Preserving tomatoes: canning & more

Excess tomatoes can be preserved well. Here you will find all information on drying, pickling, canning and freezing tomatoes.

Who doesn't know it: In spring, the eyes were bigger than the actual "hunger for tomatoes". And suddenly you have countless tomato plants in your own garden, the harvest of which quickly exceeds your own need for fresh tomatoes. But don't worry, of course you don't have to throw away the hard-earned fruits of your harvest, because there are countless ways to preserve tomatoes. We present you different ways to preserve your tomatoes.

Drying tomatoes: preserving the Mediterranean way

Very ripe, soft tomatoes that have a high sugar content and a strong aroma are best suited for drying. To preserve the fruit in the Mediterranean way, you have to open it with a butterfly cut and almost split it. The fruit should still be held together on the opposite side from the cut. The juice and the gelatinous seeds are then removed. Then you should add a good portion of s alt.

Whereas in the Mediterranean countries the tomatoes spend a few days in the dry and warm air, here we need other means. The simple solution is oven drying. To do this, place the tomatoes generously on a tray lined with baking paper and put it in the oven at 90 °C for about six hours. Important: The oven door must not be completely closed. Stick a cooking spoon in the oven door to allow moisture to escape. If you often want to dry or dehydrate vegetables and fruit, it is best to use a professional dehydrator.

Drying tomatoes in 6 steps:

1. Let the tomatoes ripen as long as possible.
2. Butterfly cut tomatoes.
3. Remove juice and seeds.
4. S alt the tomato pieces properly.
5. Lay out the pieces generously on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
6. Dry in the oven at 90 °C for about 6 hours; Put a wooden spoon between the door to let the moisture escapecan.

Put in the tomatoes and preserve

This method was particularly popular in times when tomatoes were not yet available in the supermarket all year round. It's true that we no longer suffer from a tomato shortage in winter, but to be honest, the Dutch grow tomatoes taste anything but good.

In order to be able to enjoy aromatic tomatoes even in the cold season, it is best to use an old recipe from grandmother's times: choose ripe tomatoes, wash them and lightly cut the skin in one place. Then place the tomatoes in a suitable container or pot and pour boiling water over them. After a few minutes, the tomato peel can be removed very easily. While the tomatoes are in the hot water, take the previously cleaned mason jars and pour boiling water over them as well. Although this is not absolutely necessary, it avoids cracks in poor-quality glass.

Once the tomatoes have been peeled, layer them in the glass. You can add pepper or other herbs and spices for flavor. Finally, fill the glass up to just below the rim with a 1.5% brine (15 g s alt per liter). The tightly screwed glasses are now placed in a water bath and the pot is heated to 85 - 95 °C for about half an hour. The last step is to take the pot off the plate and let the glasses cool down. Only then should you touch the lid, which now sits tightly on the edge of the glass due to the vacuum.

Canning tomatoes in 7 steps:

• Wash the ripe tomatoes, cut the skin slightly, place in a container or saucepan and pour hot water over it.
• Pour hot water into clean mason jars.
• Remove the tomatoes from the container and peel them with a knife. If the shell doesn't bother you, you can do without it.
• Stack the tomatoes in the now warm and empty mason jars.
• Add spices and herbs and cover with 1.5% brine to the top.
• Close the jars and boil for 30 minutes in a 85 - 95 °C water bath.
• Remove from heat and let cool.

Freezing Tomatoes

Tomatoes freeze well whole, diced or pureed. However, this is only useful if the tomatoes are later to be used in cooked dishes. Freezing changesnamely the consistency of the pulp. If you want to add a tomato note to sauces or soups, frozen tomatoes are ideal.

In our opinion, it's best to dice the tomatoes before freezing. The stalk should also be removed beforehand, as it is fibrous and would only take up space anyway. You can also skin the tomatoes beforehand if you want. The fruit is then portioned into small freezer bags with zippers so that the contents are airtight. Not only can the packing density be increased, but the diced tomatoes also defrost better later. Freezing keeps tomatoes for up to a year.

Canning Tomatoes

Preserving tomatoes is particularly good for anyone who likes to prepare tomato sauces. The advantage of home-cooked tomatoes is obvious. You have full control over what goes into the glass. In addition, conventional canned tomatoes from the supermarket have the disadvantage that plasticizers (bisphenol A, etc.) can diffuse from the inner coating of the can into the tomatoes.

The best and tastiest tomato sauce is obtained by preserving fully ripe tomatoes. For this you can also take those that already have slight pressure points and would not last much longer anyway. Remove the stalk, then dice the tomatoes into small pieces and slowly bring to the boil in a saucepan. If the tomato skin bothers you, you can puree the mass with a blender while it is cooking. However, we recommend boiling down the peel, as this is the only way to benefit from the secondary plant substances that are increasingly present in the peel.

Depending on personal preference, you can add other ingredients such as garlic, bay leaves, rosemary, oregano and thyme as well as a pinch of s alt. Many recipes recommend adding plenty of sugar (up to 500g per 1000g of tomatoes). In our opinion, this is not necessary, since ripe tomatoes from your own garden should actually be sweet enough. In addition, the full flavor of the tomato only comes into its own with a balanced ratio of fructose and fructose.

The tomato mixture is now boiled down for at least three quarters of an hour. There should be no lid on the pot and it should be stirred from time to time. In the last five minutes, pour boiling water into the clean mason jars.When the glasses are hot, pour out the water and pour in the tomato sauce. A funnel can make this job a lot easier. Now close the jars with the lid and overthrow them. This also disinfects the upper rim and the lid of the jar and creates a vacuum (responsible for the well-known click when opening the jar).

Canning tomatoes in 6 steps:

• Wash fully ripe tomatoes, remove the stalk and dice into small pieces.
• Place in a larger saucepan and season with additional ingredients such as garlic, bay leaves, pepper, oregano, thyme and rosemary.
• Simmer the mixture on a medium level for three quarters of an hour. Now and then you stir the sauce.
• If you don't like tomato skins, you can puree the mixture with a blender while it is cooking.
• Towards the end of the cooking time, fill the clean jars with hot water. When the glasses are hot, pour out the water and pour in the tomato sauce.
• Now close the jars, turn them out and let them cool down slowly.

Not only the tomato itself can be preserved. With many tomato varieties, the seeds can be dried and you can later sow new tomatoes with them. Here's everything you need to know about how to win tomato seeds.