Arrabiata Sauce
As a kid, my mother cooked spaghetti sauce. And it was great, but there was one recipe and one recipe only. Over the years, I’ve come to discover the wide variety of different pasta sauce recipes, and one of my favorites is Arrabiata Sauce. Arrabiata sauce in preparation is not much different than a marinara sauce, but what makes it distinct is the addition of hot chili flakes and a bit of vinegar. These couple ingredients, give the sauce it’s name, which in Italian means “angry” and this spicy tangy sauce give your pasta a big, bold and loud flavor. There are all kinds of applications, and I’d urge you to make a large batch and freeze some, because you’ll want to eat it all the time. Hope you enjoy this Arrabiata recipe as much as I do.
Recipe Overview & Keys to Success
To make the best Arrabiata Sauce, just follow these few cooking techniques:
- The heat is what makes arrabiata sauce, arrabiata sauce, but it can be easy to over do it. The first time you make it, I’d suggest you go a bit easy on the chili flakes, and ease you’re way into it
- Frankly the same goes with the vinegar
- While you can certainly cook this sauce as long as you’d like (it can go for hours if you want), I actually only cook mine for between 1 – 2 hours. In that time, the tomatoes still retain some texture, and the sauce stays a bit lighter, which is how I like my arrabiata
ARRIBIATA SAUCE
Ingredients for Arrabiata Sauce
- 32 oz of canned crushed tomatoes
- 1 medium diced onion
- 1 small can tomato paste
- 4 – 5 garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon chili flakes
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons sugar (optional)
Arrabiata Sauce
- Heat a high sided sauté pan, or pot, over medium heat and coat the bottom with olive oil
- Add the diced onion & garlic and season with salt and pepper
- Toss the onion every couple minutes and sweat them until they become translucent
- Add the tomato paste to the onions, stirring it in, and allow it to cook for 4 – 5 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent sticking (if needed, turn down the heat)
- Add the chili flakes and allow those to cook for about a minute
- Add the canned tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and stir everything to combine
- At this point, you may want to add some water if the tomatoes look to thick (that water will evaporate as the sauce cooks and the flavors develop)
- Cover and allow the sauce to just simmer for about an hour
- Add half the vinegar, stir in and taste. If desired, add in more vinegar
- Cover the arrabiata sauce again, and cook at least another 20 minutes
- Taste once more, and reseason if desired. If you want a thicker sauce, just continue to simmer, uncovered until the desired consistency is reached
This arrabiata is great with all kinds of pastas, but can also be tossed together with some chicken, shrimp or seafood for a great sauce.
Wine Recommendation: Like most tomato sauces, I’m going to suggest a Chianti. Chianti seems to have a natural affinity with tomatoes, and although the tannin in red wine isn’t usually great with spicy foods, this wine is generally pretty light in the tannin and oak department and should work just fine.
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