I’ve always wondered why Cumberland sauce wasn’t more popular around the holidays. It’s such a delicious and versatile condiment, and just as easy and fast to make as any cranberry sauce out there. Maybe it’s the name?
Cumberland sauce sounds more like something that the Queen would be spooning over a Quail en Croute than it does Uncle Charlie over a slice of ham. However, despite this sassy sauce’s upper-crusty sounding name, it’s actually quite rustic.
My “Black Cumberland” version uses black currants instead of the traditional red, and also includes some very browned-blackened onions, but like all similar recipes, this begs for even further adaptation depending on the meat. Maybe a little mint for lamb, or a touch of cardamom for that smoked duck breast?
Notwithstanding any flavor variations, you will still need to decide whether to serve hot or not. I definitely prefer the thick, shiny cooled-down version as shown, but happily, there’s no wrong choice. I hope you give this extra special holiday sauce a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients to make about 1 1/2 cups Cumberland Sauce: 1 tsp vegetable oil 1/2 cup minced onions 1 cup black or red currant jelly
zest from 2 oranges and 1 lemon
1/3 cup red wine
1/2 cup orange juice
2-3 tbsp lemon juice 2 tspblack pepper, or to taste
Whenever there’s a discussion about the history of celebrity chef pop culture, one name is invariably left out, and this Swedish Meatballs recipe served as a reminder of that sad fact. How anyone can talk about the pioneers of food television without including the Swedish Chef from the Muppets is beyond me.
His frenetic energy and charisma makes Gordon Ramsey seem like a shrinking violet by comparison. His technique surpasses Emeril's on every level, and if we’re just talking catch phrases, how can you even begin to compare “Yummo” to “Bork, Bork, Bork?”
Some use the excuse that he wasn’t actually real, that he was just a bunch of stained, smelly fabric, wrapped around some dude’s hairy forearm. Well, that may be true, but it goes beyond that. I believe there’s been a systematic discrimination against Swedish chefs, which has made advancing upward impossible. I call it the ice ceiling.
Do NOT forget the Lingonberry jam!
Anyway, in related news, these Swedish meatballs rocked! Unlike most of the recipes I post here, I’ve had little experience with the recipe, but was very happy with the results, except for one major issue, which I mention in the video. I broke the cardinal rule of meatball making, and used lean meat.
Not paying attention, I picked up a package of ground pork that turned out to be 95% lean. The horror. I might as well have used tofu. Nonetheless, I loved the flavor, butimplore you to use regular ground beef, and ground pork with a 75/25 lean-to-fat ratio. Do that, and you’ll be enjoying a plate of meatballs even the world's most under appreciated celebrity chef would love. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 4 large portions:
For the meatballs:
2 tbsp butter
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup milk
2 large eggs
1/3 cup plain bread crumbs
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
pinch of cayenne
1 pound ground chuck
1 pound ground pork
*Note: you can always cook a little piece to taste for salt, and adjust from there.
Brown meatballs in 425 degrees F. oven for about 20-25 minutes.
You would think the vast majority of the visitors to this blog would be fine with me posting a new holiday cranberry sauce every year, but apparently that’s not the case.
After posting the tease picture for this lovely ginger, pear, cranberry sauce, I received a bunch of comments and emails with the same basic message, “please don’t, you’re confusing us.”
Evidently, some people like our past cranberry sauce recipes so much, that they don’t know if they should stick with them, or try a new version. It’s causing quite the dilemma. Do you go with the one you know you love, and that garnered so many compliments, or do you try something new and risk it all?
Sorry, I really can’t help you decide, but at least let me make an already tough call, even tougher. This gingery, pear-studded cranberry sauce was simply amazing. I’ve been wanting to try pear in a cranberry sauce forever, and this was so fantastic that I’m a little upsetI waited this long.
Anyway, I hope your Thanksgiving menu is shaping up nicely, and that tomorrow will bring a table full of fabulous food. Whether you use this cranberry sauce, or an older version, or heaven help us, one from another blog, I hope you and your family have a great holiday. Enjoy!
Ingredients for about 2 cups: 12 oz fresh whole cranberries
1 large bosc pear, peeled, diced
2 oz candied ginger, minced
zest of 1 large orange
1 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 whole star anise
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp garam masala (an Indian-style curry spice blend)
After five years, and a few thousand requests, I’m finally posting my “ultimate” ranch dressing recipe. What makes it the “ultimate?” Nothing, except that’s what I’m calling it, and in the world of dips and dressings, that makes it so. By the way, ignore those other roughly 65,000 “ultimate” recipes; this one is the actual “ultimate” ranch dressing.
It’s been ages since I made homemade ranch dressing, and I’d forgotten how much better it is than the bottled stuff. Don’t get me wrong; I like high-fructose corn syrup, artificial flavorings, and preservatives as much as the next low-information voter, but this really is significantly more delicious.
As you’ll see, I used some crème fraiche (which we showed you how to make in this video), but relax, sour cream will work perfectly. However, I do believe the buttermilk is crucial. That some of my peers are calling their ranch dressings “ultimate” without using buttermilk, really makes me question their grasp of the word “ultimate.”
Anyway, hyperbole aside, this really is the best ranch dressing I’ve ever had, and I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!
This shining example of what a few well-placed ingredients can do to a plain piece of meat reminded me of a couple very important things. By the way, if you’re new to cooking, being reminded of stuff is one of the best parts.
First of all, it had me recalling the old, “if it doesn’t have a bone in it, it’s really not a chop.” Of course, search engines being what they are, we were forced to use the oxymoronic “boneless, center-cut pork chops” instead of the traffic stunting “pork medallions.” Not a big deal, but worth mentioning in case you’re ever backed into a corner during a heated, butchery-related water cooler debate.
Secondly, I remembered I need to redo that demo I did for another website many years ago, on how to cut your own boneless, center-cut pork chops, thereby saving some cash. It’s a quick and simple trick, and one I’m sure many of you will remind me I forgot about in a few weeks.
Anyway, the glossy glaze is really easy, and while there’s no starch or extra butter involved, it reduces quickly to a thick, rich, sweet-tart apple syrup. The rosemary and pepper flakes were the perfect accents for me, but this is a technique that begs for your own personal touches. I hope you give this simple and very tasty pork “chop” recipe a try soon. Enjoy!
Way back when, the only way you would’ve found out about a regional recipe like Chicken Riggies, would have been to eat it while traveling through Central New York.
You would’ve loved it (because there’s nothing not to love) and maybe even tried to recreate it when you got home, but more likely it would have ended up fading into nothing more than a pleasant memory; referred to as “that rigatoni we had in Utica.”
I’m sure you’ll plan a trip through the lovely Utica/Rome area of New York State eventually, but in the meantime, I offer up my take on this thoroughly enjoyable plate of pasta. I think it’s fairly authentic, with two notable exceptions. I use Marsala instead of the standard white wine, and use roughly chopped thigh meat, instead of the more popular chicken breasts.
This results in a sauce that seems much richer than it actually is, and I think you’ll love the subtle sweetness the wine imparts, which works wonderfully with the heat from the peppers. Of course, as I joke about in the video, forget how tasty the recipe is…it’s worth making just for the name alone. What’s for dinner? Chicken Riggies! Riggies? Yes, Riggies!
Anyway, if you’re from Central New York, I hope I did your venerable recipe proud. If you’re not, I hope you give this gorgeous rigatoni recipe a try, and experience what only a few decades ago, you may not have ever heard of. Enjoy!
I had heard that some sauerbratens were finished by thickening the sauce with ground gingersnaps, but had never tried it since it just sounds so wrong. It certainly doesn’t seem very German. Cookies in a sauce? What’s next, laughing in public?
Anyway, I’ve had a lot of “do something German!” food wishes lately, and since I’ve wanted to post another short ribs recipe, this seemed like the perfect opportunity to go full cookie. The results shocked and amazed me. This was comfort food at it's finest.
The 24-hour marinade ensured the succulent rib meat had that signature tanginess, and those little cookies not only gave the sauce a beautiful texture, but also added a great spicy sweetness. I am now officially in favor of using cookies to finish savory sauces.
With cooler weather on the way, it’s time to rediscover the simple joy of slowly stewed meat, and what better way than with this delicious take on a German classic? I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
For the marinade
3 lbs short ribs, seasoned with salt and pepper
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2/3 cup cider vinegar
2/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 1/2 cups water, plus 1 cup cold water at end to cool marinade down
In this age of cutting back on fat whenever and wherever we can (and by “we” I mean “you”), we forget that throughout most of history, this was the complete opposite. Fat was a concentrated, powerful fuel that literally kept people going, and this red eye gravy is a little taste of those times.
The challenge in tough times is to make those greasy pan drippings more palatable, more interesting, and more delicious. It’s not like families struggling through the depression had pots of demiglace reducing on the stove, or bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon sitting around to deglaze their cast iron skillets – heck, they probably didn’t even have a decent Merlot. So they used what they had; like a splash of leftover coffee.
Is this a recipe that would have been developed based solely on how awesome it tastes? Probably not, but that’s not to say it isn’t still very tasty. It is. The way the bitter coffee marries with the sweet, smoky fat is far from unpleasant, and infinitely better than simply pouring the pan drippings over your food.
By the way, the name apparently comes from the fact that when the sauce is poured in a bowl and brought to the table, the fat and coffee separate, it takes on the appearance of a big, reddish eye. Of course there’s another legend about how General Andrew Jackson told a hung-over cook to make a gravy for his ham that was as red as his bloodshot eyes.
I’m pretty sure whoever made up that story also had very red eyes, but not from whiskey. Anyway, like I said in the video, I did this as more of a culinary experiment than a “you have to try this” recipe, but regardless, I think it’s an interesting dish, and one I’d be interested in hearing about if you do try. Enjoy!
It may be blasphemy to say that hot fudge isn’t the ultimate warm ice cream topping, but after tasting this amazing salted caramel sauce, that’s exactly what I’m suggesting.
Hot fudge has a lot going for it – namely it’s hot and it’s fudge – but the way this complex, salty, slightly bittersweet caramel marries with the vanilla ice cream is a wonder to behold. Actually, I just had a thought…next time let’s use both!
The procedure couldn’t be easier, but you really should be sure to use a heavy-bottomed pot, and one that’s plenty big enough. As you’ll see, the sugar can really bubble up and over, and will make a sticky mess of biblical proportions.
Also, be extremely careful not to drip, spill, or splash any of the caramelized sugar on your skin. We’re talking instant 3rd degree burns. In fact, if you’re kind of clumsy, maybe it’s best not to take a chance, and just have the kids make it for you.
I know some of you will want an exact temperature for knowing when to turn off the heat and add the butter and cream, but I don’t have one. I’ve always gone by look and feel, and I’m not changing at this late age. Having said that, I'm sure there are a thousand links where you can get that kind of information.
Anyway, I really hope you put this on your culinary bucket list. Homemade salted caramel sauce is one of those things we all need to experience before heading to that big ice cream parlor in the sky. Enjoy!
Ingredients for about 1 1/4 cup Salted Caramel Sauce:
1 cup white sugar
5 tbsp butter, cut in slices
1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream (*Sorry, don’t ask me about substitutions. This needs cream!)
As promised, here’s the tomato concasse video I mentioned during the Steak Pizzaiola recipe. The technique is relatively quick and easy, and will allow you enjoy those gorgeous summer tomatoes sans skin and seeds.
If you're feeling really ambitious, you could do a few quarts, and can them for the winter. Sure, those San Marzano tomatoes are fine, but there's nothing like putting up your own. Enjoy!
This is what happens when you have two food wishes in your head at the same time. I’ve wanted to do a schnitzel video für immer, but thanks to another recent food wish, I was also craving biscuits with cream gravy. So, I sort of did both, and it worked out well. Very well.
The crispy pork cutlet part of the presentation is very simple and straightforward, but it did afford the opportunity to share my new breading system. With all the time you’ll save, you can hit the gym to burn off this less than light, but extremely satisfying meal.
I’ve never been a big fan of the 3-pan breading system. Once you dredge meat in the prescribed dish of seasoned flour, you have to toss the rest. The whole idea is to simply coat the meat with flour, so why not just sprinkle on already seasoned meat? We use much less flour that way, and with zero waste.
From there, we’re not dipping these in a bowl of beaten eggs. Why do that, when we can just dump one egg on to the same plate and toss to coat. Faster, easier, and one egg is plenty for four cutlets.
As far as the cream gravy goes, the jalapenos and green onion probably seem logical, but some may raise an eyebrow over the diced dill pickle. I’m not sure exactly why I added them, but I just had one of those feelings. Pickles and pork, dill and cream sauce, it felt right, and it tasted even righter.
By the way, you can substitute veal, beef, turkey or chicken for the pork without missing a beat. Anyway, I hope you give this easy pork cutlet, delicious cream gravy, and/or new breading system a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 8 Cutlets (makes four entrée size portions of 2 cutlets each):
When people ask me if I fear eventually running out of things to video, I say no, and then joke that even if I did, I’d just start filming them all over again to keep that sweet ad revenue flowing in.
While that wasn’t the reason, I did think about that while filming this new and possibly improved creamed spinach recipe. As I’ve admitted before, every once in a while I’ll film something because I feel like eating it, and not because it’s a food wish. This lovely side dish is one such recipe.
I was driving over the Bay Bridge a few weeks ago, and C.R.E.A.M. by the Wu-Tang Clan was on the stereo. As Raekwon the Chef and Method Man serenaded me over the foggy span, I started to crave a steak and side of creamed spinach. This happens more than I care to admit, where a song triggers a yearning for some sort of tasty bite. Please tell me this happens to you too.
This more contemporary creamed spinach recipe is very similar flavor-wise to our previously posted “Steakhouse Creamed Spinach,” but since it doesn’t use a béchamel, it’s a bit lighter in texture. You'll need to use a nice heavy cream, since it thickens beautifully as it reduces, leaving you with a simple, but still luxurious sauce.
The only way to ruin this dish is to not squeeze all the water out of the cooked spinach. If that’s covered, the rest is pretty simple. Keep in mind that even perfect squeezed spinach will still thin out the sauce a bit; so don’t be afraid to reduce the cream until quite thick. You can always add another drizzle of cream if you go too far.
Anyway, as the WTC would say, I hope you’re trying to hear what I'm kickin' in your ear. This would make a great side dish for your next steak dinner, and you should give it a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 4 portions:
2 pounds cleaned spinach
2 tsp olive oil
For the cream sauce:
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp minced shallots
pinch of salt, cayenne, freshly ground black pepper to taste
This quick and very dirty recipe for black onion relish was quite delicious on grilled salmon, but with every bite I became more and more agitated, thinking about how utterly perfect this would have been on a grilled hot dog.
If you’re one of these enlightened souls that enjoy grilled onions on their ballpark franks, you will love this sweet and smoky condiment.
There’s something about how the onion roasts in its own charred skin, buried in the white-hot coals, which brings a goodness not achievable in a pan. Believe me when I say, my next hot hog WILL be wearing this relish.
As usual, I played it straight with the seasonings, but if I had a dollar for every way you could adapt this relish recipe, I’d have enough money to pay someone to think of a real ending for this post. Enjoy!
Ingredients for about 1 1/2 cups: 2 yellow onions
1 red pepper
chopped parsley, to taste
cayenne, salt and pepper to taste
*Dress with oil and vinegar to taste - I used about 3 tbsp olive oil and 3 tbsp vinegar
Cinco de Mayo, or as I like to call it "Mexican St. Patrick’s Day," is almost here, and as everyone knows, the cornerstone of any great CDM celebration is the salsa cruda. It has to be homemade, and it has to be awesome. Actually, if you serve enough margaritas you could get away with store-bought, but for the sake of this post, let’s just go with it.
Salsa cruda simply means a raw sauce, and that’s really the only rule. This is also commonly called “pico de gallo,” which means “rooster's beak,” apparently because it was originally eaten by “pecking” or pinching small portions from the bowl with your thumb and forefinger. I’m going to ask that you please use a chip.
I’d say my formula is fairly standard, except for the cherry/grape tomatoes and the mint. Unless you’re blessed with a bounty of real, sweet, vine-ripened tomatoes, your best bet for a world class salsa is cherry tomatoes. While not a perfect substitute, they'll have the most similar flavor to the aforementioned summer treat. The mint brings a subtle, sweet twist and even more refreshing finish.
One word of warning: make twice as much as you think you are going to need…this stuff is seriously addictive. By the way, as I just informed my faithful followers on YouTube, I pronounce, “salsa,” “sal-za,” simply because I find it more festive. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 pound cherry or grape tomatoes, cut into a small dice
My friends at All Clad recently sent me an invitation to take part in a contest to develop a recipe showing off their 10-inch Stainless Steel Fry Pan. After carefully considering the offer for several seconds, I let them know I’d be thrilled to participate, and even more thrilled to accept their free pan.
After a little brainstorming, I decided seared beef medallions with pan sauce would best highlight the benefits of using this type of pan. Once I decided on a general direction, it was time to pick ingredients. For medallion meat, I chose soft and buttery tenderloin. For the pan sauce, I went with mushrooms and tomato, as I knew they’d allow me to show how spectacular a sauce one can achieve with proper caramelization.
There are two huge advantages to high-quality cookware (three, if you count how cool they look hanging on your pot rack). Because the steel is thicker and denser, the pan not only retains heat much better, but it distributes that heat very evenly. In this recipe, the advantages of both are seen quite clearly.
First of all, we’re able to do a very high-heat sear, with the surface of the medallions getting a beautiful brown crust, while the inside stays nice and rare, thanks to the short cooking time the pan’s heat retention affords.
Secondly, as we’re caramelizing the mushrooms and tomato sauce, you can see the advantages of superior heat distribution. This sauce is very easy, but if you’re using a thin, cheap pan, you’re going to get “hot spots,” which makes browning the sauce base more difficult. Certain areas will scorch and burn quickly, and you don’t get nice even caramelization. Here, you can see that wasn't an issue.
Above and beyond the advantages of the cookware, the recipe tasted amazing. I mean, come on, I can’t give the pan all the credit. It’s one of those dishes that unless someone watched you make it, they’d never believe how fast and simple it is to prepare. By the way, this wonderful sauce would work just as well with pork, veal, or chicken.
Anyway, thanks to All Clad for the pan and invitation to participate in this contest. I can’t wait to see what other bloggers are participating, and what they’re making. Please stay tuned for more details and results in the near future. In the meantime, I hope you give this great recipe a try soon. Enjoy!
(Since this was for a contest, I was forced to type up the recipe!)
Seared Beef Tenderloin Medallions with Caramelized Tomato & Mushroom Pan Sauce
For 4 servings:
2 lbs beef tenderloin, trimmed, cut into 8 (4-oz) medallions, about 1-inch thick (this will also work with chicken breasts or pork chops)
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon vegetable oil for searing
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
8-10 white button mushrooms, sliced thin
1/2 cup marinara sauce (mine had basil and garlic in it, but any prepared tomato sauce will work)
1/3 cup Marsala wine
1 cup veal stock or chicken broth
2 tsp freshly chopped oregano leaves
1 1/2 tablespoons cold butter, cut into cubes
Season beef medallions generously with salt and pepper to taste. Put vegetable oil in a stainless steel pan, and place over high heat. When the oil just begins to smoke, sear the beef for about 2 minutes per side. The meat should get a nice brown crust, but do not cook all the way through, as it will finish cooking in the sauce. Turn off heat, and remove beef to a plate, and reserve until needed.
Add the butter and olive oil to the pan, and place over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and a pinch of salt. Cook the mushrooms, stirring often, for about 10 minutes, or until very well browned. Add the tomato sauce, and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes, or until the tomato sauce thickens and caramelizes on to the bottom of the pan.
Pour in the Marsala wine, and raise heat to high. As the wine comes up to a boil, use a wooden spoon to scrap any caramelized bits on the bottom of the pan. When almost all the wine has evaporated, add the stock or broth. Bring to a boil, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture has reduced by about half.
Reduce the heat to low, and add the beef medallions back in. Simmer gently for 2-3 minutes, or until the meat is heated through and cooked to your preference. You can add more stock if sauce seems too thick.
Remove the medallions, and divide on four hot plates. Turn the heat off under the sauce, and stir in the oregano and cold butter. Stir constantly until butter has disappeared into the sauce. Taste for seasoning, and adjust if needed. Spoon over meat and serve immediately. Enjoy!
I would have gotten more search engine juice had I named this, “Hot Fudge Sauce,” but it wouldn’t have been technically correct, and you know what a stickler I am for using precise terminology (if you’re new to the blog, that was an attempt at self-effacing humor).
So, while it’s true I generally play fast and loose with recipe titles, when they really do mean different things, I try to come correct.
What makes this a chocolate sauce, and not hot fudge, is the fact that it doesn’t firm up when it hits the ice cream. True hot fudge sauce is actually melted, liquefied fudge, and by the time it finishes its slow slalom down the side of your sundae, it will resemble its namesake.
Hot fudge requires the sauce to be cooked to a specific temperature, for a certain time, and is generally a trickier operation than the simple sauce you see here. Like I said in the video, I’m sure we will eventually do a hot fudge video, but in the meantime, this ultra easy chocolate sauce should work fine.
Unlike hot fudge, chocolate sauce (aka chocolate syrup) will stay in liquid form even after it hits the cold, creamy stuff. Of course it gets a bit thicker as it cools, but it will not harden into actual fudge. If you are looking for comparisons, this may remind you of a thicker version of a certain canned chocolate syrup from Pennsylvania.
Anyway, if you are a regular buyer of store-bought chocolate sauce, and didn’t realize how easy it is to make your own at home, then I hope you give this recipe a try. Enjoy!
Harissa is probably my all-time favorite hot sauce, and one I’m sure you’ve seen me use in a bunch of recipes here. As I mention in the video, a small spoonful of this makes virtually any savory dish better.
Now, I’ll admit to usually buying mine in convenient tubes imported straight from Tunisia, but I decided to show you my homemade version, since I do get the occasional note saying, “Chef John, I’m in the witness protection program, living in rural North Dakota, and they don’t carry many North African condiments at the market...what else can I use?”
As with any similar recipe, there are countless variations using many different combinations of fresh, roasted, boiled, and dried chili peppers. Same goes for the spice, but I really like the blend listed below. Dried mint really has a unique, and much different flavor than the fresh herb, and as I hope you experience, toasting the caraway and coriander does wonderful things.
I could do a 5000-word essay on what you can do with this sauce, but just for starters consider these ideas; Harissa aioli, pizza sauce, sandwich spread, steak sauce, chicken marinade, and rubbed on your knee to help that arthritis (warning: check with your family doctor before starting any sauce-based treatments).
Anyway, if you’ve seen me use Harissa, and were frustrated that you didn’t have access to any of this magical product, now you can make your own. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
2 red bell peppers, fire roasted, peeled, seeded
6-7 red Fresno chili, seeded
1 habanero, seeded
4-5 garlic cloves, peeled
1⁄4 to 1/2 tsp caraway seeds
1⁄4 to 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
1⁄2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried mint
1 tsp kosher salt or to taste
juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, added to blender at very end (do not blend more than a few seconds)
Instead of wearing something green in honor of Saint Patrick's Day, I decided to post something green. There are robins in the garden, baseball on the radio, and soon you’ll be cooking out on the patio; and what better sauce to have around for those occasions than the delicious-on-anything chimichurri? (click here to get ingredients, and read the original post)
Besides being very green, this recipe is also perfect for a St. Paddy’s Day re-post because, as legend has it, an Irishman named Jimmy McCurry (who fought alongside Argentinean rebels in the early 1800's) is credited with introducing this sauce to the America’s. Thanks, McCurry, and a happy Saint Patrick's Day to you all! Enjoy!
I can assure you that the anchovies in this pizza sauce recipe are there for the subtle saltiness and unique savoriness they provide, and not just so you can tell your friend (the one who really hates anchovies) that they just ate some. Could it be for both? Sure.
This pizza sauce recipe represents a new and improved version of the one we posted way back in 2007. We snuck in some of the aforementioned fish, and we’re also using both fresh and dried oregano. I love this sauce. If there’s a tastier, all-purpose pizza sauce recipe out there, I haven’t tried it.
Convention wisdom says that great pizza is all about the crust. Which is certainly a huge factor, but if you were given the choice between a great crust topped with a bad sauce, and a grocery store crust made with a delicious, world-class sauce, which would you prefer?
Texture aside, no mater how they're combined, flour, water, and yeast can only taste so bad. But, a terrible sauce can actually make a slice of pizza inedible. I can’t remember ever not eating a piece of pizza because the crust was so awful, but I've given up after biting into an inferior sauce before.
Of course, around these parts the argument is completely academic since we’ve not only provided you with a plan for perfect sauce, but given you several great pizza dough recipes, like our famous no-knead pizza dough, as well as the venerable Wolfgang Puck California-style dough recipe. I hope you make pizza soon. Enjoy!
