Organic tomato paste: the secret of grandmother’s recipes

Who at least once has not heard of tomato paste?
It is the natural ally that has always helped in the preparation of the most tasty dishes with an authentic flavor.
This thick and fragrant sauce is the secret of all grandmothers because it is not a simple sauce but an extract that enhances most foods and, For this reason, it is advisable to choose an organic tomato paste that guarantees Italian quality and an unmistakable taste for every dish. Let’s find out together what tomato paste is, how it is obtained and how it is used.

What is organic tomato paste

The organic tomato paste has a thick, creamy texture, with an unmistakable scent, it is a great ally in the kitchen to give an extra touch of flavor to your dishes, such as sauces or stews. It is the exalter of the most ancient taste in the history of our cuisine: the real secret of the grandmother who before was made together with the production of tomato preserves.

How to make organic tomato paste

The concentrate is obtained by processing tomato juice heated to high temperatures, from 85 to 100 ºC, which allow the evaporation of the aqueous component. Depending on the concentration and processing temperature level, different varieties of concentrate can be obtained:

- Tomato concentrate: after evaporation of the liquid part, the concentration of dry residue must fluctuate from 18% to 28%. The amount to get about 1 kg of concentrate is about 4 or 5 kg of tomatoes.
- Double tomato paste: the concentration of dry residue must vary from 28% to 30%. To get 1 kg of concentrate in this case you will need about 6 kg of tomatoes.
- Triple tomato paste: the concentration of the dry residue must be greater than 36% and the processing must take place between 65 and 75~ to follow this process and get 1 kg of concentrate you need about 7 kg of tomatoes.

The different types of processing allow you to make more use of it in fact this is one of the "magical" ingredients of our cuisine, strictly exported around the world, according to different customs and customs depending on the country.
Let’s discover together in the traditional Italian cuisine how it is used.

How to use organic tomato paste in the kitchen

Although tomato paste is a purely Italian product, its export has given rise to the most varied uses in different countries of the world. Let’s discover together how to enrich our dishes with organic tomato paste, the most ancient flavor ever:

- Enhance the taste of the dishes: both simple and complex is the perfect ally to enrich and flavor the lighter sauces, from the traditional sauce to puttanesca or angry, to fish dishes, just to enhance the taste of the sea.
- Flavoring soups and stews: have you ever tried a bean soup flavored with a tablespoon of organic tomato paste? There is no need for words to explain how a pinch of this organic ingredient can enhance a soup of legumes, giving color and flavoring with a taste that brings back to ancient flavors. For dishes subject to long preparations the concentrate is diluted slowly giving an unmistakable aroma to the dish.
- Enrich other sauces: the intense taste can flavor other sauces, such as mayonnaise, allowing you to bring to the table a different variant from the usual.
- Replace the ketchup: the concentrate has a taste so intense that it is often preferred to the traditional American sauce, adding a pinch of chili.

And here the Italian tradition beats every other culinary culture because with a small amount of organic tomato paste you find the authentic taste of the past.