Simple Tomato Passata

02Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Halve tomatoes and place cut-side up on a baking tray with the garlic cloves.
2. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast for 45 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and starting to collapse.
3. Squeeze the roasted garlic out of its skins into a bowl with the roasted tomatoes.
4. Pass the mixture through a food mill or sieve to remove skins and seeds, or blend and strain through a fine sieve.
5. Stir through fresh basil if using. Use immediately, or bottle while hot for longer storage.

03Notes & substitutions

• Use a mix of tomato varieties if that's what you have - a blend gives a rounder flavour than one variety alone.
• No food mill? Blend the roasted mixture, then push it through a fine sieve with the back of a spoon to remove skin and seeds.
• Add a whole dried chilli to the tray before roasting for a mild, heat.
• Vegetarian and vegan as written.

04Common mistakes

• Skipping the roast — roasting concentrates the tomatoes and adds depth that raw or boiled tomatoes don't have; don't skip the oven step.
• Not straining thoroughly — rushing the sieving step leaves skin and seed fragments behind, giving a grainy rather than silky texture.
• Under-salting — passata is a base, and needs enough salt on its own to taste right before it's added to anything else.

05Storage & leftovers