How do I properly add tomato paste to meat sauce?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wait, op, you mean to store-bought pasta sauce? Not to homemade?
The same way, I guess, you drop it, heat it, and stir it.

Yes, I'm not making tomato sauce from scratch. I buy it at Trader Joe's.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, op, you mean to store-bought pasta sauce? Not to homemade?
The same way, I guess, you drop it, heat it, and stir it.

Yes, I'm not making tomato sauce from scratch. I buy it at Trader Joe's.

Are you buying meat sauce at TJ's or marinara and adding meat?

If I was adding meat, I'd probably add some onions too. I'd saute the onions add the meat and brown it, then make a well like in the Gordon Ramsay video and add the tomato sauce in the well, heat it a little, mix it with the browned meat, and then pour the TJ sauce in and heat it through.

If you are buying it with meat in, I don't have a suggestion, because I've never done that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I make a bolognese, I cook the meat and finely chopped veg first, then add the tomato paste, coat everything, and cook it all together on a medium heat, stirring so it doesn't scorch and letting it caramelize. Then I add the crushed tomatoes and let it cook slowly.

This is what I do too!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, op, you mean to store-bought pasta sauce? Not to homemade?
The same way, I guess, you drop it, heat it, and stir it.

Yes, I'm not making tomato sauce from scratch. I buy it at Trader Joe's.

Are you buying meat sauce at TJ's or marinara and adding meat?

If I was adding meat, I'd probably add some onions too. I'd saute the onions add the meat and brown it, then make a well like in the Gordon Ramsay video and add the tomato sauce in the well, heat it a little, mix it with the browned meat, and then pour the TJ sauce in and heat it through.

If you are buying it with meat in, I don't have a suggestion, because I've never done that.

I buy the sauce at TJ’s, and add it to garlic and meat I brown. I don’t like onions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, op, you mean to store-bought pasta sauce? Not to homemade?
The same way, I guess, you drop it, heat it, and stir it.

Yes, I'm not making tomato sauce from scratch. I buy it at Trader Joe's.

Are you buying meat sauce at TJ's or marinara and adding meat?

If I was adding meat, I'd probably add some onions too. I'd saute the onions add the meat and brown it, then make a well like in the Gordon Ramsay video and add the tomato sauce in the well, heat it a little, mix it with the browned meat, and then pour the TJ sauce in and heat it through.

If you are buying it with meat in, I don't have a suggestion, because I've never done that.

Tomato paste is not the same as marinara.

[Anonymous]

OP, as another PP suggested, tomato paste can be very acidic (and sometimes metallic, to me). It helps to cook it a bit first, before adding or incorporating it. If I were doing what it so7nds like you are, I would put a bit of paste in the sauce pan for a few minutes (maybe with some olive oil) to get the raw/acidic/metallic taste cook out) the add the jarred sauce and then let them warm together. I would not add “raw” tomato paste to the jarred sauce.

[Anonymous]

I always brown the meat with onions and peppers and freeze it. Thaw in microwave and add to sauce. Spaghetti is delicious but it’s not really a gourmet food. But thanks for the tip re tomatoes paste. But note many people can’t eat it due to high acid content.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I always brown the meat with onions and peppers and freeze it. Thaw in microwave and add to sauce. Spaghetti is delicious but it’s not really a gourmet food. But thanks for the tip re tomatoes paste. But note many people can’t eat it due to high acid content.

Just curious to know what sort of condition would leave someone unable to have tomato paste due to its acid content?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I always brown the meat with onions and peppers and freeze it. Thaw in microwave and add to sauce. Spaghetti is delicious but it’s not really a gourmet food. But thanks for the tip re tomatoes paste. But note many people can’t eat it due to high acid content.

Just curious to know what sort of condition would leave someone unable to have tomato paste due to its acid content?

Guessing people with stomach ulcers. Anyone who shouldn't eat citrus?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I make a bolognese, I cook the meat and finely chopped veg first, then add the tomato paste, coat everything, and cook it all together on a medium heat, stirring so it doesn't scorch and letting it caramelize. Then I add the crushed tomatoes and let it cook slowly.

This is what to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, op, you mean to store-bought pasta sauce? Not to homemade?
The same way, I guess, you drop it, heat it, and stir it.

Yes, I'm not making tomato sauce from scratch. I buy it at Trader Joe's.

Are you buying meat sauce at TJ's or marinara and adding meat?

If I was adding meat, I'd probably add some onions too. I'd saute the onions add the meat and brown it, then make a well like in the Gordon Ramsay video and add the tomato sauce in the well, heat it a little, mix it with the browned meat, and then pour the TJ sauce in and heat it through.

If you are buying it with meat in, I don't have a suggestion, because I've never done that.

Tomato paste is not the same as marinara.

OP is asking about adding tomato paste to an existing, purchased TJ's sauce. Marinara would be the most common sauce to do that with.

So, she's got paste (which I accidentally referred to as sauce), and I asked whether the sauce she is adding it to is marinara, or a sauce like bolognese that she purchases with meat already in.