Marinara sauce is a basic tomato sauce commonly used to top pasta dishes.
Marinara sauce is a basic, tomato-based sauce used in a variety of Italian and pasta dishes. One of the sauce's best qualities is its ability to be combined with spices and additives to create interesting flavors. The sauce has a long history, dating back more than 400 years to Spanish-occupied Italy. Like many other sauces, it developed out of necessity as a method to mask the taste of spoiling foods. While there are many various brands of marinara sauce available on the market and a wide array of recipes, the same basic ingredients are used. Marinara sauce is made with tomatoes, olive oil, herbs and spices.
Sauce Definition
According to What's Cooking America, the word sauce comes from a French word meaning relish and making food more delicious. Sauces are defined as liquid or semiliquid items added to dishes in order to make other foods more appetizing. In many cases, sauces were developed prior to the development of refrigeration and other food storage technology. Food spoiled quickly, and sauces were used to mask the odors and taste of spoiling food.
Origin
Marinara sauce developed in Naples, Italy around 1550, according to Food Reference. Spain occupied the kingdom of Naples during the 16th century and brought the tomato to popularity in the region. Marinara sauce and other tomato-based dishes became popular in Naples about 200 years prior to the rest of Europe.
Marinara and Fish
Marinara sauce means "sailor style" tomato sauce. It is thought that the sauce was originally developed by the wives of fishermen. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, fisher-wives tossed the sauce in with the catch brought home by their husbands to flavor the fish. The sauce's history of being used on fish dishes makes it a popular choice during the Lenten season when many families do not eat meat.
Recipe
Giada DeLaurentis of the Food Network published a tasty marinara sauce recipe on the network's website. The recipe calls for ½ cup of olive oil, two small chopped onions, two chopped garlic cloves, two chopped stalks of celery, two small chopped carrots, ½ tsp. sea salt, ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper, two 32-oz. cans of crushed tomatoes and two dried bay leaves. In a large casserole pot, sauté onions and garlic with the olive oil until the onions become translucent. Add in the vegetables, salt and pepper and sauté until the veggies are soft. Add tomatoes and bay leaves and simmer over low heat for about an hour. When sauce thickens, taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Cool and remove the bay leaves. Sauce can be made ahead and reheated as necessary.
Suggested Uses
In addition to being tossed with basic pasta noodles, the Cincinnati Review suggests several ways to use marinara sauce. Thinly sliced steaks pan-seared with onions and red wine can be topped with marinara sauce for a dinner known as Steak Pizzaiola. Make braised chicken with onions, garlic, white wine and marinara sauce for a twist on a basic chicken dish. Another idea is to cook sausage, add marinara sauce to the pan and cook clams in the sauce and sausage combination.
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