I swam in Placid Lake last weekend. I waded to my thighs and then dove, losing my breath, my limbs shocked into the breast stroke. Together with my friend, we swam away from shore until conversation was easy and the water the perfect temperature. We swam and swam and then floated on our backs over the dark deep, under the bright endless.
It’s remarkable that a thing can feel so uncomfortable and then – minutes later – blissful. A great reminder that things needn’t feel easy straight away. Often, our most buoyant and enlightening experiences begin with breathless struggle to tread water.
I am a canning wizard. I’ve become an expert at just continually having something going – fruit cooking or jars processing – while going about my day. I remember when, not long ago, canning took all of my attention; when I stood stoveside for hours chopping, blanching, peeling, ice water bathing, packing, processing, begging my brain to keep track of it all. Now it’s effortless. I know canning can seem intimidating; I hear that from you all a lot. So let me tell you: it is possible to get to the place where it’s as second nature as any of your daily chores.
Often, our most buoyant and enlightening experiences begin with breathless struggle to tread water.
I posted a little late night video to instagram last week showing how I make tomato sauce (easy! no need to remove seeds or skins on fresh maters):
I have long detested peeling and seeding tomatoes. Andy’s stepmom told me that she preserves tomatoes by simply squeezing fresh tomatoes into hot jars and processing. No precooking or puréeing or anything. I hijacked her easy method into my sauce making. As shown in the video, I core the tomatoes and them squeeze them into the pot. I boil for a while to quickly cook some water off. I then purée with my immersion blender. Lastly, let it cook down to thicken. C’est tous.
It received several questions that I will answer here!
>>> How long do you process?
For tomatoes: 35 minutes for pints, 40 minutes for quarts.
If your altitude is 1000-3000 feet: + 5 minutes
3000-5000 feet: + 10 minutes
6000-8000 feet: + 15 minutes
Missoula is around 3500 feet so I add 10 minutes. I filled pint jars and boiled for 45 minutes.
>>> Do you add citric acid or lemon juice?
Yes. I add one tablespoon of lemon juice per pint jar (2 tbsp per quart) before ladling in the sauce.
A bit about that:
Boiling water bath canning only gets so hot – around 212 degrees. This temperature is safe for processing high acid food like fruit (jam, jelly etc). To safely can low acid food (vegetables) we have to do one of two things to ensure all the bacteria croaks:
1) change the pH by adding acid (lemon juice or vinegar)
2) process with a pressure cooker that exceeds the boiling point of water
Tomatoes are low acid so in order to can with using the water bath method, I add lemon juice to perfect the pH.
>>> Do you have any recipes for green tomatoes?
Yes! I always make Farmgirl Susan’s Green Tomato Relish. Holy. Amazing.
>>> Can you use any type of tomato? What tomatoes do you use?
I use any kind of tomato. The big, juicy tomatoes take longer to cook down because they contain more water.
>>> Do the seeds make the sauce bitter? Do the skins affect the flavor or consistency?
We are not even a little bit bothered by the seeds or skins. We don’t even notice them.
>>> How long do you cook the sauce before canning?
No rule here. I cook until it’s the thickness I desire. It can take a while so I often cook it over the course of a few days. For this batch, I left the pot on the stove for nearly two days and turned the burner on low several different times (while making meals, usually). Total, I bet it took about 2 hours to thicken.
A few of our family’s favorite tomato recipes:
Do you have favorite tomato preservation ideas or techniques? Do tell.
18 Comments
YUM! I love that you have become a CC, (confident canner!)
I will share my Mother’s Dill Pickle recipe. I have such fond memories of stuffing cucs in jars with my mom, smelling the garlic, dill and brine. Sharing the joy of every “pop” as jars sealed…my mom saying, “there goes another one”…then waiting the 6 LONG weeks before I could have one. Yup I having been making these very same dills for over 55 years.
DILL PICKLES
Terri Holt 2013
SUPPLIES:
• Quart jars with lids & rings, wide mouth are easier to work with
• Apple cider vinegar, (5% acidy)
• Plain canning salt
• Fresh dill weed, rinsed gently & pat dry, do not soak in water
• Garlic, 2 peeled cloves, (or more, I love garlic!), per jar
• Alum
• Cucumbers, (hint: 5 to 7 cucs per quart, I like 3 to 5 inch cucs) 1/2 bushel makes about 20/22 quarts
BRINE: combine ingredients & bring to a boil; keep hot.
• 4 quarts water
• 1 quart apple cider vinegar~5% acidity
• 1 cup plain canning salt
PROCEDURE:
• Wash cucs gently; place on clean towel and have at room temp
• Wash canning jars and keep hot, I just keep them heated in
dishwasher
• Separate lids from rings; place lids in small stainless steel or glass pan & bring to a boil, keep hot
• Place rings in a bowl of hot water and continue to keep warm
• Working quickly & doing only 1 jar at a time… put 1 scant 1/8 tsp. of alum in bottom of hot jar, stuff a clump of dill weed in & add garlic. Pack cucs in jars, leaving 1/2 inch head space, do not let cucs or dill weed touch lids. Ladle hot brine over stuffed jars, wipe rim with clean cloth and place hot lid and hot ring on jar. Screw tight and place out of draft. I place them on a towel and cover them with a towel; helps keep them warm to aid in sealing. Store in cool place…ready to eat in about 5 to 6 weeks. If a jar does not seal store in frig until time to eat.
ENJOY!
I know you said Tomato preservation ideas or techniques…I seem to be stuck on recipes! Here is a yummy little tomato goodie, I had these at a friend’s house. She served them on a tooth pick in a Martini! I almost ate the whole bowl!
Pickled Cherry Tomatoes
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup water
4 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 3 x 1/2-inch strip lemon peel (yellow part only, removed with vegetable peeler)
12 ounces cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, and/or pear tomatoes
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh dill
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
Pour vinegar and 3/4 cup water into small saucepan. Add salt, sugar, and lemon peel. Bring to boil, stirring to dissolve sugar and salt. Remove from heat. Let cool 20 minutes.
Pierce each tomato 2 times with slender wooden skewer. Toss tomatoes, dill, garlic, and crushed red pepper in large bowl. Add cooled vinegar mixture. Let stand at room temperature at least 2 hours and up to 8 hours.
Makes 3 cups
xo
This sounds so much better than the recipe I tried! May have to give it another go.
Correction: 10 to 12 cucs per quart jar.
I usually do a two step blending. Leave it really chunky for some and then a fine purée for sauces. I’ve also sliced and roasted them (similar to you oven roasted instructions) before canning them (instead of cooking down). I dump the roasted slices in a pot and blend and then can. I tried pickled cherry tomatoes with rosemary and garlic once. They looked super cute but I was not a fan of the flavor.
I also love using up cherry tomatoes by cutting them in half, roasting them to sun dried chewiness and then packing them in jars with garlic and topping off with olive oil. I store this in the fridge and it keeps through the winter.
In the years of our moves (when I couldn’t find my canning equipment), I slow-roasted tomatoes and froze them in zip-lock bags. Then, in the middle of winter, I’d thaw a bag (super fast in warm water), then squeeze it with my fingers over and over (fun for kids) and voila, tomato sauce! I’d then spread on pizza dough, or add to spaghetti or whatever. Or *don’t* squish and add to soups and stews. (The skins are more noticeable without the immersion blending, but really not. Our family doesn’t notice.)
To slow-roast: core, slice in half, spread on baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle garlic, oregano or other garden freshness on top and roast to desired juiciness. Bag and freeze. (I didn’t click on your oven roasted tomato link above…maybe that’s the same thing!) Cheers.
I love the first two paragraphs. It speaks to my love of freezing lake Chelan in Washington St, which I have such fond childhood memories of. And is also words of wisdom to my two young girls as they enter school, and myself as I contemplate moving away soon from my home state I’ve lived in all my life. Thank you!
So excited for this post!! As it turns grey and rainy here in Olympia it’s becoming obvious I’m going to have a lot of green tomatoes again this year. I’ll be making the green tomato relish this week. Thanks Dig!!
Hooray! I usually can whole and then puree and cook down after I open the jar – but I’d prefer to do this step first and save time later.
I’m wondering why the processing time for whole tomatoes vs. pureed tomatoes is so much greater (85 minutes for a quart from foodinjars) – do you know – is it b/c it’s less dense?
Thanks for sharing!
Loosely related, exciting nonetheless. My Italian brother-in-law (score!) just taught me how he stores his super versatile red sauce– garlic, San Marizano tomatoes (only these will do, says the b-in-l), Italian parsley, crushed red pepper, salt and pep, and one stick of butter (say wha?!). Cook down toms in garlic, add everything else at the end. Put into jars hot and stick into the fridge. Will seal and store that way for weeks. Not that it matters. It will be gone within 7 days.
Oh canning – it is the best way to sweat the summer away, non? I tend to stack my canning projects up and do them all in a few days while doing all the other things that get stacked up. Makes for a big mess and then a lot of good meals.
For anyone with green tomatoes left after making that relish (which is SO DAMN GOOD WOW) – spicy green tomato pickles are badass. I make these at the end of summer and then eat them with appetizers or as a cocktail garnish instead of an olive. IT’S GOOD TIMES IN THE MOUTH.
Wow. That doesn’t sound right at all.
hahaha, it sounds hilarious though!!!
I made a small batch of the sauce today- I had a few tomatoes that had been waiting patiently for me to make salsa, but not quite enough jalapenos to make it worth it, so I fired this up. I don’t know why I never thought to use the immersion blender- so much easier than the food processor for this. I used half for dinner tonight (with rave reviews), and froze the other half for a lazy dinner down the road. Most of my paltry tomato harvest has gone for frozen pizza sauce this year, but I hope to get some salsa canned this week. I was so nervous the first time I canned 3 years ago- I must have read the Ball Blue book and USDA canning guidelines a hundred times before I finally felt confident that I wasn’t going to poison my family.
I like to freeze tomatoes whole – just core them and stuff a bunch into a gallon freezer bag. Then in the winter when you want tomato sauce, thaw them and plop them in pot on the stove. After they’ve thawed, the skins slip right off and you can cook them down and make any kind of sauce you like. Kind of fun to save the saucing till it’s cold outside.
swimming in a lake sounds like a dream. i love the reminder that not everything feels wonderful or easy right away, but with time, we settle into a more comfortable place. and i am so jealous of your tomatoes! the sauce you make sounds delicious! do you taste the lemon? if not, i bet a little tang from them would be delicious!
Thank you for this canning awesomeness. I’m loving the recipes in the comments too. I just started canning a few years ago and am far from being a wizard yet. I am optimistic though! Paired with a bottle of wine, and after the kids are asleep, my husband and I have canning date nights. Who knew all those years ago when we were hitting up the bars that we would think this is so much better?!
We were going to lose a crop of tomatoes a couple of years ago to the first fall frost, so we picked all the green ones and pickled them. (I wish I could remember where I got this recipe so I could give credit, but I only have my hand-scratched version.) These are great with fish, on salads, or just as a snack.
10 lbs green tomatoes (yields 8-9 pints)
1/4 cup pickling salt
3 cups brown sugar
4 cups vinegar
1 TB mustard seed
1 TB allspice
1 TB celery seed
1 TB whole cloves
Slice tomatoes and sprinkle with salt – let stand 4-6 hours. Drain. Heat vinegar and stir in brown sugar. Tie spices in spice bag and add to vinegar. Add tomatoes. Boil and then simmer for 30 minutes, stirring as needed. Remove spice bag and fill jars. Process 15 minutes.
“Often, our most buoyant and enlightening experiences begin with breathless struggle to tread water.”
Um, yes. Thank you. I need this tattooed on me.
Ha, I loved reading this! I totally just wrote a post about how much I suck at canning. Seriously.
I have to say though, the next day, after the shitty day and the post, I was much calmer and it went much smoother!!
Hopefully I will be an expert one day too!