Uses for super spicy pasta sauce?
August 11, 2021 2:13 AM Subscribe
Hi dear foodfilter,
I ended up with about a liter of bonus jarred pasta sauce (long story). It is weirdly, almost inedibly spicy.
Ideas for what to do with this other than bin it?
Even a few spoons thinned out with pasta water and a ton of veggies was ok, but hotter than I would normally appreciate even as a lover of spicy food.
And at that rate, we are going to have this jug o sauce in our fridge forever. It's not that great on its own (processed-tasting if that makes sense) so even for something normally spicy-tomatoey like shakshuka I would probably want to doctor it. Which I don't mind doing, just tell me how!
Even a few spoons thinned out with pasta water and a ton of veggies was ok, but hotter than I would normally appreciate even as a lover of spicy food.
And at that rate, we are going to have this jug o sauce in our fridge forever. It's not that great on its own (processed-tasting if that makes sense) so even for something normally spicy-tomatoey like shakshuka I would probably want to doctor it. Which I don't mind doing, just tell me how!
Mix it with heavy cream and cut it with non-spicy sauce as desired for a creamy spicy tomato sauce. The dairy will cut the heat and give it a very different flavor. You could experiment with sour cream or plain yogurt, too, but their acidity might emphasize the processed taste. Be careful when adding cream to tomato sauce because it can curdle - warm them both up first and use full fat dairy.
Mix it with stock and use it as cooking liquid for rice. Toast the rice in a dry pan first, then add your liquid. Doctor it with spices, I’m thinking cumin and garlic powder? Spicy tomato rice. Serve with beans and fresh pico de gallo, roasted vegetables, crema or cotija cheese. Would probably be good with other grains, like maybe a spicy tomato bulgur with lots of fresh tender herbs.
Make chili. Ground meat of your preference, lots of beans, onions, garlic, mild peppers for flavor and sweetness. Use the sauce as part of the tomato portion. Spices like smoked sweet paprika, cumin, Mexican oregano, cinnamon, toasted in oil in the bottom of the pot before adding your liquid will flavor the oil and impart taste to everything you cook in it. Hopefully simmering for a long time will mitigate some of the processed taste. Serve with avocado or sour cream to cut the spice further and add good fats.
Use as part of the base for cioppino. Whatever really fresh local seafood you can get your hands on, some aromatic veggies like fennel and whatever your family enjoys, white wine, spicy tomato base, additional fresh tomatoes. There are many recipes for it but they are all different. Just think spicy tomato seafood stew and follow your heart.
posted by Mizu at 2:56 AM on August 11, 2021 [26 favorites]
Mix it with stock and use it as cooking liquid for rice. Toast the rice in a dry pan first, then add your liquid. Doctor it with spices, I’m thinking cumin and garlic powder? Spicy tomato rice. Serve with beans and fresh pico de gallo, roasted vegetables, crema or cotija cheese. Would probably be good with other grains, like maybe a spicy tomato bulgur with lots of fresh tender herbs.
Make chili. Ground meat of your preference, lots of beans, onions, garlic, mild peppers for flavor and sweetness. Use the sauce as part of the tomato portion. Spices like smoked sweet paprika, cumin, Mexican oregano, cinnamon, toasted in oil in the bottom of the pot before adding your liquid will flavor the oil and impart taste to everything you cook in it. Hopefully simmering for a long time will mitigate some of the processed taste. Serve with avocado or sour cream to cut the spice further and add good fats.
Use as part of the base for cioppino. Whatever really fresh local seafood you can get your hands on, some aromatic veggies like fennel and whatever your family enjoys, white wine, spicy tomato base, additional fresh tomatoes. There are many recipes for it but they are all different. Just think spicy tomato seafood stew and follow your heart.
posted by Mizu at 2:56 AM on August 11, 2021 [26 favorites]
When I have sauce that is far too (acidic/salty/spicy/etc) I use heavy cream and thin it out until it is not to much of that thing. Delicious.
posted by AlexiaSky at 3:08 AM on August 11, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by AlexiaSky at 3:08 AM on August 11, 2021 [2 favorites]
In addition to heavy cream sour cream would probably also take the edge of things.
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:02 AM on August 11, 2021
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:02 AM on August 11, 2021
Simmer it with some potatoes! The potatoes might soak up the spice.
posted by tiny frying pan at 4:50 AM on August 11, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by tiny frying pan at 4:50 AM on August 11, 2021 [2 favorites]
Throw some beans into it, fried ground beef/turkey/chicken (if there isn't any already) - and turn it into Chili.
posted by rozcakj at 7:40 AM on August 11, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by rozcakj at 7:40 AM on August 11, 2021 [2 favorites]
Crazy-ass gazpacho?
Have a Bloody Mary party?
Make your own ghost pepper level potato chips?
Ah, hell. Life's too short. Just bin it. And use the money's you'd have spent on cream for some correctly calibrated spicy deliciousness!
posted by at at 8:11 AM on August 11, 2021 [8 favorites]
Have a Bloody Mary party?
Make your own ghost pepper level potato chips?
Ah, hell. Life's too short. Just bin it. And use the money's you'd have spent on cream for some correctly calibrated spicy deliciousness!
posted by at at 8:11 AM on August 11, 2021 [8 favorites]
You could add cumin and paprika to make a tomato based Mexican rice. Any spicy tomato based soup that you add stock to would work, like tortilla soup, beef stew or vegetable soup. It would probably make a good pizza sauce if used lightly.
posted by stray thoughts at 2:53 PM on August 11, 2021
posted by stray thoughts at 2:53 PM on August 11, 2021
instead of cream you could use coconut cream (not cream of coconut) for a spicy coconut curry. Hard boiled eggs also make a good curry with plenty of bland fat and protein to tame heat.
but if you're going to have to buy a bunch of other ingredients that you wouldn't ordinarily buy in order to make this stuff palatable, I think the better home economics is to bin it.
posted by fingersandtoes at 8:22 PM on August 11, 2021 [1 favorite]
but if you're going to have to buy a bunch of other ingredients that you wouldn't ordinarily buy in order to make this stuff palatable, I think the better home economics is to bin it.
posted by fingersandtoes at 8:22 PM on August 11, 2021 [1 favorite]
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