Dips, Purées and Sauces
Cooking Skills: Vegetables 2
Chapter 7 · Dips, Purées and Sauces
Skill goal
Make smooth and rough dips, purées and sauces from vegetables, and balance and store them properly.
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
Dips, purées and sauces turn vegetables into something you can spoon, spread or pour. They are also the best way to use up soft, ripe or surplus vegetables, and they freeze well. The skills are the same each time: get the flavour right, choose a texture, and adjust at the end.
Choosing a texture
| Texture | How | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Chunky | Chop by hand, or mash with a fork | Salsa, rough tomato sauce, tapenade |
| Rough | Pulse a few times in a food processor | Pesto, romesco, hummus-style dips |
| Smooth | Blend for a minute, scraping down the sides | Baba ganoush, soups, most purées |
| Silky | Blend for longer, add a little liquid, then push through a sieve | Smooth purées and sauces for plating |
Balance
- Salt wakes up every flavour. Add a little at a time.
- Acid (lemon, vinegar, tomato) brightens heavy things like nuts, oil and root vegetable purées.
- Fat (oil, butter, nuts, cheese) rounds off sharpness and gives a smooth, rich feel.
- Sweetness (a pinch of sugar, roasted vegetables) balances acid, as in tomato sauce.
- Garlic: raw is sharp and punchy, roasted is mellow and sweet. Use a little raw garlic in sauces that aren't cooked, and add it late.
Using a food processor, blender or stick blender
- Food processor: best for thick, rough mixtures (pesto, romesco). Scrape down the sides.
- Jug blender: smoothest for thin purées and soups; needs liquid and care with hot food.
- Stick blender: convenient and keeps hot food in its pan. Keep the head under the surface to avoid splashing.
- Mortar and pestle: the traditional tool for pesto and garlic sauces, with a better texture.
Storage
Cover and refrigerate, and eat within 2 days. Cooked purées and tomato sauce freeze well in portions. Sauces with raw garlic or herbs in oil go in the fridge, never on the worktop.
Try it
Level 1 · Start here
Romesco (red pepper and almond sauce)
A Catalan classic that goes with grilled vegetables, roast potatoes, eggs and bread. The nuts and bread give body, and the vinegar lifts it.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 2 roasted red peppers (from a jar, drained, or charred as in Cooking Skills: Vegetables 2, chapter 4)
- 2 ripe tomatoes, halved
- 50 g blanched or toasted almonds
- 1 slice of day-old bread, torn
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pinch salt
- Roast the tomatoes (halved, cut side up, with a little oil) at 200°C (180°C fan) for 20 minutes until soft and collapsing. Toast the almonds in a dry pan for 2 minutes until golden.
- Put the peppers, tomatoes, almonds, bread, garlic, vinegar and paprika in a food processor. Pulse to a rough paste.
- With the motor running, add the oil in a thin stream. Season and adjust: more vinegar if flat, more salt if bland.
- Serve at room temperature. Keep covered in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Nuts
Allergens: romesco and pesto contain nuts, and pesto contains cheese. Check for nut allergies before serving, and use seeds (sunflower or pumpkin) as a substitute.Garlic and herbs in oil: keep pesto and any garlic-in-oil mixtures in the fridge and use within 2 days. Don't keep them at room temperature, because garlic in oil can grow the bacteria that cause botulism.
Level 2 · Raw
Pesto (and variations)
Pesto is a template: soft herb or leaf, nut, garlic, cheese, oil. Make basil pesto first, then try parsley, rocket, spinach or wild garlic.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 50 g basil leaves, stalks removed
- 25 g pine nuts or walnuts, lightly toasted
- 1 garlic clove
- 30 g hard cheese, grated
- 80 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 pinch salt
- Toast the nuts in a dry pan for 2 minutes until golden, and let them cool.
- Put the herbs, nuts, garlic and cheese in a food processor and pulse until coarse. (Or pound in a mortar for a better texture.)
- With the motor on low, add the oil in a stream. Add the lemon juice and salt, and taste.
- Use immediately, or cover the surface with a layer of oil and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Nuts and keeping
Allergens: romesco and pesto contain nuts, and pesto contains cheese. Check for nut allergies before serving, and use seeds (sunflower or pumpkin) as a substitute.Garlic and herbs in oil: keep pesto and any garlic-in-oil mixtures in the fridge and use within 2 days. Don't keep them at room temperature, because garlic in oil can grow the bacteria that cause botulism.
Level 2 · Silky
Celeriac or parsnip purée
A purée is a vegetable cooked to a soft mash and blended until smooth. Celeriac tastes like a gentle, nutty celery; parsnips are sweeter.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 500 g celeriac, peeled and cut into 3 cm chunks (or parsnips)
- 1 medium potato, peeled and chunked (optional, for body)
- 300 ml milk
- 300 ml water
- 25 g butter
- 1 pinch nutmeg
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
- Put the celeriac (and potato) in a pan with the milk and water. The vegetables should be just covered. Bring to a simmer and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, until very soft.
- Drain, keeping the cooking liquid. Put the vegetables in a food processor with the butter, nutmeg, salt and pepper, and blend, adding a little liquid until smooth.
- Taste and adjust. For a silky finish, push the purée through a sieve with a spoon.
- Reheat gently before serving, stirring.
Blending hot food
Blending hot food: hot purées expand and can blow the lid off a jug blender and scald you. Use a stick blender in the pan, or let the food cool for 10 minutes, fill the jug no more than half, and cover the lid with a tea towel, starting on low.
Level 3 · From scratch
Tomato sauce from scratch
The basic sauce behind countless dishes. A long simmer concentrates the flavour; a little sugar and olive oil at the end soften the acidity.
Ingredients (6 portions)
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, sliced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tins 400 g tins of chopped tomatoes (or 800 g fresh ripe tomatoes, chopped)
- 1 tsp sugar (optional)
- 1 handful basil leaves
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
- Sweat the onion in the oil over a low heat for 10 minutes. Add the garlic for 1 minute.
- Add the tomatoes, a pinch of salt and the sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring now and then, until thick and glossy.
- Add the basil, and blend or mash to your taste (chunky, or smooth with a stick blender: see the safety box).
- Taste for salt, sugar and acid. Cool quickly. Keep in the fridge for up to 2 days, or freeze in portions.
Hot sauce
Blending hot food: hot purées expand and can blow the lid off a jug blender and scald you. Use a stick blender in the pan, or let the food cool for 10 minutes, fill the jug no more than half, and cover the lid with a tea towel, starting on low.Steam and boiling water: lift lids away from your face, because the steam is hotter than the water. Use oven gloves for pan handles and steamers, and tip the pan away from you when draining. Don't carry a pan of boiling water across a room with people or pets in it.
Experiments
Experiment
Roasted or raw garlic
Two romescos.
- Make half the romesco twice: once with a raw clove, and once with a clove that has been roasted in its skin for 20 minutes.
Look for: Raw garlic is sharp and hot; roasted garlic is sweet and mellow. Many people prefer roasted in a sauce they will eat in quantity.
Experiment
Toasted or raw nuts
Pesto.
- Make two small pestos, one with toasted pine nuts or walnuts and one with raw ones.
Look for: Toasted nuts taste deeper and richer; raw ones are milky and mild. Note which suits you.
Experiment
Blending time
Rough, smooth and silky.
- Take three spoonfuls of the celeriac purée at different stages: mashed with a fork, blended for 30 seconds, and blended for 2 minutes then sieved.
Look for: Compare the mouthfeel and see how much smoother the sieved purée is. Decide how smooth you want things.
Experiment
Adjusting at the end
Salt, acid and sugar.
- Take a small bowl of tomato sauce and taste it plain. Add a pinch of salt, taste, then a few drops of vinegar, taste, then a pinch of sugar, taste.
Look for: Notice what each addition does. Salt lifts, acid brightens, sugar softens. This habit of tasting and adjusting turns average food into good food.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romesco | ||||
| Pesto | ||||
| Celeriac or parsnip purée | ||||
| Tomato sauce from scratch | ||||
| Roasted vs raw garlic | ||||
| Toasted vs raw nuts | ||||
| Blending time | ||||
| Adjusting at the end |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Bitter pesto | Over-blended, or old nuts or oil | Pulse briefly; use fresh nuts and a milder oil; add cheese |
| Pesto turns brown | Air | Cover with a layer of oil; use lemon juice; eat fresh |
| Gritty purée | Under-cooked or not blended long enough | Cook until very soft; blend longer and sieve |
| Watery purée or sauce | Too much liquid | Simmer uncovered; blend with less liquid |
| Sauce tastes sharp or flat | Unbalanced | Add salt, a pinch of sugar or a little more oil |
| Split sauce | Added oil too fast | Add slowly with the motor running |
Blending, allergens and storage
Blending hot food: hot purées expand and can blow the lid off a jug blender and scald you. Use a stick blender in the pan, or let the food cool for 10 minutes, fill the jug no more than half, and cover the lid with a tea towel, starting on low.Allergens: romesco and pesto contain nuts, and pesto contains cheese. Check for nut allergies before serving, and use seeds (sunflower or pumpkin) as a substitute.
Garlic and herbs in oil: keep pesto and any garlic-in-oil mixtures in the fridge and use within 2 days. Don't keep them at room temperature, because garlic in oil can grow the bacteria that cause botulism.
Leftovers: cool cooked vegetables quickly (within 1 to 2 hours), keep them covered in the fridge, and eat within 2 days. Reheat until steaming hot all the way through, and only once.
Checkpoint: can you do this now?
- I can choose and reach a texture.
- I can balance salt, acid, fat and sweetness.
- I can make pesto and romesco with my own variations.
- I can blend hot food safely.
- I store sauces safely.
Next chapter
Cooking Skills: Vegetables 2, chapter 8 is Awkward Vegetables: preparing artichokes, asparagus, fennel, celeriac and beetroot.