Preparing Roma Tomatoes for Making Sauce

First I wash the crop outside as needed, and sort the Romas into baskets after drying. They will not store well if left wet, so dry them!

Ripe ones get processed first, of course, or get otherwise used. It is not necessary to skin or quarter any of these you intend for sauce making. Just leave them whole and dry them after a second rinsing in the kitchen.

I cut out the blemishes, soft spots, and any rot as necessary from imperfect ripe ones ready to process. Use a serrated knife. As long as the meat of the tomato doesn't have an off odor, it's fine to use. A hole of any kind warrants cutting it open to make sure there isn't a worm inside, and rot, which must be cut away. My 92 year old neighbor, Mr. Wenger, jokes however that even the worm is all Roma!

Romas which are not fully ripe may be kept in a shallow basket in the garage until they get a good rich color. You have to examine them every other day or so to cull any that are spoiling.

When you're ready to make sauce, fill a large broiler pan with your tomatoes. Add a whole head of garlic, cloves separated but with their skins on and strewn over the fruit. Generously sprinkle extra virgin olive oil over everything.

Set your broiler to high and roast the Romas about four inches from the heat for roughly one hour or until the skins of the Romas blacken.

Let cool to room temperature and scrape everything, including the juice!, into a bowl. You can process immediately (next post) or store in the frig for several days, covered, until you're ready.

The smell in the house alone is worth the effort! Your heart will sing!

Grazie Signore!