Soffritto

Soffritto is the backbone of so much of my cooking, even, or especially, when I’m trying to make something on the fly. Unlike most of the recipes in this chapter—which I use to bump up the flavor of dishes after cooking—soffritto is a foundation that gives depth to whatever is cooked in it. Often used as a base for soups, stews, sauces, and stocks, it elevates even the simplest ingredients to become more than the sum of their parts. If I want to make a quick soup, for instance, I’ll put thi