Tomato and Herb Vegan Gravy

Cooked tomato is one of the richest natural sources of the savoury compounds that make gravy taste of something. The trick is frying the puree in oil until it darkens, which drives off the tinny sharpness and leaves concentrated sweetness behind. It is thickened with cornflour rather than a roux, so it stays clean tasting and is gluten free.

Ingredients

Makes about 550ml, five servings

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 4 tbsp tomato puree
• 250ml (9fl oz) passata
• 400ml (14fl oz) hot vegetable stock use a gluten free one
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp cornflour mixed with 3 tbsp cold water
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil and parsley

Kit

• Saucepan
• Small bowl
• Whisk

Method

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat and cook the onion for eight minutes until soft and lightly golden. Add the garlic and dried oregano for the last minute.

2. Push the onions to one side and add the tomato puree to the clear part of the pan. Fry it in the oil for three minutes, pressing and stirring it against the hot base, until it goes from bright red to a dark brick colour and smells sweet.

3. This is the step that makes the gravy. Undercooked puree tastes sharp and metallic, properly fried puree tastes savoury and almost meaty.

4. Stir everything together, pour in the passata and let it bubble for five minutes so it reduces and darkens further.

5. Add the hot stock and the sugar, bring to a simmer and cook for eight minutes uncovered so the flavours settle and it reduces a little more.

6. Mix the cornflour smoothly with the cold water and pour it into the simmering gravy while whisking. It will thicken in seconds. Cook for two more minutes to lose the raw starch taste.

7. Take it off the heat, stir in the balsamic and the chopped fresh herbs, and season with salt and plenty of black pepper. Serve straight away while the herbs are still bright.

Tips worth knowing

• Give the tomato puree its full three minutes in the pan. This one step is the difference between a good tomato gravy and a sharp one.
• If it tastes acidic at the end, a pinch more sugar will fix it faster than more salt will.
• Add the fresh herbs off the heat. Simmering them turns them dull green and kills the fresh smell.
• It is genuinely gluten free as written, provided the stock is too. Plenty of stock cubes contain wheat.

Keeping and reheating

Five days in the fridge and three months in the freezer, though the fresh herbs fade. Add a fresh handful when you reheat it.

Questions people ask