Sofrito is heavily emphasized as the third critical component in a "sofregit" base along with tomatoes and onions. Garlic is optional, as it is not considered an integral part of the standard "sofregit" recipe. Some "sofregit" recipes do not contain tomatoes at all, but are made more complex with the addition of diced vegetables such as leeks or bell peppers. In Italian cuisine, chopped onions, carrots and celery is battuto, and then, slowly cooked in olive oil, becomes "soffritto". It is used as the base for most pasta sauces, such as arrabbiata sauce, but occasionally it can be used as the
Tomato sauce added to keep it from drying out too much. Onion and garlic are almost always sweated or sautéed at the beginning before the tomato is added, or puréed together with tomatoes and then cooked together. Other seasonings typically include dried mild chili peppers (such as guajillo chili or pasilla chili), epazote, basil, oregano, parsley, and black pepper. Ground or chopped meat is also common. Tomato sauce was an ancient condiment in Mesoamerican food. The first western person to write of what may have been a tomato sauce was Bernardino de Sahagún, a Franciscan friar, who made note of a prepared