Canned Crushed Heirloom Tomatoes

Save the season with this simple recipe for canned crushed heirloom tomatoes.

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Tomato Seconds: Ideal for Canning

Peak tomato season in Virginia means there are expansive flats of heirlooms at every market. It also means that there are plenty of cast-offs. And, as far as canning’s concerned, it’s cast-offs you should be after. It may take some asking around, but you can generally find someone to sell you dented, bruised, or otherwise compromised tomatoes at cut rate.

In search of tomato deals, last weekend we piled in the car and drove down to the town of Scottsville for country prices.

We caught the tail end of the market – the wizened old man at the Jehovah’s Witness table was already packing up – but the rest of the market was quietly buzzing with its oddball mix of earnest young hippie types and older country folk with direct signage, like the one that reads simply “Rabbit Meat” with a helpful illustration of a rabbit (before it’s meat). We passed on the rabbit meat, but came away with two flats of mixed heirlooms for $15 bucks, weighing in at just north of 25 pounds. We also snagged the last dozen eggs, an heirloom watermelon, a dozen ears of sweet Virginia corn, and a few more odds and ends for another week of summer feasts.

While in Scottsville, we strolled along the levee that protects the little town from the James River. Buses rolled up full of college students setting out for a day of tubing on the James. Our girls played happily at a riverfront playground. Rain was imminent and it lent our rambling summer morning a hint of urgency. Just as big raindrops plopped onto the windshield, we were buckled in and began the winding journey home, with a pleasant stop at a country junction for some of the best pizza I’ve had in Virginia. Pitchers of beer never hurt, either.

If you do score some bruised and dented tomatoes, you’ll want to turn around and can them right away. I selected the most urgent cases and put up a couple quarts over the weekend. Then I packed up and refrigerated the extras. It wasn’t ideal, but it meant they wouldn’t expire while I made time to get them canned. On Monday, I’m starting a more massive canning project with the remaining tomatoes.

Tomato Water Cocktails

When making canned crushed tomatoes, consider saving the tomato juices so you can make tomato water cocktails – get that recipe here. 

Home Canning Fundamentals

Heirloom tomatoes have a more watery consistency than paste tomatoes like Roma, but canned heirlooms can offer up a surprising hit of summer flavor in winter braises, sauces, or stews. If you’re new to canning, please review the Ball Canning website in detail before getting started. It’s also worth noting that sterilization guidelines for lids have changed – this recipe is adjusted accordingly. Finally, if home canning is intriguing to you, I highly recommend the Food in Jars cookbook by Marisa McLellan. You may also want to check out this post on tomato canning basics.

Print Recipe

Canned Crushed Heirloom Tomatoes

Prep Time

45 mins

Cook Time

55 mins

Total Time

1 hr 40 mins

 

A simple recipe for making canned crushed heirloom tomatoes at home. This recipe details a 10 pound quantity of tomatoes, but you can adjust the recipe for however many tomatoes you have.

Recipe Type: Canning

Cuisine: American

Keyword: canned heirloom tomatoes

Makes: 4 quarts

Author: Elizabeth Stark

Ingredients

• 10 pounds heirloom tomatoes* (throw in a few extra if you have lots of compromised fruit you’ll need to cut away), if using a different quantity, see note below
• 1/2 cup lemon juice (or 2 tablespoons per quart jar) (for pH balance, you’ll want to use the prepared kind)
• 2 teaspoons sea salt

Instructions

1. To sterilize jars, immerse 4 quart jars in a large, water-filled pot. Set over high heat, cover, and bring to a boil. As soon as water boils, turn off heat and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, heat another large pot with boiling water – you’ll use this to blanche to heirlooms. Fill the sink or make a large bowl of icy water, and prepare a large cutting board. Set out a medium bowl to collect the tomato seeds and water.

3. Dip a group of 5 – 6 tomatoes into boiling water for 1 minute, and then use a slotted spoon to move blanched tomatoes into the ice water. Core and peel skin from tomatoes. Cut away and discard any dark spots or sections of mushy flesh. Cut each tomato in half and scoop any juices into the medium bowl. Rough chop tomatoes, and set in a large, non-reactive pot or, temporarily, in a large bowl (if you don’t have a second large pot). Continue until all the tomatoes have been peeled and chopped.

4. Set the large pot of chopped tomatoes over high heat. Bring mixture to a boil quickly, then turn heat to medium so the mixture bubbles vigorously. Use a potato masher to mash the tomatoes a bit and stir often. Add sea salt. Cook mixture for 10 minutes.

5. Bring large pot of jars back to a boil. Add lids and rims, and remove after one minute. Tip water out of the jars, and set out to fill.

6. Measure 2 tablespoons bottled lemon juice into each of the sterilized quart jars. Ladle hot tomatoes into jars, leaving 1/2-inch head space. Gently tap bottom of jar to displace bubbles. Wipe rims clean with a cloth dipped in hot water. Top with lids and seal with rims.

7. Set jars into same pot used to sterilize. You’ll probably need to remove some water – leave enough so jars are covered by 2-inches. Bring water to a vigorous boil, cover with the lid, and process in rapidly boiling water for 45 minutes.

8. Set processed jars on a heat proof surface. Tap bottom gently to remove bubbles. Lids should invert and seal overnight. If one of your jars doesn’t seal, set it in the fridge and use within a week.

9. Note: If you're planning to make tomato water for cocktails, pour reserved tomato water into jars, seal, and set in the fridge. Within a day, you’ll want to strain the tomato water.

Recipe Notes

*If using a different amount of tomatoes, you can just add 2 tablespoons prepared lemon juice to the bottom of each quart jar or 1 tablespoon to the bottom of each pint jar, then fill with hot crushed tomatoes and process as detailed above. 

Weigh your tomatoes first, so you can estimate the number of jars you’ll need. 10 pounds of tomatoes yields about 4 quarts canned crushed tomatoes. 

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