Making your own tomato paste at home is a rewarding culinary project that can elevate your cooking with rich, concentrated flavors. The process is straightforward but requires patience and attention to detail. Typically you start with ripe, juicy tomatoes—Roma or plum varieties are ideal due to their meaty texture and lower water content. Wash the tomatoes thoroughly, remove any blemishes, and cut them into quarters. Place the tomatoes in a large pot and simmer them over medium heat until they break down and release their juices, usually about 20-30 minutes. I had12 extra quarts of tomato juice that I canned last year that we hadn't used yet, so I decided to make tomato paste the cans of juice.  It only calls for a few ingredients and lots of cooking time. 

Ingredients: 

• 12 quarts of tomato juice (about 14 pounds of tomatoes if you are starting from scratch)  
• 2 Tbs citric acid or lemon juice 
• 2 Bay leaves 
• 1 Tbs. canning or pickling salt 
• 1 whole garlic clove minced 

Instructions: 

• Pour the juice into the stock pot.  I had a couple of quart jars of Pasta Sauce that were over a year old, so I added them to my stock pot of ingredients. Add the lemon juice, bay leaves, salt and the minced garlic clove. 
• Cook until the juice has cooked down to about ¼ of the original amount or once it reaches the desired consistency (should take 4-5 hours).  Be sure to stir your juice as it cooks you don't want it to get scalded.  You will want to remove the bay leaves from the pot before you fill the jars and can them.
• Prepare your jars and lids for canning. To prep my jars and lids for canning, I make sure the jars are washed and cleaned before I use them.  Then you will heat the jars in water for at least 10 minutes prior to using them (it is ok if the water boils).  In a smaller pan of water, I heat the lids and rings.  The reason behind heating your jars and lids is you want them to be sterilized when you fill them. 

•  Spoon the paste into sterilized jars, leaving a bit of headspace, or freeze it in ice cube trays for easy portioning. Wipe the rim of the jar before placing the lid and ring on the jar.  It is important to always wipe the rim off before you put the lid on there, so you get a good tight seal. 
• Water bath for 15 minutes.  Remove jars from water bath and let cool.  I like to rest the rack on the pot and let them cool before I remove them from the rack. Typically, most of the jars will "ping" during this time.  This sound indicates that the jars have sealed. Remember that any jar that doesn’t seal needs to be placed in the refrigerator and used in the next few weeks or they can be reprocessed.   

This should yield ½ pint for every quart of juice you pour in.  We ended up with 14 1/2 pints of paste and we started with 12 quarts of juice. 

 Homemade tomato paste can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for several months. This homemade version boasts an intense tomato flavor that far surpasses store-bought varieties, making it a fantastic addition to soups, stews, sauces, and more.

Notes: New to canning?  Be sure to check out my tips for canning page. It contains a bunch of tips and tricks for canning as well as some of our favorite items we use and canning books. 

Items needed:

• large stock pot
• cutting board
• knife set
• measuring bowl
• water bath canner
• ½ pint jars or pint jars
• canning kit
• cooling rack
• measuring spoons and cups

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