Tomato ‘Mother’ Sauce

Hands on: 15 minutes Makes: about 3 quarts

4 hours, 15 minutes

Pizza sauce can be as easy as canned Italian tomatoes whizzed in a food processor with your favorite seasonings. But this elemental slow-cooked marinara from chefs Frank Falcinelli and Frank Castronovo of Brooklyn, N.Y.’s Frankies Spuntino restaurant is a true Italian-American “mother”sauce. As the Frankies say,“There’s almost nothing we won’t cook in it or put it on.” 1 cup high-quality olive oil 13 cloves garlic, peeled 4 (28-ounce) cans San Marzano or other high-quality

whole peeled Italian tomatoes Large pinch dried red pepper flakes 2 teaspoons fine sea salt

In a large, deep saucepan over medium-low heat, add olive oil and garlic and cook for 10 minutes, stirring or swirling occasionally, until garlic is deeply golden in color and fragrant. If garlic starts to smell acrid or color too quickly, remove pan from burner and reduce heat.

While the garlic is getting golden, pour tomatoes into a large bowl and crush them with your hands. Pull the firmer stem end from each tomato and discard it, along with any basil leaves packed in the cans.

When the garlic is just about done, add red pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute to infuse the flavor into the oil. Dump the tomatoes into the saucepan with the oil, add salt and stir well. Turn heat up to medium, and gently simmer for 4 hours, stirring and adjusting heat, as needed.

This recipe makes a lot of sauce. It can be stored covered for at least 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months.