The Ingredient Shortcut That Some Pizza Chains Use In Their Sauce

We all know the main ingredient in pizza sauce is tomatoes, but various pizza chains incorporate tomatoes differently. Some, like Little Caesars and Papa John's, use either tomato puree or crushed tomatoes to make the sauce, but some chains, like Domino's and Pizza Hut, use a bit of a shortcut: tomato paste. 

While making tomato puree typically requires several steps (including cooking and straining the tomatoes), a simplified version can be made by combining equal parts water and tomato paste. Although it sounds simple, using tomato paste to make puree isn't necessarily a bad thing, and can still result in a delicious pizza sauce. 

To make tomato puree from scratch, tomatoes are slightly cooked and then blended. Meanwhile, for tomato paste, the tomatoes are cooked, strained, and then cooked once more to eliminate more water and thicken it into a paste. The second round of cooking also helps concentrate the flavor. That's why mixing tomato paste with water doesn't dilute the flavor of the pizza sauce, though some of the major tasting notes might differ.

While tomato paste mixed with water is an easy shortcut for tomato puree, the flavor may differ slightly, as tomato paste is sweeter, while typical tomato puree is more acidic. This is why the pizza chains that use the tomato paste shortcut still add ingredients like garlic, salt, and other seasonings. 

All that is to say, even if a pizza chain uses tomato paste, their pizza sauce can still be just as tasty as the other restaurants' — potentially even more delicious, depending on your preference for how sweet and rich you like your pizza sauce. It's also a great shortcut to try for yourself. 

Many pizza sauce recipes, like the one for our Chicago deep-dish pizza, use tomato paste in addition to tomato puree, crushed tomatoes, or tomato sauce (which has more seasoning and a thinner consistency) for even more flavor. The sweeter, concentrated flavor of tomato paste is why it is often used to thicken soups and stews or add flavor to ground meat dishes like meatballs, but it's also a great way to add flavor to your sauce. If you find it too sweet, punch up the acidity of your sauce with a bit of red wine.