Spanish Sofrito

bowl of spanish vegetable sofrito sitting on counter with wooden spoon sticking out.

Spanish Sofrito is an aromatic flavor base made with olive oil and tomatoes, as well as other vegetables such as onions and bell peppers. It can be used as an ingredient in lots of delicious Spanish dishes like paella, Empanada gallega, and many more!

Cuisine Spanish

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 40

Total Time 55

Servings

Author Alba Luna Meyer

Ingredients

1 large red bell pepper
1 large green bell pepper
1 white onion
2 garlic cloves
2 to 3 large tomatoes, ripe
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1 tablespoon paprika powder, optional but recommended
2 tablespoons pimiento chorizo meat or ñora pepper meat, optional

Instructions

Prepare The Vegetables

Finely dice the red and green bell peppers, discarding the stem and seeds.
Peel and finely dice the onion.
Peel and mince the garlic cloves.
Cut the tomatoes in half, make a cross-cut in the flat side (not all the way down), and grate them into a bowl.

Cook

Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onion, red and green bell pepper, and a pinch of salt. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for around 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Once the vegetables turn soft and slightly golden, make some space in the center of the pan and add the minced garlic. Cook for about 1 minute, then mix well with the rest of the vegetables and continue cooking for an additional 10 minutes.
In the center of the pan, add the paprika powder and the pimiento choricero meat (if using). Gently cook for 1 minute, then mix well with everything else.
Add the grated tomato and mix well. Cook for an additional 15 minutes until the mixture thickens slightly. Taste and adjust the salt.
Use the sofrito immediately in a recipe or store it in the fridge portioned ready to use when needed.

Notes

This recipe is enough to use as the base for 2 recipes.
There are lots of different variations of sofrito. Some include only red pepper, others don’t include garlic or onion, so feel free to adjust the ingredients.
Cut the vegetables into small, even pieces so they cook evenly.
Use ripe, juicy tomatoes if possible, but you can also use canned tomatoes (about 1 1/2 cups) or tomato concentrate (2 tablespoons + enough water until you have 1 1/2 cups).
Ñora peppers and Choricero peppers are sweet peppers that have been dried and have a smokey and slightly bitter taste. They may be difficult to find outside of Spain. If you can find them whole and dried, soak them in warm water for 1 hour, then scrape off the meat.
The key is to cook the sofrito over medium-low heat for long enough to lightly caramelize the vegetables and extract all the delicious flavors.

Nutrition

This nutritional information has been estimated by an online nutrition calculator. It should only be seen as a rough calculation and not a replacement for professional dietary advice.