Homemade Tomato Paste for Canning
Take your abundance of paste-style garden tomatoes and make your own tomato paste. Have jars stored for the year to make stews, sauces, chili, pot roast, pulled pork, and more.
Equipment
- 1 large stainless steel pot
- 1 tomato corer (optional)
- 1 fine mesh strainer/sieve or food mill
- 1 large saucepan
- 1 water bath canner and tools
- 1 large metal or wooden spoon & ladle
- 12 or more ¼ pint jars with lids and bands
Ingredients
- 16 lbs Roma (paste-style) tomatoes 14 lbs after coring
- 1 tsp citric acid
- 1 tsp kosher or picking salt
- 2 bay leaves optional
- 1 whole garlic clove peeled optional
Instructions
- Wash tomatoes and core them with a corer or serrated knife.
- Place large stainless steel pot on stove and turn heat to medium. One pound at a time, chop tomatoes into quarters, place in hot pot, and mash with a potato masher. Repeat until all tomatoes are in the large pot.
- Reduce heat and allow to simmer until mixture is reduced by ½ and vegetables are cooked. Skins should release from the flesh. Stir frequently to prevent tomatoes from sticking and burning. This should take 1- 1½ hours.
- Place your tomato mixture through a food mill or use a wooden spoon to press the mixture in batches through a fine mesh strainer or sieve. Discard solids.
- Return the remaining tomato mixture to a large saucepan. Add citric acid and stir to combine. Add salt and optional bay leaves and garlic clove. Stir to combine.
- Heat mixture over medium-low and simmer until it thickens to a paste. Stir frequently. This could take 2-5 hours. Remove bay leaves and garlic when desired consistency is reached.
- Meanwhile, prepare jars in your water bath canner and sterilize jar lids.
- Use a funnel to fill jars with tomato paste. Leave ½ inch headspace. Use a small rubber spatula to remove air bubbles and carefully place lids on jars. Gently tighten bands.
- Process in your water bath canner for 45 minutes (adjusting for altitude). See notes.
- Turn off heat and allow jars to cool in the canner for an additional 5 minutes.
- Remove jars from the canner, place them on a clean towel, and check after 12-24 hours for a proper seal.
- Label and store your sealed jars in a location out of direct sunlight for over a year. Any that have failed to seal can be placed in the fridge and used first.
Notes
- Adjust your processing time based on your altitude. Check out this chart.
- The original recipe from the National Center for Home Preservation claims to make 8 or 9- 1/2 pint jars, but depending on the water content of your tomatoes that amount could vary greatly.