Sofrito
Chopped aromatic vegetables cooked slowly in oil as the flavour base of a dish.
Also: soffritto, refogado, sofregit
Sofrito is the first step of countless dishes in Spain, Italy, Portugal, Latin America and the Caribbean. Onion and garlic, usually with tomato or peppers, are cooked gently in oil until soft and sweet. Everything else is then added to this base. Recipes vary by place. Italian soffritto uses onion, carrot and celery. Puerto Rican sofrito is a green blend with peppers and herbs. Portuguese cooks call their version refogado.