Real Recipes From Real Home Cooks ®

canning tomatoes

Recipe by
Dave T.
Cades Cove, TN

Canned tomatoes and canning in general is a time honored way to preserve the bounty of your garden. Hey you may not have bushels of tomatoes, big deal, here is a sample to get you started on 18-20 medium sized tomatoes, that should give you 3-4 pints canned. Mommy use to say "this winter you'll be wanting these", as always she was right. Don't think it's worth your time? For every jar you can, that's one you won't have to buy, and you know for a fact what's going into them. Hope you enjoy!

yield 3 -4 pints
prep time 20 Min
cook time 45 Min
method Canning/Preserving

Ingredients For canning tomatoes

  • 1/2 tsp
    corse sea salt or pink salt per jar
  • 18-20 md
    tomatoes
  • 3
    bay leaves per jar
  • 1/2 tsp
    lemon juice per jar
  • Option
    one fresh basil leaf per jar

How To Make canning tomatoes

  • 1
    Working with 4-5 tomatoes at a time, place in a pot of boiling water for 2-3min till the skin splits
  • 2
    Remove from water and place in cold water. Put more tomatoes in boiling water
  • 3
    Working over a bowl so it catches the juice, peel and core each tomato and cut in half. Discard skins. Repete all the above processes till you have finished all your tomatoes.
  • 4
    Working with hot sterilized jars, add bay leaves, salt and lemon juice to each jar.
  • 5
    Fill each jar 3/4 full of tomatoes, use a wooden spoon to push down tomatoes to remove air bubbles. Finish filling jars within 1/2 inch of the top with remaining juice from bowl.
  • 6
    Wipe tops off and place hot sterilized lid on each jar. Screw ring on tight.
  • 7
    Place jars in canner or large pot, cover with at least 1/2 inch of water, bring to a rolling boil then reduce to a simmer and process for 45min
  • 8
    Turn heat off and let jars sit in pot for 5min before removing. Remove and set on counter. As jars seal you will hear a "pop" and you will notice the jar lid will be concave slightly. This means you have a good seal. After 24hr wipe clean and label, store in a cool dark place. Use within one year for best quality
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