Kitchen Experiments

Weeknight recipe: 10-minute prep tomato, onion, and mushroom pasta

My go-to pasta sauce recipe is one 28oz can of diced or crushed tomatoes, a half an onion (any kind), and some butter. Forty five minutes later, the house smells fantastic and I have home-cooked sauce I can serve with any pasta.

But yesterday, I had actual tomatoes, multiple onions, and mushrooms. So I made up this recipe, which was delicious, and figured I’d type it up.

This is not an exact recipe. Modify it depending on what ingredients you have around, how many people you’re serving, and to suit your tastes. Don’t be afraid to mess it up. I use Better Than Bouillon products to add quick flavor, but you could use stock or just season your sauce well (or not at all if you prefer things mild).

10-minute prep tomato, onion, and mushroom pasta

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Main Course
Cuisine Pasta
Servings 2

Equipment

  • Sauce pan
  • Knife
  • Creativity

What you’ll need
  

  • a couple large tomatoes, diced (I used one enormous beefsteak + a smaller Roma)
  • 1 large white onion, diced
  • 1 small red onion, diced
  • mushrooms (I had a small bag of button mushrooms)
  • 2-3 tbsp olive or vegetable oil (you could substitute butter, which would make the flavor richer)
  • 1 tbsp Better Than Bouillon Seasoned Vegetable Base (mine is low sodium)
  • 1 tsp Better Than Bouillon Roasted Garlic Base
  • 8 oz water (to dilute the bouillon; skip if your tomatoes are juicy)
  • Parmesan cheese, freshly grated (or shake it from a container)
  • Pasta (I made spaghetti, enough for 2 meals)

How to make it
 

  • If you're using Better Than Bouillon, add it to a sauce pan with some water and give it a quick stir to combine. If your tomatoes are especially juicy, you might be able to use their juice and skip the water, but mine were not.
  • Add tomatoes, onions, and oil or butter. Stir. Sprinkle the mushrooms on top and cover the sauce pan. Allow it to cook for at least 45 minutes.
  • Remove the lid and stir. It should smell delicious at this point but probably needs to cook down for a few minutes. If that's the case, leave the lid off, increase the heat a bit, and let it steam off some of the excess liquid while you boil your pasta.
  • Once it thickens, taste the sauce. Season with salt and pepper if you need more flavor. Mine didn't.
  • Ladle a good amount of the tomatoes, onions, and mushrooms into a bowl, along with a lot of the liquid. Place cooked pasta on top and spoon more of the sauce over it. Add cheese if you eat it and gently combine.

Notes

This was incredible reheated the second day! I got three meals out of this.
I’ve also made this without the mushrooms. Not quite as rich but still delicious.
For a vegan alternative, skip the butter and cheese. I’ve made variations of this with just olive oil, tomatoes, and onions. It’s mild but really lovely on a cold day.
Keyword cooking for one, weeknight recipes

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