What's the Difference Between Tomato Paste and Tomato Sauce?
I love a good pasta dish. Pasta alla zozzona, meaty lasagna, and classic baked ziti are all welcome at my table just about any time. Many recipes for pasta sauce call for a few similar ingredients as the foundation of building a more complicated sauce — onion, garlic, olive oil, and often multiple tomato products.
If you’re like me, you’ve probably wondered if you need to use tomato sauce and tomato paste. You’ve already got the tomato sauce — couldn’t you just skip the paste? And really, what’s the difference between tomato sauce and tomato paste, anyway? Well, you don’t have to wonder any longer because we’re here to help.
What Exactly Is Tomato Paste?
Tomato paste is a thick paste made from tomatoes (you can even make your own at home) that have been cooked down, strained, and then continued to cook to evaporate most of their moisture. The seeds and skins have been removed, resulting in a smooth paste with highly concentrated tomato flavor and a deep red color.
Storage: Tomato paste can be stored in a cool, dark cabinet or pantry until opened. Once the package is opened it can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks or frozen for several months.
What Exactly Is Tomato Sauce?
Per the USDA, “Tomato sauce is the concentrated product prepared from the liquid extracted from mature, sound, whole tomatoes … or remanufactured tomato paste … to which is added salt and spices. One or more nutritive sweetening ingredients, vinegar or vinegars, onion, garlic, or other vegetable flavoring ingredients may be added.” Tomato sauce can be made from either whole tomatoes, or a combination of tomato paste and water, and can (but does not always) include additional spices and flavorings.
Storage: Unopened containers of tomato sauce can be stored in a cool, dark cabinet or pantry until opened. Once opened it can be refrigerated in an airtight container for 5 to 7 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
How to Use Tomato Paste
Tomato paste is best used as a flavor booster. A little tomato paste can add a big hit of tomato flavor to everything from pasta sauce to braises and soups. It’s best added at the beginning of cooking to fats along with spices and/or aromatics so it can bloom and release the most flavor possible.
Recipes to try with tomato paste:
How to Use Tomato Sauce
You can use tomato sauce on its own or use it as a base for more complex sauces. It’s the main building block for many pasta sauces, but can also be used in beans, soups, on pizza, and in braises.
Recipes to try with tomato sauce:
Further Reading
The One Cookware Brand That Gordon Ramsay Can’t Stop Talking About
