31, 33, and 44 tomatoes

The Sauce Aisle is one of the wonders of the Ukrainian supermarket. Though not to be compared with the Vodka and Cognac aisle - the variety of sauces packed into jars is overwhelming.

Yesterday, crouching in the sauce aisle at Velika Kushenija, I pondered tomato sauce. Do I choose the one that has the word "pretty" in it? Krasnodarcka? - but it also has a picture of apples, and this other one, says its "Ukrainian" Sauce and puts peppers on the label with the tomatoes. Still another says it is for Shashlik (like barbecued meat - but not BBQ sauce) and then others have the innocuous name of "tomato sauce" but with no pictures for further revelation. Fortunately, just as I had almost given up trying to make up the differences between sauces and which would give lasagna the most "normal" taste - a woman came up and pointed to another shelf of sauces.

These labels contained only pictures of tomatoes and Numbers. 44, 33, and 31 tomatoes. The woman pointed to the sauces and said that this was rally the best - but especially the 33. "See she said - how much brighter it is than that one you're holding?" I was holding one of the innocuous "Tomato Sauce" jars. Yes - in comparison, the one in my hand looked dark, and bruised, while her 33 tomato jar seemed bright and plump, dripping with vine ripened goodness.

Having rescued me from buying a the wrong sauce, the woman bustled off, intent on her own shopping. I briefly glanced at the other jars, they varied in price, increasing with the quantity of tomatoes trapped beneath the glass. In the end I bought the 33 tomatoes - she did say it was the best - and so why spend more on 11 tomatoes that you don't really need?

The sauce was great- almost a paste - but not quite. And the lasagna, my first, turned out amazingly.