MYO Tomato Paste From Scratch

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Ever wanted to make your own tomato paste using fresh tomatoes from your garden? Here’s a simple 3 ingredient recipe that even beginners can make at home.

You’ll Need:

• 10 pounds very ripe plum or salad tomatoes, quartered with seeds removed
• 1/4 cup kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil for the baking sheet, plus more for topping off the jar

Directions

In a large (8qt) stainless steel pot, bring the tomatoes to a boil, stirring lightly to release the juice in them. Boil them briskly for 30 minutes, allowing them to soften and the juice to reduce.

Remove from heat and process the tomatoes through a fine sieve food mill to remove the skins and any seeds that may be remaining. Return this sieved puree back to the pot, place on high heat, add the salt bring it to a boil, reduce to medium and simmer until the tomatoes have been reduced to about a quart (4 cups). This process will take approximately 45 minutes.

Lightly oil a 12’x17′ casserole dish (do not use aluminum pans for this!!) and spread the mixture very thinly into the dish with a rubber spatula.

Bake at 200F for 30 minutes. Remove from oven, puree, respread it in the pan and bake again until the sauce is quite thick and paste-like.

Remove from oven, Allow the tomato paste cool to room temperature, then pack it tightly in a clean jar with a spoon, tamping it down to make sure there are no air pockets.

Level the surface with the back of the spoon. Cover the surface completely with olive oil so that the paste is not exposed. Screw the lid on the jar and refrigerate. After every use, level the surface of the paste and top with more oil so the paste remains completely submerged.

It will keep in the refrigerator for at least a year.

Alternatively, if you do not wish to use oil you can pack the paste into ice cube trays and freeze, then pop the cubes out into a zip-close bag for easy storage and measurement.

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