Overview
- Adding plain sugar only masks a sauce's acidity by adding sweetness and can blunt the tomato's natural fruit flavor.
- Long, gentle simmering is the primary remedy chefs recommend because slow heat mellows sharp acids and develops a rounder tomato taste.
- Grated carrots or onions and a splash of starchy pasta water supply natural sweetness and body without covering tomato character.
- Baking soda can chemically neutralize tomato acid but should be used as a last resort in very tiny amounts because it briefly foams and can make the sauce taste soapy, salty, or flat.
- Coverage on Monday and Tuesday stressed that ingredient quality—ripe fresh tomatoes or good canned varieties like San Marzano—and careful garlic and basil timing are the fundamentals that prevent and fix acidity for home cooks.