Hello all,
I've got a bunch of fresh basil I need to use up so I was thinking of making a big batch of tomato sauce. I don't live in a climate that is conducive to bountiful tomato harvests, so I was planning on getting some BIG cans of tomatoes from Costco
and making a big batch and canning it.
I've read on here that there can be issues with ensuring tomato seeds are fully cooked and safe to eat after canning, however obviously these tomatoes are already canned and contain citric acid as a preservative. Am I right in thinking that so long as I thoroughly cook down the sauce before canning (I usually simmer it for 2 hours or more) that I shouldn't have any worries if I can it properly afterwards?
Other ingredients will include:
Tomato paste,
Fresh Garlic,
Fresh Basil (removed before canning),
Onion,
Red wine,
Dried oregano,
Salt and Pepper,
Apologies if this has been answered elsewhere. I did a little searching through the subreddit but no other threads seemed relevant from the results I saw.
by Chuggowitz
3 Comments
I wouldn’t worry so much about the seeds as the acid content. Tomatoes are right on the boarder of not acid enough to be safe. Personally I wouldn’t can already canned tomatoes but if you are going that route I would add bottled lemon juice as per the usda recommendation to be safe. 1 tablespoon per pint, 2 for quarts directly into the jars before adding your sauce.
Using pre-canned tomatoes aside, unfortunately you can’t just make up a recipe and then can it. You have to use an approved, tested recipe and follow that exactly. There are resources in this sub’s wiki that you can look at to find recipes.
If you go this route, you can freeze tomato sauce just fine.
This recipe from the ball book (healthy canning only has safe tested recipes) uses passata instead of fresh tomatoes
https://www.healthycanning.com/basil-garlic-tomato-sauce