Minestrone in Minutes Tomato Sauce

Our answer

Nigella's Minestrone In Minutes (from Nigella Express and on the Nigella website) uses a jar of tomato-based pasta sauce for convenience and speed. It is possible to make the soup using canned tomatoes but the soup will take slightly longer to make, as you will need to cook the tomatoes a little first.

We would suggest that you use a 400g (14-ounce) can of chopped (diced) tomatoes and try to use the type that come in a "rich" or "concentrated" tomato sauce. Empty into a saucepan and add a tablespoon of tomato puree (paste), a pinch of dried oregano and, if you have it, a pinch of dried basil. Bring the tomatoes to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, until the tomatoes have thickened and reduced slightly. Then add the beans and stock and continue with the recipe. A larger saucepan will mean that the tomatoes will cook down more quickly. If you have time then you can add some extra flavour by first sauteeing half of a finely chopped onion and a crushed small clove of garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil for a couple of minutes, until the onion is soft.