Preserving Tomatoes

[Dramaqueen]

Is there an EASY way to preserve tomatoes be it sauce or otherwise? I want the simplest way without much hassle and surety of it lasting outside of the fridge. Any thoughts? Thanks

[muppetcow]

Dehydrate them. Never tried it myself, but if I get enough tomatoes this summer, I'm giving it a go.

http://www.idigmygarden.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4464&highlight=dehydrating+tomatoes

[ceresone]

I'm lazy this summer, enough spagetti, pizza sauce, etc to last least another year. Now salsa, I need more--so easy with the salsa mix--just chop tomatoes, add half cup vinegar and the mix, stir, boil 10 min. and its ready to freeze or can.

[FiberFlinger]

Easiest way is to throw them in the freezer, skin and all. Dehydration next and canning last.

[flaquita]

we used to make tomato sauce in the pressure cooker. One time it exploded.....red all over the kitchen. but mostly it work great, is fast and energy efficient.

[moonlilyhead]

We throw a batch into a pot of boiling water, wait about four minutes, then the skins can easily pull off with a fork. Throw the whole nekkid tomatoes in freezer bags and voila! You can core or not. That is the question. :D
Later, you can pull them out to make sauce, stewed tomatoes, etc.

[Dramaqueen]

Well for those who use freezer method and sauce or not I will do this cuz I am not good at pressuring anything and like one said, it exploded, I am so afraid of that. So I will either make sauce and free it or chuck the whole things in the freezer.

For sauce just in case I decide to do it and and I WILL freeze the sauce, any good recipes out there?

[bugman37]

Just remember, if you freeze them, they are only good for soups and stuff. Kinda the same thing with dehydrating. Canning is the best for sauces and pastes, etc. I'm working on sauce tonight. I feel like a squirrel. lol I'm working on tomato sauce, I'm dehydrating my Sun Gold cherry tomatoes, and I've snapped green beans and ready to can them when I can free 3 burners. But, all of this will taste good in Dec. lol

[California Gardener]

Just remember, if you freeze them, they are only good for soups and stuff. Kinda the same thing with dehydrating. Canning is the best for sauces and pastes, etc. I'm working on sauce tonight. I feel like a squirrel. lol I'm working on tomato sauce, I'm dehydrating my Sun Gold cherry tomatoes, and I've snapped green beans and ready to can them when I can free 3 burners. But, all of this will taste good in Dec. lol

Bugman,

I just got my first dehydrator today and have lots of Sun Gold cherry tomatoes--they're my favorite. What do I do to dehydrate them--any special tips?

CG.

[Emerald]

Bugman,

I just got my first dehydrator today and have lots of Sun Gold cherry tomatoes--they're my favorite. What do I do to dehydrate them--any special tips?

CG.

For cherry tomatoes, I would just rinse the dirt off (if there is any ) and then cut them in half and dry skin side down for the first half of drying and then flip them over for the second half of drying-- if you plan on just snacking on them like candy-- leave them a bit more leathery, if you are going to store them for long time and use them in cooked foods go ahead and dry until more crisp-- but I don't think that tomatoes will really get too hard,, at least mine never do.. Now some folks will take out the seeds from some of the tomatoes that they are drying, I usually don't, I don't mind the fiber in my diet!! hehehe and if you label your types of dried maters-- and need seed for next year-- just pick some out of the tomato-- they will sprout fine!!

[yorkerjenny7]

I just chop up, put plastic kitchen bags and freeze. That's easiest way.

[Dramaqueen]

Been doing that every few days or so. The sauce need sa lot and I dont have a lot at a time, will make the sauce afterwards I suppose when needed fresh

[ScarlettO'Herring]

I personally don't find just canning them to be hard at all, so I do some canning and some dehydrating. There are many foods that dehydrated tomatoes just won't work for, only fresh or canned. I personally don't freeze any tomatoes at all, it takes up too much room. We are seriously freezer space challenged here. ;) When I dehydrate, I'll vacuum seal them afterwards so they stack and keep better on the pantry shelves. Little packages of dehydrated tomatoes make great gifts for gourmet friends if you have extra tomatoes.

I also like to make my own sauce, stewed tomatoes, tomato preserves, salsa and "V-8" and I can those too. It's nice to have a ready made homemade meal like spaghetti sauce for a busy night, or to be able to pull out "fresh" homemade salsa for a get-together. We also share these as presents and give them to shut ins and to help families in crisis. Older folks who grew up with home-preserved foods but can't garden or can anymore are especially touched by this.

ScarlettO

[Dramaqueen]

I personally don't find just canning them to be hard at all, so I do some canning and some dehydrating. There are many foods that dehydrated tomatoes just won't work for, only fresh or canned. I personally don't freeze any tomatoes at all, it takes up too much room. We are seriously freezer space challenged here. ;) When I dehydrate, I'll vacuum seal them afterwards so they stack and keep better on the pantry shelves. Little packages of dehydrated tomatoes make great gifts for gourmet friends if you have extra tomatoes.

I also like to make my own sauce, stewed tomatoes, tomato preserves, salsa and "V-8" and I can those too. It's nice to have a ready made homemade meal like spaghetti sauce for a busy night, or to be able to pull out "fresh" homemade salsa for a get-together. We also share these as presents and give them to shut ins and to help families in crisis. Older folks who grew up with home-preserved foods but can't garden or can anymore are especially touched by this.

ScarlettO

Then you must have a really heavy and bountiful crop SO? I am still barely getting 300 gm a day so I dont think I can do all those things. I cut mine in half and freeze them. I will prolly try the canning as a test over the winter with some other stuff.

Share the salsa recipe will you hon:D

[ScarlettO'Herring]

What kind of salsa do you fancy? I have loads of recipes, hot hot hot!, a more mild variety, a nice and spicy but not wicked, a roasted tomatillo and chipotle, hmmm.... Pineapple and chile, oh no nevermind, I don't even think that has any tomatoes in it at all. :rolleyes:

Do you need measurements in mL, weights (oz or grammes) or US imperial volumes?

ScarlettO

[FiberFlinger]

:You really don't need to remove the skins if you freeze them. They peel off easily when defrosted. You can wait till they are totally soft or after a short while and see the skin coming off. I canned 6 pints of tomato chunks yesterday along with 6 quarts of V-5 juice. (tomato, cucumber, pepper, zuch, onion)

[LarryS]

Is there an EASY way to preserve tomatoes be it sauce or otherwise? I want the simplest way without much hassle and surety of it lasting outside of the fridge. Any thoughts? Thanks

Define EASY. Traditional canning methods work fine and are not too complicated.
Drying gives you an additional bit of latitude in flavor and utility.

I saw an episode of Tyler Florence's Ultimate series in which he tried to make the ultimate pizza. In Italy, his host took him to a neighbor who smoked tomatoes.
They were, IIRC, smoked on the vine and looked great. I find this interesting
but have never seen anyone here do it or even know about it.

Anybody else see this?

[muppetcow]

What kind of salsa do you fancy? I have loads of recipes, hot hot hot!, a more mild variety, a nice and spicy but not wicked, a roasted tomatillo and chipotle, hmmm.... Pineapple and chile, oh no nevermind, I don't even think that has any tomatoes in it at all. :rolleyes:

Do you need measurements in mL, weights (oz or grammes) or US imperial volumes?

ScarlettO

Pineapple and chile? Yes, please! Hot hot hot! Yes, please! Roasted tomatillo and chipotle? Yes, please!

I'm such a geek. I'm also a thread hijacker, it seems...

[CityMouse]

And, the mild one too. Thank you.

[ScarlettO'Herring]

SALSA!!! Latex gloves are good to keep from being burned when you're handling those hot peppers!

More Fresh + Mild: adjust to your tastes, makes about 4 pints

7 cups chopped + cored tomatoes. Seeded and peeled
2 cups fine chopped cukes, seeded and peeled though sometimes I leave the peels
1 to 2 cups chopped and seeded banana or Hungarian yellow wax peppers
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped and peeled Anaheim peppers, roasted is best
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped jalapeno peppers, seeding optional (hotter with seeds)
1 cup thin sliced green onions
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided in two parts
3-6 cloves minced garlic
1 tbsp minced fresh marjoram
1 to 2 teaspoons salt (to taste)
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
juice of 1 large or 2 small limes (about 2 tablespoons)

Reserve 1/4 cup cilantro and bung everything else in a pot. Bring it to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the reserved cilantro for the last minute. Ladle it into jars, leave 1/4 inch headspace and process in boiling water canner 15 minutes


SPICY SALSA, makes about 6 pints

about 12-14 large tomatoes, small diced (1/4 inch squares). Peel and seed
9 dried hot chili peppers, seeded
3 cups fine diced red onions
1 and 1/2 cups very packed chopped fresh cilantro
2-3 bulbs of garlic (about 15 plump cloves)
6 jalapeno peppers, seed and dice
1 plus tablespoons salt, to taste
1 teaspoon or so dried chili flakes
3/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Put dried chili peppers in a bowl and pour over boiling water to cover, weight and let them stew for 15 minutes. Drain off half the water and puree the remainder in a blender until smooth. Throw everything into a big pot and stir, simmer until it thickens, 10-15 minutes. Ladle into jars, 1/4 inch headspace, process for 15 minutes in boiling water canner



ROASTED TOMATILLO-CHIPOTLE SALSA, makes about 6 pints

a dozen each: dried chipotle and cascabel peppers
2 pounds or so tomatillos, husks removed
2 pounds paste or plum tomatoes
about 1/2 pound white onion
1 very big bulb of garlic
2 teaspoons sugar
1-2 teaspoons salt (to taste)
1 cup cider vinegar

broil the peppers just until they start to char, turn so all sides are roasted. If you can do this over a wood fire or on a grill, the taste is to die for, but in the oven is also good. Cut off any stems, throw the peppers in a bowl and cover them with boiling water, put a plate or something on top to weight them under so they don't float. Now Broil (or grill) the tomatoes, tomatillios, onions and garlic, turn to roast all the sides. It'll take about 20-30 minutes. Remove from oven or grill, peel the tomatoes, onions and garlic. Finely chop the onions and really finely chop the garlic, and set aside. Put the tomatillios, tomatoes and peppers (including the water) into a food processor or blender and pulse a few times so it doesn't explode, then process (I like to leave it chunky because otherwise the texture reminds me of catsup, but some like it smooth). Pour this into a large pot, add the onions and garlic, sugar, salt and vinegar. Boil for about 10 minutes, stirring. Ladle into jars, leave 1/4 inch headspace, process in boiling water canner for 15 minutes

ScarlettO

[CityMouse]

Scarlett, thank you for the recipe. I am definitely going to try this. I don't have all the ingredients but I'll use what I have. I have bell peppers growing and 1 jalapeno plant that is loaded. I don't even know why I planted it because I really don't like hot spicey foods.:p I'll use some of them with the other peppers and maybe it won't cook my mouth.:D

[muppetcow]

Yes, thank you for the recipes! That tomatillo salsa sounds heavenly! And I wasn't even planning on growing tomatillos next year... **sigh** I guess I have a good excuse for growing more stuff now.

[ScarlettO'Herring]

I have GOT to figure out a way to make those tomatillos grow here too! I bought some at the local farmer's market, and I now really wish I spoke Laotian, because those great farmers (and super super nice folks) have managed to grow big, beautiful, MATURE tomatillos already right here in my own zone 3 and I know for a fact that they don't live more than 10 miles from me! I am having a hard time getting my Mammoth sunflowers to blossom this year!! I pine for a greenhouse, I really do. I tried to ask the variety and when they planted them, but the language barrier got in the way. :( I always wish in those kinds of situations that I was some sort of language savant, but what I can manage is minimal and always seems sooooo inadequate. sigh. Still, the roasted salsa was just dreamy, and I canned several jars for later. yummy yummy yummy!

ScarlettO'

[genuineimitation]

ok all - this thread is splitting in two!

re: salsa - my favorites are plum, and kiwi cilantro. just substitute the fruit in place of the tomatoes and proceed with your favorite recipe.

re: saving tomatoes: - we freeze cherry tomatoes for use in sauce during the winter. for other tomatoes i slice them with a tomato slicer (so they are all the same width) and place them in the dehydrator to dry. then i do one of two things: either add shredded cheese and a bit of pepper about halfway through drying to create "walking pizza" or dry them plain, then whirr them in the coffee grinder to make tomato powder to add to sauces while cooking.

my grandmother made tomato leather to use all winter - i never saw or tasted it, but my dad still raves about it. i tried it this summer - added a bit of basil, salt, and olive oil in the blender and let it dry in sheets. hope it tastes as good as it looks!

[Emerald]

my grandmother made tomato leather to use all winter - i never saw or tasted it, but my dad still raves about it. i tried it this summer - added a bit of basil, salt, and olive oil in the blender and let it dry in sheets. hope it tastes as good as it looks!

This last winter I took left over tomato sauce and put it in the dehydrator and it was great! I figured that I let it dry until crispy, not just leather, you can grind it up into powder and put it on popcorn!! Pizza powder, with no perservitives, the only thing I would do different is not add any olive oil if I was going to make leather.. just the spices and garlic. If I get enuf maters this year I am going to try to make tomato bullion balls, so each one would make about a cup of soup- that way I can add them to any broth or soups that I make without opening a can of tomato paste, or stewed maters. Or just for that one cup of nice hot tomato soup on a cold day.

[Imp]

If you will seed and take out the membrane on the hot pepper, they will tone down a lot in heat, leaving more taste and a lower heat to the mouth thing, city mouse.

If you like the flavor of the jalapeno, but not the heat, try a TAM jalapeno or one of the other lower heat jalapeno strains.

[trudyjean]

Emerald I'd like to know how you make the tomato bullion balls.

[Emerald]

Emerald I'd like to know how you make the tomato bullion balls.

I haven't done it yet, but am planning on stewing tomatoes down to a thick sauce and then dehydrating till just tacky, and then rolling the balls out and then dehydrating a bit more, will probably have to keep them in the freezer - but I will freeze them on a cookie sheet and then put in bags or a plastic tub, so I can get one at a time. I am not planning on using too much salt, as the bullion cubes depend on for shelf life, but may try a few with more salt than the others just to see if it helps them last longer-- I will be trying this if I get tomatoes this year that is!!:D If anyone else tries this first let me know how it turns out.

[brandonfarm@gmail.co]

You can quarter them (skin on) and put them in a roaster oven with some onion and maybe celery overnight on 250 degrees. Then blend in the morning and freeze in freezer bags. We use this as a soup base or sauce. Last year was the first time I did this and it was wonderful! For the soup, just make a white sauce and add whatever seasonings and/or meat you like plus the defrosted tomato base. YUM!

[genuineimitation]

You can quarter them (skin on) and put them in a roaster oven with some onion and maybe celery overnight on 250 degrees. Then blend in the morning and freeze in freezer bags. We use this as a soup base or sauce. Last year was the first time I did this and it was wonderful! For the soup, just make a white sauce and add whatever seasonings and/or meat you like plus the defrosted tomato base. YUM!

this sounds wonderful!
i think i will try it in my solar oven:)

[TastyofHasty]

for other tomatoes i slice them with a tomato slicer (so they are all the same width) and place them in the dehydrator to dry.

genuineimitation, that is a good idea to use uniform slices in the dehydrator! ... what kind of tomato slicer do you use? I found one here:
http://www.vermontcountrystore.com//shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=7243&itemType=PRODUCT&iMainCat=728&iSubCat=770&iProductID=7243&searchid=inceptor&feedid=nextag

not too expensive, but wonder if it would last(?)

[CityMouse]

Thanks Imp, for telling how to cool down my jalapenos. I really want to try making a nice, mild salsa with lots of flavor. Now if my tomatoes would just get ripe.:rolleyes:

I really love all these ideas on how to dry tomatoes for making soups and to use in other dishes. Thanks for sharing them.