My grandma insisted on putting a pinch of sugar in her spaghetti sauce, and I thought she was nuts.

Tried it myself last Tuesday and it actually balances the tomatoes perfectly. Anyone else have a family trick they doubted at first?

4 comments

4 Comments

abby3081mo ago

Honestly, I gotta push back on this a little. Yeah, sugar balances acidity, but it's a bandaid, not a hack. The real trick is starting with good tomatoes in the first place and cooking them low and slow so the natural sweetness comes out. I've tried the orange juice thing and it just made my sauce taste like breakfast, no thanks. The carrot trick is fine but like the other person said, you gotta cook it forever and it changes the texture. Ngl, I think people overcomplicate sauce when they could just let good ingredients do the work.

adam_robinson2mo ago

Yeah, that sugar trick is real. My old roommate swore by a splash of orange juice in his sauce, same idea.

morgan.mary2mo ago

That orange juice trick @adam_robinson mentioned is a solid move. I read a thing once that said the acid in it helps cut through the tomato's sharpness, kind of like how some people use a pinch of baking soda. My go-to is actually a grated carrot that cooks down into the sauce, it adds a little sweetness without being obvious. Makes a big difference in a simple marinara. What's the weirdest ingredient you've tried that actually worked?

luna5891mo ago

i dont know why everyone is acting like putting sugar in spaghetti sauce is some kind of culinary revelation. like yeah, it balances acidity, thats basic cooking 101. my grandma used to put a whole cinnamon stick in her sauce and that was way weirder, actually worked though. the orange juice thing sounds like extra steps for no reason, just use sugar if you need it. grated carrot is fine but then you gotta cook it down forever or it just tastes like vegetable sauce. am i the only one who thinks people overthink spaghetti sauce?