
Shallot + thymetop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together1,476 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Tomato + thymetop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together2,370 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
-
Shallot + vinegartop 12% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together2,374 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Tomato + shallottop 12% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together583 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Tomato + vinegartop 16% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together5,063 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Tomatoes
- Provide the main body and flavour of the sauce as they break down and reduce.
- Shallots
- Add a mild sweet-savoury aroma that builds the base flavour of the sauce.
- Lean ham
- Adds savoury, salty depth to the sauce as it cooks down.
- Butter
- Adds richness and fat, carrying flavour through the sauce.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that brightens the sauce and balances the tomatoes.
The step that matters
Cook until reduced, then strain. Stirring over medium heat concentrates the flavour and thickens the sauce. Straining through a fine sieve removes the solids, so the sauce is smooth. Stop once it has reduced, since over-reducing makes it too thick and salty.
Flavor stand-ins for the shallot
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, vinegar, ham, thyme, butter):
- Mustardabout as good a flavor fit
- Capsicumabout as good a flavor fit
- Shallotthe original
- Onionabout as good a flavor fit
Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, vinegar, ham, thyme, butter. 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
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Cream of Tomato Soup107 recipes
Tomato Bisque61 recipes
Cream Tomato Soup28 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.