Crushed Tomatoes Recipe

There's nothing quite as satisfying as preserving your tomato harvest to enjoy in the cold, dark days of winter. Filling your freezer with containers of homemade crushed tomatoes is easier than canning tomatoes or making and canning your own sauce—though we highly recommend both those methods of preserving tomatoes, too. Another bonus of making crushed tomatoes is that you can use them when you do make tomato sauce.

Learn how to make crushed tomatoes by following our basic recipe: Simply blanch, peel, crush, and freeze. Don't forget to label your crushed tomatoes before you store them in the freezer.

Why Preserve Tomatoes

Whether you crush them, can them, make sauce or jam, or confit tomatoes—when you preserve fresh tomatoes from your garden or a farmers' market or farmstand, you are capturing peak-season flavor. It's the best way to preserve a tomato's flavor and keep them on hand to use in the winter when summer foods are a distant memory.

Preserving tomatoes is also a smart budget move. Homemade crushed or canned tomatoes are cheaper than store-bought and you control what goes into them, so there are no fillers or preservatives—just peak season tomatoes.

Freezing vs. Canning Crushed Tomatoes

Canning is a stellar way to preserve tomatoes but freezing your homemade crushed tomatoes is easier. The process is simpler—no need to sterilize jars or use a water bath canner (and no need to purchase special canning equipment). After blanching, peeling, crushing in the food processor, and packing the cooled crushed tomatoes into containers, they are ready to freeze.

How to Use Crushed Tomatoes

Crushed tomatoes are versatile. Use them in soups, stews, sauces, chilis, and more, where recipes call for crushed, diced, or canned tomatoes. Try them in these dishes:

Directions

Score tomatoes:

Use a sharp knife to score bottom of each tomato with an X.
Boil:

Bring a pot of water to a boil and add tomatoes. Boil until skin pulls away from fruit, about 1 minute.
Cool:

Transfer to a bowl of ice water and let cool.
Peel and cut:

Peel and quarter tomatoes.
Crush:

Pulse in a food processor until crushed.

Freezing Crushed Tomatoes

Crushed tomatoes should be cooled rapidly and transferred to freezer-safe rigid containers. Leave headspace in each container. The recommended amount depends on the shape and size of the container. Homemade crushed tomatoes can be frozen for up to six months.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is in crushed tomatoes?

Store-bought crushed tomatoes contain tomatoes and tomato paste or puree. Some natural brands may not add paste or puree. Crushed tomatoes generally have smaller pieces than are found in diced tomatoes.

What can I substitute for crushed tomatoes?

Depending on what you are making, various tomato products can be substituted for crushed tomatoes. An easy swap is to use diced tomatoes. Diced tomatoes are similar to crushed but have larger pieces, so either cut the tomatoes up into smaller pieces or allow a longer cooking time. Another easy swap is to use regular canned tomatoes, again cutting them up into small pieces to be more like crushed tomatoes. You may also want to add tomato paste. You can also use jarred tomato sauce—but keep in mind that the sauce is already seasoned, so be careful with extra additions.

Other Ways to Preserve Tomatoes:

Updated by

Victoria Spencer

Sources

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