Soffritto
How to make Italian Soffritto with carrot, celery and onion. Learn how to make this to add a real depth of flavour to your Italian soups, stews and sauces.
Servings: 1 batch
Calories: 323kcal
Ingredients
- 1 carrot
- 1 celery stalk
- 1 onion
- Olive oil to saute
Instructions
- Finely chop the vegetables to roughly the same size. You should have equal amounts of each vegetable.
- Add a good glug of olive oil to a pot (about 2-3 tbsp) and add the vegetables. Sauté on a medium-low heat until the vegetables are soft but not browned. Add more olive oil if needed.
- Don't turn up the heat, keep sautéing the vegetables slowly to release all the flavours. This can take up to 10-15 minutes.
Video
Notes
- Do not brown the vegetables - you need to cook the soffritto slowly until soft so all the flavours are released but without browning, caramelizing or burning the vegetables which will totally change or add unwanted flavour.
- Don't turn up the heat - if you turn up the heat to saute the vegetables more quickly they won't release the same amount of flavour and are more likely to burn.
- What knife to use - you'll need to use a sharp knife to cut the vegetables as finely as you can, a chef's knife is great for this, or a Mezzaluna which is a curved, double handled Italian knife. You can cut vegetables and herbs easily with this but using a rocking motion.
- Use equal amounts - there is no rule on how much or little you use it all depends on what you are cooking. What is important however is to have roughly equal amounts of each vegetable once chopped. You don't want one vegetable to overpower the rest.
- Build more flavour- if you fancy being experimental with cooking you can build on the flavour by adding fresh herbs, garlic or even pancetta or lard. Italian food is very regional and sometimes additional flavours are added to the base. Choose your favourites and get cooking!
- Storage - the uncooked soffritto can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days or can be frozen for up to 3 months. You can use it straight from frozen.
Nutrition
Calories: 323kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 79mg | Potassium: 460mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 10372IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 62mg | Iron: 1mg