How to Make & Can Tomato Sauce As Quickly As Possible: A Step-by-Step Guide
Canning tomato sauce is a fantastic way to preserve the flavors of summer tomatoes for use throughout the year. If you find yourself with an abundance of tomatoes that you can’t use immediately, freezing them is a convenient option. Later, you can use these frozen tomatoes to make delicious tomato sauce and can it for storage. Here's a detailed guide on my method for making a lot of tomato sauce at once, in a way that is super easy and takes minimal time. Plus, I explain how to can the tomato sauce if you choose to do so.
Check out the video version of this guide on my YouTube channel here:
Why Freeze Tomatoes?
Freezing tomatoes is a great way to store them until you have enough time or quantity to make a big batch of sauce. Frozen tomatoes release extra water when they start to defrost which saves you a lot of time as you won't have to cook the sauce down until the extra water has evaporated.
Step 1: Freezing the Tomatoes
Throughout the growing season, harvest tomatoes and put them in 1 gallon size freezer bags. I do not peel the skins off or remove seeds (unless I want to save seeds).
- Choose ripe, unblemished tomatoes.
- Wash the tomatoes thoroughly to remove any dirt.
- Dry them with a clean towel.
Step 2: Thawing the Tomatoes
Take the bags of frozen tomatoes out of the freezer 24 hours before you plan on making the sauce. Place them in the sink or in some big plastic storage tote boxes to defrost. The tomatoes will release a lot of extra liquid while they defrost so you want to put them in something that can hold liquid.
The morning of, dump out all the tomatoes into a strainer to release any final liquid that remains (image below). Trust me, there is more. I use a big metal strainer that I found from Amazon HERE, because it holds a lot of tomatoes at once. Every hour or so, mix the tomatoes up to continue releasing more liquid. By the afternoon, the tomatoes should be ready to turn into sauce.
Step 3: Making Tomato Sauce
I do not have time to peel the skin off each tomato and remove the seeds. Therefore, I purchased a fruit and vegetable strainer attachement that connects onto my KitchenAid Mixer. This piece of equiepment has proved extremely useful when it comes to processing a lot of fruit and veggies that I harvest out of my garden and was well worth the cost. You can find the one I use on Amazon HERE. This device will remove the skins and seeds for you. Just push the tomatoes through the chute. The skin and seeds will dump out into a collection bowl while the sauce will spill into a seperate bowl. You could take all your fresh or thawed frozen tomatoes and blend it all in a blender to make a sauce. However, I find that this method produces a watery sauce that still has tomato skin fibers and pieces which don't produce a smooth sauce texture. To me, it is worth the extra step of removing the skin and seeds.
Find the same KitchenAid Mixer I use, HERE.
As you can see from the right side of the image below, I also put a fine mesh strainer (find on Amazon HERE), to catch the sauce before it falls into the bowl. This allows any extra liquid to strain out and collect in a bowl. This will leave a nice, rich, and thickened tomato sauce in the fine mesh strainer. I will dump the tomato sauce into another bowl as the fine mesh strainer fills up. This sauce is perfectly thick and doesn't require additional cooking to remove extra water if you follow my technique.
Using the fruit and vegetable strainer cuts down on an enormous amount of time by removing the skin, seeds, and extra water. The end result is a thick tomato sauce that is ready to cook or can.
Nothing goes to waste using this method. The leftover skin and seeds can be dried in a dehydrator and turned into tomato powder. The extra liquid has fantastic tomato flavor that can be used as a vegetable broth, added to soups, or used as the soup base for Chinese style hot pot.
Step 4: How To Can Tomato Sauce
Now the tomato sauce is ready to can if you choose to persevere the sauce instead of using right away.
First gather all your supplies. Below are the supplies I use to can tomato sauce.
- Granite Ware water bath canning pot kit with canning rack and tools. This has everything you need for water bath canning. Can find on Amazon HERE.
- Your choice of 16oz (from Amazon HERE) or 32oz jars (from Amazon HERE). I really like the bigger 32oz size jars.
- The appropriate size lids and rings for the jars.
- Fresh lemon juice or concentrate - a little bit is poured into each jar before putting in the tomato sauce to acidify the mixture and prevent bacteria growth.
- Distilled white vinegar - used to wipe the rims of the jars after being filled with tomato sauce but before putting the lids.
- Large towel or dish drying mats - used to cover the surface of your kitchen counter. After the jars have boiled, place them on a towel or kitchen drying mats. Do not place them directly on the cool surface of your kitchen counter as this can cause them to crack.
Sterilize The Jars & Lids
Sterilize the jars before filling them with tomato sauce by boiling in water for 10 minutes. Remove them out of the water, and place on a towel or dish drying mat so they don't come in direct contact with your kitchen counter.
Sterilize the lids and rings by putting them in a bowl and pouring boiling hot water over them. Let them sit in the water for 10 minutes then remove and lay out to dry.
Filling The Jars With Tomato Sauce
Next, pour 1TBS of lemon juice if using 16oz jars or 2TBS of lemon juice if using 32oz size jars, into each jar. Then use the jar funnel to start laddeling tomato sauce into the jars. Leave 1-1.5 inch of headspace. Once done filling the jars with tomato sauce, wipe the rims clean with a paper towel or kitchen towel dipped in white distilled vinegar. Lastly, place the lids on the jars and screw on the rings. The jars are now ready to can.
Canning Tomato Sauce
Place the filled jars in the boiling water bath canner, making sure they are completely submerged with at least 1 inch of water above the jars. Process for 40 minutes. Once done, turn off the heat and slowly move the canner off the heating element. Let this cool down for 5 minutes. Then use the jar lifter to take each jar out of the canner, and set on top of a towel or a dish drying mat. Allow the jars to cool down for 24 hours before moving into storage. You should hear a soft popping noise as the lids get sucked down making a small indent. This ident confirms that the jars are sealed. Move the jars into your pantry for storage after 24 hours.
Canning tomato sauce from frozen tomatoes is a practical way to enjoy the taste of summer all year round. With these steps, you can ensure a delicious and safe product that will enhance your meals for months to come. Happy canning!