Red main sauce is not an independent dish. However, it brings variety, adds piquancy and helps to give the dish a completely different taste. It should also be noted that a properly selected sauce can not only significantly improve, but also correct the taste of an unsuccessfully prepared dish.
The technological map of the red main sauce includes the following items: list of ingredients, preparation of components, heat treatment of products. We will stick to them in this article.
Step-by-step recipe for red main sauce
The basis of such a sauce is tomato or tomato paste. Also a prerequisite for the preparation of this sauce is toasting flour. She acts as a thickener. If you don’t pre-fry it, then the main red sauce will not have a very pleasant taste, and its consistency will be too malleable.
The considered gravy can be used not only for serving with a dish, but also used as the basis for the preparation of completely different sauces (for example, with wine, onions, vinegar, mushrooms and other spices).
So what components do we need to make a classic red main sauce? To do this, you need to purchase:
- fresh carrots not very large - 1 pc.;
- red onion - 1 head;
- parsley root - about 30 g;
- meat or vegetable broth (ordinary water can be used) - about 500 ml;
- wheat flour - about 40 g;
- tomato paste - not less than 55 g;
- village butter - 20 g;
- salt, white sugar, pepper - use at discretion.
Component Preparation
The flow chart of red main sauce requires strict adherence to all the rules for the preparation of this gravy. Otherwise, it will not turn out as tasty as we would like.
Before proceeding with the heat treatment of the sauce in question, all its components should be prepared. Onions must be peeled and then finely chopped with a sharp knife. Parsley root must also be treated exactly the same. As for fresh carrots, it should be grated (preferably large).
Gravy Heat Treatment
As soon as all the vegetables are chopped, they are laid out in a hot pan with melted cooking oil and sautéed until they are thoroughly browned.
At the same time, it is necessary to pour wheat flour into a separate stewpan and fry it until golden. After partial cooling of the ingredient, pour meat or vegetable broth into it with a thin stream (in the absence of such, you can use ordinary boiled water), and then mix well, avoiding the formation of lumps.
After adding tomato paste to the stewpan, it is again put on fire and slowly brought to a boil. After this, the components must be mixed well, covered with a lid and cook over very low heat for about 11 minutes.
As soon as the main red sauce is ready, pepper, sugar and salt are added to it to taste, and then filtered. Next, the sautéed vegetable mass is ground to a slurry state using a blender and laid out in a saucepan with gravy. Having mixed the ingredients, they are again brought to a boil and cooked for at least 3 minutes.
How to serve?
You can present the main red sauce to the table with various dishes and snacks. In this case, the gravy can be hot or cold. Also in it you can additionally add any spices and seasonings.
Features of the preparation of red meat sauce
Now you know how to make red basic sauce at home. Cooking this sauce does not take much time. If you want to serve it with a meat dish, then it is better to prepare the sauce on a strong beef broth. Also, at the very end of cooking the gravy, it is advisable to add 1 or 2 large spoons of port and a similar amount of fresh butter to the pan. This will make the sauce more aromatic and rich, which will significantly improve the taste of a meat dish.
Features of the preparation of red sauce for fish
If you want to emphasize the taste of fish dinner, as well as make it more saturated, then it is advisable to cook red sauce on strong fish broth. In this case, you can use absolutely any kind of fish product (from dietary to maximally fatty). It is also advisable to add 2-3 chopped pickled cucumbers, a slice of lemon and 5-6 olives to the gravy. All of the listed ingredients should be converted into mashed potatoes along with passivated onions and carrots, and then also add them to a previously prepared product.
Whichever of the main recipes of red sauce you choose, you can be completely sure that your meat or fish dish will certainly sparkle with new and unusual colors, as well as pleasantly surprise all invited guests.