Macaroni and tomatoes
The old-fashioned Southern side that eats like dinner: tender macaroni in buttery, slightly sweet stewed tomatoes, cheap and deeply comforting.
- 30 min total
- 15 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 4
- About $1.04 a serving
- 350 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegetarian
Dolly says: I’d make this on a weeknight. It’s on the table in 30 minutes.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 8 oz elbow macaroni
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 tbsp butter
- 2 cans diced tomatoes, two 14.5-oz cans
- ½ cup shredded cheddar, to serve (optional)
From your pantry
- 1 tbsp salt, plus ½ tsp
- 2 tsp sugar
- ½ tsp black pepper
Each serving has about 350 calories, 10 g protein, 57 g carbs and 10 g fat, and costs about $1.04 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No elbow macaroni? Penne works.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No butter? Ghee works.
- No diced tomatoes? Crushed tomatoes work.
- No shredded cheddar? Cheddar cheese or Mexican blend cheese or Monterey Jack cheese works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Fill a large pot with water, add 1 tablespoon salt, cover and over high heat.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
While it heats, the onion. the butter in a large over medium heat and cook the onion 5 minutes, until soft.
Dice. Dicing means cutting food into small, even cubes, usually a quarter to half an inch across. Pieces the same size cook at the same speed, so nothing burns while the rest catches up.
How you’ll know: Your pieces are little cubes about the size of a chickpea, and they all look close to the same.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Medium heatTimer: 5 min
Add the tomatoes with their juice, the sugar, pepper and ½ teaspoon salt, and 10 minutes, breaking up the tomatoes with a spoon.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Medium heatTimer: 10 min
Dolly’s tip: The sugar is traditional. It rounds out the tang of canned tomatoes rather than making it sweet.While the sauce , cook the macaroni 1 minute less than the package says, then .
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Drain. Draining means pouring off liquid, like tipping pasta into a colander or spooning extra fat out of the pan. Pour hot grease into a can or jar, not the sink, where it hardens and clogs the pipes.
How you’ll know: Only a few drips are left, and the food isn’t sitting in a puddle.
High heatTimer: 6 min
Stir the macaroni into the tomatoes and 2 to 3 minutes, until it soaks up some of the juice.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Low heatTimer: 2 min 30 sec
Serve with cheddar on top if you like.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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