The Cozy Cookbook is here! These homemade canned tomatoes are the best way to keep your garden tomatoes fresh and ready to eat and cook with all year long!
So, my husband’s garden is gargantuan, and yesterday afternoon I decided to take a quaint little stroll to the garden for a tomato or two. Nothing like a fresh summer salad, right? Well apparently I haven’t glanced at the garden in a few days because I was almost blinded by all the red- it looked like a crime scene from a distance. Dang, so much for a tomato or two, I needed a dump truck. (A good problem to have though, I admit.)
Of course I tried to carry the tomatoes all in one load and almost fell flat on my face like 65 times doing it. (I’m one of those that’d rather die than make 2 trips carrying groceries in… same goes with tomatoes I guess.) I managed to haul 15 tomatoes into the house and figured that I’d have to get canning. My canning jars had actually just arrived from Amazon that afternoon too- it was like a sign. And now, I would be happy to show you how to can tomatoes at home!
Tomato recipe ideas:
Canned Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 30 large tomatoes
- 4 tablespoons canning salt
- 24 fresh basil leaves, optional
- ¾ cup lemon juice, optional, helps with preservation
Instructions
- Sterilize all cans prior to use.
- Prepare a large bowl of ice water & set aside.
- Boil the tomatoes in batches, (1-2 minutes for each batch.)
- You’ll notice the skin begin to split- this makes for easy pealing!
- Toss each batch into ice cold water to stop the cooking process. Once cool enough to handle, peel the skin off of the tomatoes and set aside.
- Position a strainer over a large bowl, and halve the tomatoes over the strainer so that the excess juices are caught in the bowl. Remove the stems with a knife as well. Set the halved tomatoes on a large plate for now.
- Once all of the tomatoes are halved, you may want to let them drain a little more if necessary (we’ll be adding this juice back to the cans)
- Let the flat lids of the cans boil lightly, as they need to be hot when you screw them on.
- Place a teaspoon of salt, 2 Tablespoons lemon juice, and 2 basil leaves on the bottom of each can. Use a spoon to drop in the tomatoes, (sliced side down if you can). (I added more basil leaves at the top, for visual appeal and more flavor, this isn’t necessary.) Use a knife to remove any air bubbles or excess space.
- Pour the tomato juice into each can and leave ½ inch of space from the rim. Place a warm lid on the top and seal shut.
- Transfer the jars into a large pot of warm water, so that the contents is mostly submerged with just the lids poking up at the top. Bring the water to a gentle boil for 85 minutes, covered. Remove them from the water and let them cool for 24 hours. Check the lids to make sure they're sealed, then store until ready for use! 🙂
Nutrition
Recipe Source: Martha Stewart
I have been reading recommendations for water bath canning tomatoes for 85 minutes. Just seems too long. Any ideas on that?
Per Ball, the canning experts, the lemon juice is very necessary. The tomaotes may not have enough acid & if you are canning in with the hot water method the lemon juice prevents spoilage and botulism.
This may be a silly question but how long will the canned tomatoes last?
Hi Chaundra, not a silly question at all! As long as the seal on the top stays down, the tomatoes are good for at least 18 months, (that’s when they’ll taste their best)! It’s also best to store them in a cool, dry place 🙂
A very easy recipe to follow, looking forward to using these this fall. thanks for sharing
So happy to hear it Jerry! It’s so handy having so many fresh tomatoes at your disposal year round! My favorite recipes for these are salsa and tomato sauce. Enjoy!!
Hi..Here in our NC garden, we grow: corn, okra, peppers of all kinds, tomatoes, field peas (crowders), several kinds of squash. As well as eggplant and my herb bed. I love to can all the vegetables, and am always planning a bigger garden:) Last year, I canned over 80 quarts of tomatoes and over 40 quarts of peas. (I share) But so rewarding! The okra is coming in now, and is good to can mixed with the tomatoes. Great for soups and gumbo. Thanks for the post, I enjoyed it.
WOW Dawn, you have an amazing garden, I am SUPER impressed!!!! I wish I could see it, you definitely sound like you’ev got a green thumb! Thanks for sharing, I love it!
Do you let your canned tomatoes cool for 24 hours in the water or out first time ever on canning
Good morning Caroline! You’ll remove them from the pot and then let them cool for 24 hours? I’ll make that more clear in the instructions, thank you for asking!
I saw your tomatoes on twitter. I bet they taste as good as they look !
My to-do list for next year is:
1. Grow tomatoes
2. Eat tomatoes
3. Can tomatoes
4. Enjoy them again !
GREAT PLAN GEORGE! I like it!!!!
I grew 1 tomato plant. It yielded 11 tomatoes—4 rotted on the plant, 5 got eaten, and 2 are not ready to be picked. Not quite the garden that you have! 🙂 Your canned tomatoes look beautiful, Stephanie!! Enjoy them!
AWWWW!! Hey I think 5 eaten tomatoes is a WIN!!!!! Much better than I would do I’m sure, I have to give my husband all the credit for the garden- he has a green thumb for sure! Hope all is well Thao- and enjoy the long holiday weekend!!!!! 🙂
Duuuuude you are my hero!! I actually wanted to can so badly this year, but we never got our garden going 🙁 Ah well, next year!! Your tomatoes look gorgeous!!
HEEEYYY THANK YOU! I got some peer pressure from the hubs to get canning, lol, his garden is ridiculous… like, I am going to go home and there will be ten times more tomatoes than yesterday, they’re taking overrrrrr!!!!
Excellent step by step tutorial. I have to try canning tomatoes. Looks absolutely perfect.
Thank you so much Suzanne! I don’t do step by steps too often but I knew that I’d have many more tomatoes to can this year so if nothing else, it’s a guide for myself! 😉 I hope you’re well!!!!! 🙂