Home / Tomato Sauce with Onion & Butter (Thermomix & Conventional Method)

Tomato Sauce with Onion & Butter (Thermomix & Conventional Method)

This is a recipe that I was re-introduced to after watching a fantastic documentary on the amazing Marcella Hazan while flying back from overseas last month!

If you get a chance to watch it, the documentary is simply called “Marcella” released in 2024. She is a culinary icon and introduced the simplicity and deliciousness of Italian cooking to millions of people.

Where Julia Childs introduced French cooking to America, Marcella Hazan introduced Italian cooking to America. Her first cookbook – “The Classic Italian Cookbook” – was released in 1973 and included this recipe which was simply called “Tomato Sauce III”. The recipe name was then changed to “Tomato Sauce with Onion & Butter”, when included in her “Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking” released in 1992, and that’s pretty much all that is in the sauce – just three ingredients!

I can remember making this in the early 90’s using a saucepan on the stove (pre-Thermomix era), as Marcella’s original recipe did, but after seeing the documentary, I thought it would be a perfect recipe to prepare using the new “Open Cooking Mode” of the Thermomix TM7. And it is!!

With only three ingredients, it is ridiculously simple to prepare, using whichever method you prefer, and the inclusion of the butter creates a wonderfully rich & unctuous flavour and smoothness, almost like an hours-simmered meat ragu, without the time (or the meat)! Delicious!!

As with all great Italian cooking, where the number of ingredients are minimal, the key to success is to use the best quality ingredients that you can as there is nowhere to hide with their flavours. So I would recommend you use the best Italian tin tomatoes (I use the Mutti brand or a similar San Marzano type) or the ripest, sweetest tomatoes if you would like to use fresh, and a very good quality butter.

Let me know what you think and which method below you prepared it with! Please refer to my TIPS at the end of the recipes.

Buon appetito!! Grazie Marcella!!

(Makes about 1.2L)

INGREDIENTS

3 x 400g tins whole peeled Roma tomatoes* (I prefer to use the Mutti brand, or if you can’t source them, any good quality Italian tin tomatoes from San Marzano)

2 brown onions (200g each) peeled and cut in half horizontally (along its equator)

110g unsalted butter

2 tsp sea salt, plus more to taste

(*Alternatively, use 1.5kg of the ripest fresh tomatoes that have been blanched and skins removed.)

TM7 – OPEN COOKING METHOD

Place tomatoes into TM bowl and gently crush – Manual Mode | 10sec | SP4.
Add remaining ingredients to bowl and cook – Open Cooking | 30 min | 100C | No Lid.
Reduce heat and continue to cook – Open Cooking | 45 min | 95C | No Lid.
Use spatula to gently stir & scrape the bottom every 20 minutes or so, from Step 2, to prevent any possible sticking.
Season to taste for any additional salt.
Remove and discard onion halves*.
Serve with your favourite pasta.

TM6/TM5 METHOD

Place tomatoes into TM bowl and gently crush – 15sec | SP4.
Remove crushed tomatoes to a bowl and insert Blade Cover.
Return crushed tomatoes and add remaining ingredients to bowl and cook – 1h 15min (75 minutes) | 100C | SP STIR | Reverse | MC Off. ((Place Steaming Basket on lid to prevent spluttering.)
Season to taste for any additional salt.
Remove and discard onion halves*.
Serve with your favourite pasta.

CONVENTIONAL STOVE-TOP METHOD

Place tomatoes into a medium sized saucepan. Use a spoon or masher to gently crush tomatoes (or gently crush in a food processor).
Add halved onion, butter and salt.
Bring to a simmer over a medium heat and cook, uncovered, for 60-75 minutes, stirring the sauce occasionally as it slowly bubbles and thickens. The sauce is done when you see a thin film of fat on the surface.
Season to taste for any additional salt.
Remove and discard onion halves*.
Serve with your favourite pasta.

NICO’S TIPS:

Although not in Marcella’s original recipe, I stir in about 10 fresh basil leaves in the last 5 minutes of cooking.
This sauce can be frozen. Remove and discard onion before freezing.
I cut the discarded onion into 2cm squares and use it to top my “Cherry Tomato & Onion Focaccia” instead of the red onion in the recipe. (Cookidoo Link – Cherry Tomato & Red Onion Focaccia)
Add this sauce and warm through to whatever flavours you like such as :
- Arrabbiata Sauce – sautéed diced bacon (or even diced chorizo), onion & chilli then heated through prepared sauce
- Meatball Sauce – add cooked & browned meatballs then heated through prepared sauce.
- Quick Bolognese – sautéed diced carrot, celery, onion with browned mince then heated through prepared sauce
- Pizza bases

I love to hear how our recipes are working for you! Please don’t hesitate in contacting us at urbanprovider@icloud.com with any of your feedback, or if you have any questions about any part of the recipes.

Tomato Sauce with Onion & Butter (Thermomix & Conventional Method)

This is a recipe that I was re-introduced to after watching a fantastic documentary on the amazing Marcella Hazan while flying back from overseas last month!

If you get a chance to watch it, the documentary is simply called “Marcella” released in 2024. She is a culinary icon and introduced the simplicity and deliciousness of Italian cooking to millions of people.

I can remember making this in the early 90’s using a saucepan on the stove (pre-Thermomix era), as Marcella’s original recipe did, but after seeing the documentary, I thought it would be a perfect recipe to prepare using the new “Open Cooking Mode” of the Thermomix TM7. And it is!!

With only three ingredients, it is ridiculously simple to prepare, using whichever method you prefer, and the inclusion of the butter creates a wonderfully rich & unctuous flavour and smoothness, almost like an hours-simmered meat ragu, without the time (or the meat)! Delicious!!

Let me know what you think and which method below you prepared it with! Please refer to my TIPS at the end of the recipes.

Buon appetito!! Grazie Marcella!!

(Makes about 1.2L)

INGREDIENTS

3 x 400g tins whole peeled Roma tomatoes* (I prefer to use the Mutti brand, or if you can’t source them, any good quality Italian tin tomatoes from San Marzano)

2 brown onions (200g each) peeled and cut in half horizontally (along its equator)

110g unsalted butter

2 tsp sea salt, plus more to taste

(*Alternatively, use 1.5kg of the ripest fresh tomatoes that have been blanched and skins removed.)

TM7 – OPEN COOKING METHOD

Place tomatoes into TM bowl and gently crush – Manual Mode | 10sec | SP4.

Add remaining ingredients to bowl and cook – Open Cooking | 30 min | 100C | No Lid.

Reduce heat and continue to cook – Open Cooking | 45 min | 95C | No Lid.

Use spatula to gently stir & scrape the bottom every 20 minutes or so, from Step 2, to prevent any possible sticking.

Season to taste for any additional salt.

Remove and discard onion halves*.

Serve with your favourite pasta.

TM6/TM5 METHOD

Place tomatoes into TM bowl and gently crush – 15sec | SP4.

Remove crushed tomatoes to a bowl and insert Blade Cover.

Return crushed tomatoes and add remaining ingredients to bowl and cook – 1h 15min (75 minutes) | 100C | SP STIR | Reverse | MC Off. ((Place Steaming Basket on lid to prevent spluttering.)

Season to taste for any additional salt.

Remove and discard onion halves*.

Serve with your favourite pasta.

CONVENTIONAL STOVE-TOP METHOD

Place tomatoes into a medium sized saucepan. Use a spoon or masher to gently crush tomatoes (or gently crush in a food processor).

Add halved onion, butter and salt.

Bring to a simmer over a medium heat and cook, uncovered, for 60-75 minutes, stirring the sauce occasionally as it slowly bubbles and thickens. The sauce is done when you see a thin film of fat on the surface.

Season to taste for any additional salt.

Remove and discard onion halves*.

Serve with your favourite pasta.

NICO’S TIPS:

Although not in Marcella’s original recipe, I stir in about 10 fresh basil leaves in the last 5 minutes of cooking.

This sauce can be frozen. Remove and discard onion before freezing.

I cut the discarded onion into 2cm squares and use it to top my “Cherry Tomato & Onion Focaccia” instead of the red onion in the recipe. (Cookidoo Link – Cherry Tomato & Red Onion Focaccia)

Add this sauce and warm through to whatever flavours you like such as :

Arrabbiata Sauce – sautéed diced bacon (or even diced chorizo), onion & chilli then heated through prepared sauce

Meatball Sauce – add cooked & browned meatballs then heated through prepared sauce.

Quick Bolognese – sautéed diced carrot, celery, onion with browned mince then heated through prepared sauce

Pizza bases

I love to hear how our recipes are working for you! Please don’t hesitate in contacting us at urbanprovider@icloud.com with any of your feedback, or if you have any questions about any part of the recipes.