Coarsely chop the tomatoes into ½-inch pieces. Toss with salt and pepper in a bowl and set aside for at least ½ hour. Peel and mince garlic. Finely slice fresh basil, if using.

Heat 1 skillet over a high flame. Add olive oil and minced garlic and quickly saute until golden. Slowly add all the liquid from the tomatoes. Let it evaporate some, then dump in the tomato pieces. Bring to a boil. While waiting heat the other skillet, very hot. Now slowly pour in the liquid from the other pan, letting it evaporate some, then add the chunks. While this is reducing, get the first skillet hot again. Slowly pour in the sauce.

Keeping both skillets hot, pour the sauce back and forth a few times until it thickens. Don’t worry about the little bit of tomato juice left sticking to the pans. It will caramelize nicely and add flavor to the sauce. When ready, the tomatoes will be swimming in a nice viscous sauce. Stir in the herbs. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add a bit more salt to bring out the flavors if needed.