Tomatoes are a versatile fruit that can be enjoyed fresh, cooked, or canned. Canned tomatoes are a great way to enjoy the taste of tomatoes all year round.
Tomatoes can be canned using a water bath or pressure canner. The water bath method is suitable for tomatoes that have been peeled and seeded, while the pressure canner is suitable for whole, unpeeled tomatoes. Here is a guide on how to can tomatoes at home:
To Can Tomatoes Using The Water Bath Method no bottled lemon
-Sterilize your canning jars and lids in boiling water for 10 minutes.
-Cut tomatoes into quarters or eighths, depending on their size. Remove the seeds and stems.
-Pack the tomatoes into canning sterilized jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace.
-Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart of tomatoes, if desired.
-Pour hot water over the canned tomatoes, maintaining the 1/2 inch of headspace.
-Wipe off any spilled tomato juice as it can cause mold or bacteria to form on the rim of your jar during storage. This will seal the lid onto the jar and ensure a vacuum is formed. If you notice that some tomato pieces are not covered by liquid, you can use a wooden spoon to press them down.
-Place the lid on the jar and screw on the ring until it’s tight.
-Process in a boiling water bath for 25 minutes.
-Remove from the boiling water bath and place on a clean towel to cool.
– Check the seal of the jar by pressing on the lid. If it doesn’t flex up and down, the jar is sealed. If it pops up and down, put that jar in the refrigerator and use within a couple of weeks.
-Label your jars with the date and refrigerate any unsealed jars within two days.
Learn more about tomato growing
How To Prepare Tomatoes For Canning
-Wash the tomatoes in cool water.
-Remove the stems and cores.
-Cut the tomatoes into quarters or eighths, depending on their size. Remove the seeds and stems.
-Pack the tomatoes into sterilized jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace.
-Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart of tomatoes, if desired.
-Pour hot water over the tomatoes, maintaining the 1/2 inch of headspace.
-Wipe off any spilled tomato juice as it can cause mold or bacteria to form on the rim of your jar during storage. This will seal the lid onto the jar and ensure a vacuum is formed. If you notice that some tomato pieces are not covered by liquid, you can use a wooden spoon to press them down.
-Place the lid on the jar and screw on the ring until it’s tight.
-Process in a boiling water bath for 25 minutes.
-Remove from the boiling water bath and place on a clean towel to cool.
– Check the seal of the jar by pressing on the lid. If it doesn’t flex up and down, the jar is sealed. If it pops up and down, put that jar in the refrigerator and use within a couple of weeks.
-Label your jars with the date and refrigerate any unsealed jars within two days.
-Enjoy your canned tomatoes!
Tomatoes can also be canned using a pressure canner. The process is the same as for the water bath method, but the jars are processed at a higher pressure for a shorter amount of time.
Can Tomatoes Using A Pressure Canner – Canned Tomatoes
-Sterilize your jars and lids in boiling water for 10 minutes.
-Pack the tomatoes into sterilized jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace.
-Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart of tomatoes, if desired.
-Pour hot water over the tomatoes, maintaining the 1/2 inch of headspace.
-Wipe off any spilled tomato juice as it can cause mold or bacteria to form on the rim of your jar during storage. This will seal the lid onto the jar and ensure a vacuum is formed. If you notice that some tomato pieces are not covered by liquid, you can use a wooden spoon to press them down.
-Place the lid on the jar and screw on the ring until it’s tight.
-Process in a pressure canner at 10 lbs of pressure for 15 minutes for pints or 20 minutes for quarts.
-Remove from the boiling water bath and place on a clean towel to cool.
– Check the seal of the jar by pressing on the lid. If it doesn’t flex up and down, the jar is sealed. If it pops up and down, put that jar in the refrigerator and use within a couple of weeks.
-Label your jars with the date and refrigerate any unsealed jars within two days.
Canning tips
-If you are canning with a hot water bath, use a deep kettle. Place the jars on an elevated surface inside the kettle to help them heat evenly.
-If you are canning with a pressure canner, follow your manufacturer’s instructions for preparing it correctly. Do not overfill the cooker with jars or liquid; there should be one inch of space at the top.
-Make sure you clean and sanitize everything that will come in contact with your food.
-When you’re packing tomatoes into jars, try to maximize the amount of surface area touching the syrup; this helps prevent squishy or mushy fruit.
-To ensure a good seal, let the jars cool for 12 to 24 hours.
-Check the seal by pressing on the lid. If it flex up and down, put that jar in the refrigerator and use within a couple of weeks.
Best Method For Canning Tomatoes: Water Bath Canning or Pressure Canner?
The water bath is the most common method for canning tomatoes, but you can also use a pressure canner. The process is the same, but the jars are processed at a higher pressure for a shorter amount of time.
What is the difference between a water bath and pressure canner?
A water bath canner is a large pot with a rack in the bottom that you can use to process jars of food. A pressure canner is a large pot with a weighted gauge that creates a higher pressure than a water bath canner, which allows you to process low-acid foods like tomatoes.
How long do I need to process jars in a boiling water bath at sea level?
-Process the jars for 25 minutes.
How long do I need to process jars in a pressure canner at an elevation of 1,000 feet?
-Process the jars for 15 minutes.
What are the benefits of using a pressure canner over a boiling water bath?
The most obvious benefit is that you can process low-acid foods like tomatoes in a pressure canner. This is important because low-acid foods can harbor harmful bacteria, like botulism, if not canned correctly. A pressure canner also allows you to can food in larger quantities than a boiling water bath.
Do you have to boil tomatoes before canning tomatoes?
No you do not have to boil tomatoes before canning for food preservation. Boiling is often used when you want to make tomato sauce. Diced tomatoes will cook when bath canning. Tomatoes have enough acidity to be canned with out to much prep. If you do not wish to add things like bottled lemon you need to make sure you use canning jars for good quality seal.
How to can tomato sauce.
Making canned tomato sauce can be a bit of work but worth it. Prepare your kitchen with these Ingredients:
- 20 pounds tomatoes peeled. Boil the tomatoes for 5 minutes in water than place in cold water bath to easily remove skins.
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 table spoons lemon juice
- Start the water in canners boiling.
- 4 onions chopped
- 4 tsp salt
- 2 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp. tomato paste helps thicken sauce
Instruction for tomatoes canning
- Wash and chop tomatoes
- Heat the oil over medium heat. Add onions cook until onion softens
- Add garlic to oil onion sauce.
- Add remaining recipe ingredients into boiling mix. Reduce temperature to a simmer it will have the consistency of juice. Simmer sauce you want the thickness of chunky salsa. About 30 minutes of simmering. We are trying to remove water for thick sauce.
- Remove from heat and blend with immersion blender.
- Sterilize jars and lids in boiling water. Use a jar lifter to pull jars out of water. Fill jars with tomato sauce leave 1/2 inch space at top of jars.
- Wipe rims clean and add lids to jars tighten lightly.
- Place jars into water and process jars in boiling water for 45 minutes for pints 55 minutes for quarts.
- Use jar lifter to remove jars from water after process time.
- Cool jars at room temperature for 24 hours
- Check jars for lids seal.
Enjoy!
