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Side · Pork

Escoffier’s Tomato Sauce

The French classic tomato sauce: bacon, carrot and onion, a little flour, tomatoes and stock, cooked slowly in the oven, then passed through a sieve. Smooth, rich and mild.

⏱ 2 hr (20 min prep, 1 hr 40 min cooking) 🍽 Serves 12 · ½ cup (makes about 6 cups) make aheadbudgetfreezer friendlyleftovers
📅 Add to my plan

ContainsMilk, Wheat. Check the labels on what you buy; brands differ.

Ingredients

Make 12 servings
  • 3 strip Bacon, diced
  • 1 tbsp Butter, unsalted
  • 1 Carrots, diced
  • 1 Yellow onion, diced
  • 1 leaf Bay leaves
  • ¼ tsp Dried thyme
  • 3 tbsp All-purpose flour
  • 2 can Whole peeled tomatoes, 28-oz cans, with juice, crushed by hand (or 5 lb ripe tomatoes, chopped)
  • 2 cup Chicken broth
  • 1 clove Garlic, crushed
  • 2 tsp Granulated sugar
  • ½ tsp Table salt
  • ¼ tsp Ground black pepper (to taste)

Make it yourself

Make the butter yourself → Make the chicken stock yourself →

In the planner, Make it on the shopping list swaps the store item for these ingredients and puts the work on your prep day.

Nutrition

Nutrition coming: the USDA numbers for these ingredients are being added.

📜 Where it comes from

Auguste Escoffier (1846–1935), the Savoy (1890–1898) and Carlton (1899–1919) hotels, London.

A Guide to Modern Cookery (London: William Heinemann, 1907; the English edition of Le Guide culinaire, Paris, 1903), No. 29, p. 22: “Tomato Sauce”.

“Fry the pork with the butter in a tall, thick-bottomed saucepan. When the pork is nearly melted, add the carrots, onions, and aromatics… cover the saucepan, and place in a moderate oven, where it may cook for one and one-half hours.”

The original text, quoted as printed; it is in the public domain.

Escoffier counted tomato sauce among his basic sauces, a sign of how far tomatoes had come in French cooking by 1900.

What we changed: His batch was four quarts from 10 pounds of tomatoes with salted pork breast; we make about 6 cups with bacon and canned tomatoes, which are good all year.

Escoffier did this work in London before Michelin gave out its first stars (1926), so no star ratings apply.

Internet Archive scan (Cornell University Library)Project Gutenberg textLe Guide culinaire, 1903 (Internet Archive)Auguste EscoffierMore from the great kitchens →

Steps

You’ll need: heavy ovenproof pot with a lid (5 quarts), wooden spoon, food mill, sieve or blender.

  1. Heat the oven to 325°F. In the pot over medium heat, cook the bacon in the butter until the fat runs, about 4 minutes.
  2. Add the carrot, onion, bay leaf and thyme and cook, stirring, until soft, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour and stir 2 to 3 minutes, until it just begins to brown.
  3. Stir in the tomatoes and stock, scraping the bottom, then the garlic, sugar, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.
  4. Cover and move the pot to the oven. Cook 1½ hours, stirring once halfway.
  5. Take out the bay leaf. Pass the sauce through a food mill or press it through a sieve (or blend it smooth). Bring it back to a boil on the stove, stirring, and taste for salt.

🌡 Safe temperaturesLeftovers, reheated 165°F. Check the thickest part with a food thermometer (USDA). More on food safety.

Make aheadMake up to 4 days ahead and refrigerate; it tastes even better the next day.
❄️ FreezerFreeze in 1- or 2-cup containers, leaving ½ inch of room, up to 4 months for best quality. Thaw in the fridge and reheat to 165°F.
↺ LeftoversRefrigerate within 2 hours; use within 3 to 4 days on pasta, eggs, chicken or pizza, reheated to 165°F.
🧒 With kidsKids can crush the canned tomatoes by hand in a big bowl (it’s messy and they love it).
Gluten-free swapLeave out the flour and cook the sauce uncovered for the last 30 minutes so it thickens by reducing.
Meatless swapLeave out the bacon, use 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil, and use vegetable broth.

Good to know

Cooking Fats Compared Salted vs. unsalted butter Fresh vs. dried herbs All-purpose vs. bread flour (and friends) Stock vs. broth Table salt vs. kosher salt vs. sea salt Food Safety Basics

Our own adaptation of a public-domain recipe, in our own words. Nutrition is estimated from USDA FoodData Central and changes with brands and portions.