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A traditional recipe for preserving fresh tomatoes as bottled crushed tomatoes. Once canned, the jars are shelf-stable and can add flavor and body to pasta sauce, soup, curries, and casseroles. This simple recipe comes in handy when tomatoes are in season!

It’s exciting when my first tomatoes begin to ripen, and they always get picked and served fresh (we love a Caprese salad!). As the season progresses, there can be mountains of them, though, and if I don’t do something to preserve them, they’ll go to waste.

One of the most traditional ways to preserve tomatoes is to can them, and there are many ways to do it. Crushed tomatoes are one of the most versatile, so they’re my go-to choice. They’re neither smooth nor very chunky, and you make them by cooking fresh tomatoes until they reach a soft consistency. Then add a couple more simple ingredients, spoon it into jars, and process it in a water bath canner. They’re a staple in my kitchen and ideal for adding flavor to soups, stews, curries, chilies, and loads of other dishes.

The Best Tomato Varieties for Canning

It’s true that tinned tomatoes are inexpensive, but homemade flavor cannot be beat. You also have much more control and can avoid unwanted ingredients and materials, such as preservatives or BPA-lined lids. Preserving homegrown tomatoes in jars is also incredibly satisfying. Turning a homegrown harvest into jars of wholesome flavor fills me with pride—as I’m sure it will with you, too.

Ripe and unripe roma tomatoes hanging from a tomato plant. — San Marzano paste tomatoes are some of the best for preserving.

I grow many tomato varieties, and I admit that I’ll preserve any that have good flavor. I cut cherry tomatoes in half, roast them (seeds and all), and freeze them in old yogurt pots. Defrost one and you have a chunky sauce that you can use in everything from tomato sauce to salsa.

A hand holds a stack of huge basil leaves held over a trug filled with ripe tomatoes. — I like to add a basil leaf to each pint of canned crushed tomatoes. This is optional, though.

However, being choosy about the varieties you use to can tomatoes can ensure the best flavor and texture. They can also reduce waste as you clean and prepare the fruits. Tomatoes with dense flesh and fewer seeds are the traditional choice. These are typically paste tomatoes such as Roma, San Marzano, and Amish Paste. Once you skin them, they are a dream to clean and chop. You also don’t lose much volume as you prepare them since there aren’t huge pockets of seeds and gel to remove.

Canning Tomatoes vs Freezing

Freezing tomatoes is the easiest way to preserve them for later. I have a chest freezer in the garage filled with all sorts of frozen berries, fruit, and vegetables. With tomatoes, I either freeze them raw and whole or roast them and freeze them as I detailed above. My freezer only has so much room, though, and it uses electricity constantly. That’s why canning tomatoes is often the better option.

Looking down at the top of a plastic container filled with frozen tomatoes. You can see a little frozen olive oil and ice crystals, too. — I often roast chopped tomatoes with olive oil and sea salt, then freeze them.

Canning is placing cooked food in glass jars and processing them in hot water at a certain temperature and for a specific time. This process destroys microorganisms that could cause illness or spoilage. When the processing time is up and the jars have cooled, you can store them at room temperature for a year or more.

Water bath canning six jars in a tall pot. The water covers the jars completely and is moving, showing that it's boiling. — These jars of crushed tomatoes are in the middle of being water-bathed.

Tomatoes are also one of the easiest vegetables to can because, if you adjust the acid, you can process them in a simple water bath. You can use a tall kitchen pot and avoid investing in expensive equipment. Low-acid preserves, such as green beans and corn, require a pressure canner to make them safe for shelf storage.

How to Can Fresh Tomatoes

Canning tomatoes begins with choosing the best ripe fruit—preserving tomatoes that are soft or about to go over won’t make them taste any better. Then you clean the fruit and remove the stems, skin, and seeds from each. You do this by popping the tomatoes in boiling water, fishing them out with a slotted spoon, and dunking them in cold water.

A hand holds a whole tomato without its skin. — Removing tomato skin will help canned tomatoes have better flavor and texture.

The skins split, making them easy to remove and finish prepping the fruit. You can do all of this the day before canning, but store them in the refrigerator to avoid spoilage.

To can the tomatoes, you cook them and pack them into jars with an acidic ingredient such as lemon juice or citric acid. Add salt on top, if you wish, then screw the lids onto the filled jars and process them in a water bath canner. The process time varies based on your kitchen’s altitude. I’ve left details for this crushed tomatoes recipe in the notes section of the recipe card.

Jars of freshly processed crushed tomatoes sitting on the counter. — Crushed tomatoes on the counter cooling down and sealing.

At the end, you lift the hot jars out of the water, let them cool and seal, and then store them in your pantry. Water-bathing the jars like this helps protect the contents from bacteria or mold. It also helps the lids seal and keeps you and your family safe. If you’re unsure or a first-timer, I’ve included plenty of photos in the instructions to guide you.

More Tomato Recipes

Before we move on to making canned crushed tomatoes, here are a few recipes and tips. First, you will have a lot of tomato skins left over as you prep your fruit for this recipe. Instead of throwing them away or composting them, spread them on a baking tray and roast them in olive oil and sea salt. They store in the fridge for several days, and I’ve added them to everything from pasta dishes to tacos.

Tomato skins and seeds spread on a layer of baking paper on a baking tray. — Roast the tomato skins and seeds in the oven, and you have sun-dried tomato flavor.

You can also dehydrate the skins, pulse them into a powder, sift them, and store them to use as delicious tomato powder. It adds some incredible tomato flavor and umami! This takes longer than just roasting and using them fresh, but the tomato powder lasts at least a year in the cupboard.

Roasted tomato skins and seeds on a fried egg, cheese, and toasted bread. — Roast the tomato skins and use them for intense tomato flavor.

Another thing is that at the end of the gardening year, you might take down your plants and have a lot of unripe fruit—green tomatoes. They are one of my favorite things to preserve, and I have quite a few recipes you can use:

Canned Crushed Tomatoes Recipe

Tanya Anderson

How to jar tomatoes using a classic recipe that includes ripe tomatoes, lemon juice, and salt. Once water-bathed and sealed, the tomatoes are shelf-stable for at least 12-18 months. See the notes to adjust this recipe to your required batch size.

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 10

Processing time 35

Total Time 1 15

Course Preserves

Cuisine American, British, European

Servings pints

Calories 32 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

9 lbs ripe tomatoes (4.1 kg)
6 TBSP bottled lemon juice (or 1.5 tsp citric acid)
3 tsp canning salt (or additive-free sea salt – optional)
6 basil leaves (optional)

Instructions

Prepare the jars

Follow these steps to clean and heat the jars so that they don't crack during processing.
Remove the lids and rings, then place the empty canning jars on a rack at the bottom of a water bath canner. If you don't have one, you can also use a large, tall pot with a layer of spare canning lid rings on the bottom. The idea is to protect the bottom of the jars from direct heat, and I even used an old folded towel, and that works fine, too.
Fill the pot with enough water to fill the jars and cover them. Then, heat the water to a gentle simmer—do not boil. Leave the jars in the simmering water until you need to fill them.
Wash the lids in warm, soapy water, then rinse and set them aside until later. The rings don't need to be washed and should just be set to one side.

Skin the tomatoes

Tomato skins can give homemade crushed tomatoes a weird texture or bitter flavor. So, first clean the fresh fruit and remove the skins. Rinse off any soil or dust, then drop the tomatoes into a pot of boiling water a few at a time. Leave them there for 30-60 seconds or until you see the skins begin to split.
Use a slotted spoon to lift the tomatoes from the boiling water, then plunge them into a sink or basin filled with very cold water.
When they’re cool to the touch, you can easily slip their skins off with your fingers.*
Remove the cores from the skinned tomatoes, scoop out as many seeds as you can, then roughly chop them.

Cook the tomatoes

Scoop two to three cups of chopped tomatoes into a preserving pan and bring them to a boil on medium-high heat. As they begin to heat up, crush them with a potato masher.
Add the remaining tomatoes to the pan and bring them to a boil. Once bubbling, cook for five minutes. They'll soften and break down as they cook, but you can mash them with the potato masher if you wish.

Fill the jars

Use the jar lifter to carefully remove a jar from the simmering water. Tilt the jar to gently pour the hot water back into the pan. Set the jar on the kitchen counter.
Add one basil leaf (optional) and 1 Tbsp lemon juice to the bottom of pint jars and double that amount for quarts. Then, using a preserving funnel, pack the crushed tomatoes into the jar, leaving 1/2″ headspace at the tops of the jars.
If you'd like to season your crushed tomatoes, add 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the top of each pint jar (1 tsp for quarts), then clean the jar rim with a damp cloth. Salt is optional, though.
Place the lid on the jar and twist the screw-band until finger-tight.**
Using the jar lifter, set the jar back in the hot water. Lift out the next jar and repeat this process until all the jars are filled.

Canning the crushed tomatoes

The jars should all be back in the tall pot or water bath canner now, and the water should cover them by at least an inch. The jars can touch, but they shouldn't be crammed or wedged in the pot.
Place a lid on the pot and turn the heat up to high. Bring the water inside to a rolling boil.
Once it reaches a boil, begin timing. In most places (elevations up to 1000ft), process pint jars for 35 minutes and quart jars for 45 minutes. Adjust for your altitude, though.***
After the time is up, turn off the heat and remove the lid. Leave the jars in the hot water for five minutes, then lift each out using the jar lifter. Set them on a clean, dry dish towel on the counter. Don't tighten the bands if you notice any that are loose—just leave them to cool for 12-24 hours.
After they've cooled, check each lid for a seal. They shouldn't flex when you push down in the middle, and they should not come loose if you try to take them off.
Label the jars and store them in a cool, dry place until you need them. If the seal is intact, the crushed tomatoes should store well for at least a year.

Notes

Although this recipe makes a specific number of jars, you can also adjust it to your needs. Each pint of homemade crushed tomatoes requires 1.5 lbs (680 g) of fresh tomatoes, 1 TBSP bottled lemon juice (or 1/4 tsp citric acid), 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 basil leaf (optional). Double those amounts if you’re making quarts.

*The skins are delicious and can be used in other recipes. I usually dry them in a food dehydrator and then pulse them into tomato powder. This year I roasted the skins and then used them in a pasta sauce.

**This means as tight as you can turn it using the tips of your fingers only.

*** Water bath processing times
0–1,000 ft: pints 35 min/ quarts 45 min
1,001–3,000 ft: pints 40 min/ quarts 50 min
3,001–6,000 ft: pints 45 min/ quarts 55 min
Above 6,000 ft: pints 50 min/ quarts 60 min

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Nutrition

Serving: 100gCalories: 32kcalCarbohydrates: 7.3gProtein: 1.6gFat: 0.3gSaturated Fat: 0.04gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.12gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.05gSodium: 258mgPotassium: 346mgFiber: 1.9gSugar: 4.4gVitamin A: 15.7IUVitamin C: 20mgCalcium: 34mgIron: 1.3mg

Keyword tomatoes

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