Yesterday was Australia Day but I was pretty busy, so this is a day late. It is a tomato sauce that I created with stuff that happened to be in the kitchen. Frequently referred to as “red sauce” (as opposed to “brown sauce” or HP) here in the UK, tomato sauce is the ultimate condiment for meat pies and party pies – both staples of Australian school canteens (unless Australian school canteens are now so healthy that meat pies and party pies are off the menu).
I threw this tomato sauce together for dinner last night – it was great on bangers and mash. The secret ingredient is definitely Australian – it’s Vegemite. You can, I supposed, use Marmite, the inferior yeast extract, but Vegemite acts like a rich, smooth, more-ish stock here. It was definitely worth sending my husband on a mission to Tesco to track it down.
Next-level tomato sauce
Ingredients
1 red onion, finely chopped
40g butter
2 tablespoons plain flour
One heaped tablespoon Vegemite
Two heaped tablespoons tomato paste
Salt, pepper and any green herb (I used marjoram) to taste
Water or stock
Instructions
<ol>
<li>Melt the butter in a pan and add the onions and the flour.</li>
<li>As soon as the butter and flour form a paste, add the Vegemite, tomato paste, salt, pepper and herbs.</li>
<li>Add water or stock a little at a time until you have the consistency you like. This keeps really well in the fridge.</li>
</ol>