Prepping tomatoes for winter use

[Pat B]

I have done this for years but in the last 3 I went to the local farmers market and bought tomatoes. The last 3 years our garden was a bust because of too much rain 2 years ago(115") or last year the blight hit a few days before harvest. I can buy tomatoes cheaper than I can buy plants to start with.
 Yesterday I bought 2 boxes(25# each), a half box of red and green bell peppers, 5# of onions and 6 garlic bulbs. These things along with extra virgin olive oil, fresh ground black pepper, salt, bay leaves, Greek oregano and a little bit of granular sugar(to reduce acid).
 Here are a few pics. one of the boxes...


The first thing I do is drop the tomatoes into boiling water for a few minutes to loosen the skins...


...then into cold water to stop the cooking...


...remove the skins and cut up while sauteing the other vegetables...


...add the prepped tomatoes...


...and start the long slow cooking...

[Pat B]

After a few hours of slow cooking...


...and another few hours of cooling I put 6 ladle scoops of the tomato sauce in 1 gallon ziploc baggies and put them into the freezer. Once they are frozen I put them in the basement frig for later use. These baggies are what I did yesterday. After cooling over night I bagged them up for the freezer...


 This is a good base for soups, stews, spaghetti, chili, red beans and rice, okra and tomatoes or just stewed tomatoes. We only have one bag left from last year so the timing of this is just about right. It sure is nice having fresh tasting tomato sauce in the dead of winter.

[le0n]

nice planning and execution.

i'm sure it's a far tastier option vs. canned tomatoes.

[JW_Halverson]

Oh yes, please!  Yeah, you get a more consistent product from a can, but I like the variation from year to year from garden tomatoes. 

I have a friend that dumps his end of the year fruits on me when frost hits.  I end up with stuff from all-but-overripe to hard green.  I just chuck them in a box in the freezer until they are all done ripening.  Then I thaw 'em and go to making sauce in one big ol' batch.  Those tomato sauce "tiles" in the freezer sure look familiar, PatB.  I put waxed paper between them while they are freezing so I don't accidentally freeze them in a solid block if there is any water on the plastic.

[JoJoDapyro]

I prefer canning to bags. My mother in law has the monster garden. They have put up 24 quarts this season already, from 3 plants.

[le0n]

i'm sure it's a far tastier option vs. canned tomatoes.

by 'canned', i meant the kind you buy at the store in a metal can with a paper label on it

[Pat B]

Like I said this is good base for all sorts of meals. I can some things but for tomato sauce this is the easiest for me.
 John, I've been lucky that they haven't stuck together in one mass...yet!
 My next project will be pickled okra. We put them up in jars but we just boil the brine and pour it over the okra in the jar and seal it. In two weeks you have very good pickled okra. I use it in tarter sauce when we have fried seafood plus they are good to eat just out of he jar. I'll take pics as I go along

[BowEd]

Looks tasty Pat.Nice post.