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How to Freeze Excess Tomatoes to Can or Use Later!

How to Freeze Excess Tomatoes to Can or Use Later!

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Are your tomato plants producing more tomatoes than you can use or give away and you haven't got time to can?  Here's how to easy freeze the tomatoes, in a way that saves space in your freezer and makes canning or using the tomatoes later much easier. Then, when you have time later, you can use them to make a fresh spaghetti sauce, lasagna, chili, or other tomato-based meals for that fresh garden taste.

Ingredients

• Tomatoes - any amount

 

Equipment

• 1 large pot with boiling water (to scald the tomatoes, step 3)
• Ice and a large bowl or pot
• Large spoons and ladles,
• Freezer bags

 

How to Quickly Freeze Fresh Tomatoes for Later USe

Step 1 - Removing the tomato skins

Here's a trick you may not know: put the tomatoes, a few at a time in a large pot of boiling water for no more than 1 minute (30 - 45 seconds is usually enough)

• Dead ripe tomatoes - take only 20 - 30 seconds in boiling water
• Ripe tomatoes - about 30 - 40 seconds
• Slightly unripe tomatoes - about 1 minute in the boiling water

Step 2 - Remove and immerse in the ice water

Plunge them into a waiting bowl of ice water.

This makes the skins slide right off of the tomatoes!  If you leave the skins in, they become tough and chewy in the sauce, not very pleasant.

 

 

Step 3 -  Removing the skins, bruises and tough parts

The skins should practically slide off the tomatoes.  then you can cut the tomatoes in quarters and remove the tough part around the stem and any bruised or soft parts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 4 - Squeeze of the seeds and water

Just like it sounds: wash your hands then squeeze each tomato and use your finger or a spoon to scoop and shake out most of the seeds.  You don't need to get fanatical about it; removing just most will do. Another way to do it is to cut each tomato in half, across it, instead of lengthwise. Then just shake the seeds and juice out. Here are before and after photos: Of course, you can save the juice to use as tomato juice!

Step 5 - Drain the tomatoes

Toss the squeezed (Squozen? :) tomatoes into a colander or drainer, while you work on others. This helps more of the water to drain off.  You may want to save the liquid: if you then pass it through a sieve, screen or cheesecloth, you have fresh tomato juice; great to drink cold or use in cooking! By draining the water off now, you will end up with a thicker spaghetti sauce in less cooking time! And that preserves vitamins (and your sanity).

Step 6 - Fill the freezer bags

Don't overfill the bags, leave a little room for expansion. Do try to avoid leaving any air pockets!   A vacuum bag is shown at left, but you can use ziploc (or similar) bags, show below.  But be sure to squeeze out the extra air (below left is before, below right is after squeezing out the excess air)

Step 7 - Vacuum seal the bags (if you have a vacuum sealer)

Obviously if you haven't got a vacuum food sealer, just inspect the bags and you may need to open them and reseal them to eliminate any air pockets!

TIP:  If you don't own a vacuum food sealer to freeze foods, place food in a Ziploc bags, zip the top shut but leave enough space to insert the tip of a soda straw. When straw is in place, remove air by sucking the air out.  To remove straw, press straw closed where inserted and finish pressing the bag closed as you remove straw.

Step 8 - Freeze the bags

Pop them into the freezer (on the quick freeze shelf, if you have one).  Now leave them for 2 or 3 hours till frozen.

 

 

Put in the back (coldest part) of your freezer

And wait for a cold winter night when it is dark and dreary out, to remove it and defrost (microwave works well) and use in making so fresh tasting spaghetti sauce or other tomato cooking!

Freezing keeps tomatoes safe to eat almost indefinitely, but the recommended maximum storage time of 12 months is best for taste and quality. The quality of the frozen tomatoes is maintained best in a very cold freezer (deep freezer), and one that keeps them frozen completely with no thaw cycles. Excluding any air from inside the bags which leads to freezer burn, by using vacuum-sealed bags, is also important to maintaining quality

 

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions about Canning Tomatoes

Why do my tomatoes separate from the liquid?

A frequent problem is the separation of water from the tomatoes.  Why does the water separate from the solids in tomatoes?

Scenario 1 - liquid at the top and solids at the bottom

Home canned tomatoes, tomato juice, and tomato sauces with liquid at the top and solids at the bottom is quite normal. It only reflects that the juice was made prior to heating. For example, the tomatoes were chopped, run through the steamer, sieve, or food mill while still raw and prior to heating.

As soon as they are chopped or crushed, enzymes start to break down the pectin that helps to hold tomato cells together. The enzyme that causes separation is activated by exposure to air and inactivated by heat. In commercial production, tomatoes are flash heated nearly to boiling in a matter of seconds, using equipment not available to consumers. Because the pectin holding tomato cells together is not exposed to air when cold, it remains intact, and a thick bodied, homogeneous juice is produced.

The solution is to leave tomatoes whole or in large chunks (do not chop). Heat before chopping or juicing to minimize the separation.

The best way to do that at home is to heat quartered tomatoes quickly to boiling temperatures WHILE crushing. You can also heat the blanched, peeled whole tomatoes in the microwave, then crush them!

Make sure the mixture boils constantly and vigorously while you add the remaining tomatoes. Simmer 5 minutes after all tomatoes are added, before juicing. If you are not concerned about juice separating, simply slice or quarter tomatoes into a large saucepan. Crush, heat and simmer for 5 minutes before juicing.

Scenario 2 - liquid at the bottom and solids at the top (note the photo is step 10)

What about the reverse: liquid at the bottom and solids at the top? That indicates too much preheating (more than 5 minutes). Pectin breaks down when it is overheated; then separation results. If separation occurs, just shake the jar before opening or decant the water off.

References: Ohio State University

I recently canned tomatoes but had one little jar that I didn't have room for in the water bath. So I decided to just refrigerate it. All I've done to those tomatoes is blanch them -- haven't cooked them, stewed them, done anything else. There is some lemon juice in them. They've been refrigerated since I packed them -- how long will they be okay to use?

They will last about the same length of time that a can of tomatoes from the grocery store will last once you open it an put it in the fridge.  I'd guess a couple of weeks, but that depends on how cold your fridge is.

After I removed the jars of tomatoes from the canner, the jars had lost a lot of liquid and were about half-empty.  What happened?  Are they safe?

There are several possible causes:

1. The food was not heated prior to filling (Raw pack method) -
2. The food was packed too tightly (or loosely) in the jars
3. All air bubbles were not removed prior to sealing the lids and rings on the jars
4. The jars were not completely covered with water (applies to a water bath canner only)
5. Starchy foods, such as corn, peas or lima beans, absorbed all the liquid. Use more liquid with these starchy vegetables.
6. The jars were filled too full.
7. Fluctuating pressure in the pressure canner. Let pressure return to zero gradually, avoiding the sudden release of pressure through the vent. Do not hasten the cooling with cold water.

As long as the jars remained sealed, they will be ok, but they should be checked more frequently and used up first!

What did I do wrong if my jars spoil?

Tomatoes are a borderline acid / low acid fruit (see this page about tomato acidity for more information) - adding lemon juice helps, processing at least 35 minutes in the water bath canner, or better still, using a Pressure Canner almost eliminates spoilage.  If you don't have a pressure canner, you must boost the acid level of the sauce, by adding 2 tablespoons of lemon juice or 1/2 teaspoon of citric acid per quart of sauce. 

 

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Other Equipment:

From left to right: Jar lifting tongs to pick up hot jars Lid lifter - to remove lids from the pot of boiling water (sterilizing ) Lids- disposable - you may only use them once Ring - holds the lids on the jar until after the jars cool - then you remove them, save them and reuse them Canning Jar funnel - to fill the jars

See here for related tools, equipment, supplies on Amazon

See here for related tools, equipment, supplies on Amazon See here for related tools, equipment, supplies on Amazon See here for related tools, equipment, supplies on Amazon

Home Canning Kits This is the same type of  standard canner that my grandmother used to make everything from applesauce to jams and jellies to tomato and spaghetti sauce. This complete kit includes everything you need and lasts for years: the canner, jar rack, Jar grabber tongs, lid lifting wand, a plastic funnel, labels, bubble freer, and the bible of canning, the Ball Blue Book. It's much cheaper than buying the items separately. you will never need anything else except jars & lids! To see more canners, of different styles, makes and prices, click here!For more information and current pricing: