6 Popular Italian Homemade Pasta Sauces
There are six famous Italian-style sauces, namely; Carbonara, Pesto, Bolognese, Aglio E Olio, Alfredo, and Marinara. The six sauces have different taste, appearance and characteristics as well as suiting certain types of dishes more than others. Here’s a description of each and what kind of dish each of the sauces was created for:
1. Carbonara
From Rome and created in 1944, Carbonara is perhaps the most rich of pasta sauces. This white sauce is made from basic ingredients of egg yolk, parmesan cheese, garlic, pepper and beef bacon. The more cream you add, the thicker the sauce so be prepared to spend more time on the tredmill for those of you that can’t resist! All ingredients are then sautéed with olive oil until it thickens.
Carbonara is actually white and thick but if you want to darken it a little, feel free to add sausages, smoked beef, or bacon to make it look more beautiful.
2. Pesto
Pesto sauce is a typical sauce of Genoa, Northern Italy. The characteristic of this sauce is its green color.
A simple pesto sauce consists of a mixture of basil, garlic, pine nuts, and parmesan cheese. The ingredients are then minced, except for the cheese before being sautéed with olive oil, after which, add parmesan cheese, and cook until the fragrance smells.
The green color that this sauce has comes from basil leaves. Whereas pine nuts and cheese make the sauce crispy and savory taste. Wow, healthy and delicious!
3. Bolognese
As the name suggests, Bolognese sauce comes from Bologna, Italy. This sauce is usually served with fettuccini pasta. Interestingly, the main ingredient of Bolognese sauce is actually the minced meat and not tomatoes.
The original ingredients you need are minced beef, garlic, and carrots. Then, sauté with butter and broth. Once cooked, add a little mixture of cream and parmesan cheese to make it into a soft texture.
Now, to turn into a magnificent Bolognese sauce add the ingredients of milk and tomatoes. Some people also choose to replace milk with white wine but this depends on ones taste. Cook for a few minutes and serve!
4. Aglio E Olio
Aglio E Olio sauce comes from a home-cooked cuisine typical of Naples, Italy. Tasteful, this sauce is the right complement of spaghetti.
Making Aglio E Olio sauce is not difficult. Only need to saute minced garlic and salt with olive oil. If you like it spicy, add ground black pepper, chopped parsley, and dried red chili. To be more savory, also add grated cheese when served.
The resulting spaghetti will be slightly oily with a savory-spicy sensation. Delicious!
5. Alfredo
Alfredo sauce is the best sauce for Italian-American-style fettucini. This sauce was first made by the owner of a Rome restaurant in 1914 named Alfredo di Lelio.
The basic ingredients of this sauce are only butter and heavy cream. Both ingredients are cooked for 8-10 minutes until the sauce thickens and soft. However, to make it more savory, some are adding garlic and parmesan cheese.
Alfredo sauce at a glance is similar to carbonara sauce. However, the color of Alfredo sauce is whiter because it does not contain eggs. In addition, the texture of Alfredo sauce is softer with a mild savory taste.
6. Marinara
Marinara sauce is a typical Italian tomato sauce. Usually served with Italian-American dishes such as ravioli. Marinara sauce will taste sweet and sour with a warm sensation. This is due to the addition of herbal leaves.
This sauce is made from a mixture of fresh tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, and herbal leaves such as basil, mint or parsley. Tomatoes are sauteed with garlic, herbal leaves, and olive oil. Then, stir until the tomatoes are completely crushed and thickened.
Delicious Italian-style pasta you can now make yourself at home. Simple and easy, the sauce above makes your pasta more special. Good luck!
