Hogao: Colombian Tomato and Onion Base
Tomato and spring onion cooked down slowly until they collapse into a thick, sweet sauce. It is the base of half of Colombian cooking: alongside patacones, arepas and beans, and as a foundation in stews and soups. Ten minutes of work and half an hour on low heat — which is exactly what separates it from a quick tomato fry-up.
Ingredients
- 6 ripe tomatoes, peeled and diced
- 4 spring onions, in fine rings
- 1 small white onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 3 tbsp oil
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
- Salt and pepper
- Chopped coriander (optional)
Method
- 1
Peel the tomatoes: a cross at the base, 30 seconds in boiling water, then into iced water. The skin comes away on its own and does not end up curled in the sauce.
- 2
Heat the oil and soften the onions with a pinch of salt over low heat, about 8 minutes, until translucent and sweet. Without browning them: hogao has no toasted note.
- 3
Add the garlic and cook a minute more.
- 4
Add the diced tomato, the cumin and the paprika, and turn the heat to its lowest.
- 5
Cook 30 minutes uncovered, stirring now and then. That is the whole recipe: the tomato releases water, it evaporates, and the sauce concentrates until the spoon leaves a trail.
- 6
Season only at the end, once it has reduced. Salted early, it turns too salty as it concentrates.
- 7
If you like, stir in chopped coriander off the heat.
- 8
It keeps a week in the fridge and freezes well in portions. It thickens as it cools.