Stop Settling For Bland Jarred Spaghetti Sauce And Start Stirring This Into The Mix

When you don't have time to make even a basic, all-purpose tomato sauce recipe, it can be frustrating to rely on jarred sauce, as many brands are disappointingly bland. While jarred marinara makes an excellent soup base, it can be a bit lackluster spooned as-is over cheesy tortellini or classic spaghetti and meatballs. However, there's an easy and shockingly delicious way to give store-bought sauce a flavor upgrade in a matter of seconds.

The answer is cherry peppers. These peppers are round and bright red, just like their namesake, though they're slightly larger than cherry fruits. Though they do contain some capsaicin — unlike bell peppers, which have almost none — meaning they're on the milder end of the Scoville scale, with less of a kick than the average jalapeño. Still, they have enough zing to infuse a disappointing marinara with bright, tangy notes that blend beautifully with the natural sweetness of tomatoes and the earthy funk of garlic and onions.

It's pretty rare to find fresh peppers outside of a summertime farmers market, but jarred versions are usually easy to spot on grocery store shelves next to the pickles and giardiniera. Preserved in brine, pickled cherry peppers are slightly sweeter than the fresh version, but the zingy, slightly spicy pickling liquid ensures your marinara won't skew sugary. The best part is that you can use any extra cherry peppers to adhere to the golden rule when filling up your next charcuterie board, as they pair beautifully with many varieties of cheese.

Though cherry peppers are fairly mild, balance is still essential when using them to elevate store-bought sauce. Adding too many will make your marinara taste like a pepper sauce — and a flat one at that, as the strong, tangy flavor of the pickled peppers can overwhelm the nuances of the other ingredients. Instead, add just a tablespoon or two of chopped peppers and let the flavor bloom for a couple of minutes in the simmering sauce. Just make sure to taste as you go, and add a bit more if needed. This allows you to more easily control the flavor of your sauce.

It's also worth noting that cherry peppers are usually pickled whole, stem, seeds, and all. You can keep the seeds when using them, but it's also fairly easy to de-seed pickled cherry peppers by simply pulling on the stem, which often removes the core as well. If the core remains stubbornly in place, you can simply pick it out when chopping the peppers into fine bits. Though cherry peppers contain relatively low levels of capsaicin, it's still important to avoid touching your face after handling them until you've thoroughly washed your hands. Those with especially sensitive skin may want to wear gloves.

While the soft, pickled cherry peppers shouldn't change the texture of your sauce too much, you can use a high-quality immersion blender to create a velvety puree if you prefer a smooth sauce. Blending can also help marry flavors, as it breaks down individual ingredients into a unified sauce that contains all the nuances of every veggie and seasoning.