The Basics

The Basics
The basic ingredient for most sauce basis in Italian is Soffrito, in Spanish its Sofrito and in French its Mirepoix. They all refer to a combination of aromatic ingredients used as a base for dishes. And there can be variations of the ingredients. The very basic is a combination of celery; carrots and onions, chopped or diced into small pieces when added to hot olive oil and cooked down add a wonderful base to many sauces and soups. This should be cooked over medium high heat until softened, never over cook or brown, this will make your dish bitter and dry tasting.

Garlic
Garlic is a wonderful addition to so many dishes as well as by its self, first let’s add to soffrito. Cleaning garlic is simple, remove cloves from bulb two decent size cloves is plenty for a basic dish. Place on cutting board and smash with a large knife, remove outer skins and cut off the growing end.

The three cuts of garlic

Chopped fine: Used most in sauces, add to heated olive oil until it just releases its aroma, never brown. Quickly add other ingredients such as suffrito.

Sliced: I use this style most with boiled potatoes, I add the sliced garlic with the chopped potatoes before boiling to make mashed potatoes. More on this later.

Minced Garlic: Is a finely diced, you can also use a garlic press to create a mince. This is used in soup or stew bases

Basil:
Fresh is a great aromatic spice used in many Italian dishes. Buy it fresh and store for future use. To store rinse and pat leaves dry, remove any excessive branches. Place leaves on sheets of waxed paper and store in a large freezer storage bag, squish out any excessive air and seal, will keep up to six months.


Salt:
Sea salt is my preference for cooking. I keep two types around, course and fine, you will find throughout the recipes sea salt is used, it just has a better flavor. Never use a salt shaker to salt foods, pour the salt into your palm and salt recipe to your liking. I keep my salts in small bowls for easy access.

Pepper:
Pepper is the same, never use a shaker. Buy yourself a good pepper grinder and grind your own

Olive Oil:
Nearly all my recipes call for extra-virgin olive oil. I use it raw, cook with it, fry in it... But why should I specify extra-virgin, rather than virgin, pure, or light olive oil? The reasons are simple: flavor, quality, and healthfulness.

Extra-virgin olive oil is produced according to stricter guidelines than virgin, pure, or other olive oils, using the best that the fruit has to offer. It has deeper flavor, a more lingering aroma, and a more distinct olive character than other olive oils--therefore, you need to use less in any given recipe, because it delivers more flavor per tablespoon

Tomatoes:  

Cento San Marzano Peeled Tomatoes. These tomatoes are the best for making  sauces, imported from Italy these are top drawer for taste and texture