Home-Canned Tomatoes

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Late summer never fails to bring back memories of all the frenetic activity of canning and preserving that took place in my childhood home 50-odd years ago. My maternal grandmother, Clotilde Lo Conte, lived with us, and she prided herself on putting up the best produce of summer for use during the winter. Since we adhered fairly strictly to a typical southern Italian diet, one of the mainstays of our kitchen was tomatoes, used in many sauces for pasta, meat and vegetables.

Since canned foods were frowned upon by serious cooks like my grandmother back in the 1950s, she put up hundreds of jars of whole tomatoes and tomato puree every summer and then continued to fill up our storage area in the basement with jars of pickled and roasted peppers, pickled eggplant, sour cherry jam, and the occasional jar of peaches or cherries in brandy.

The process started with several late-night trips to Newark's old farmers market out near the airport. We would proceed from one truck to another examining the produce, haggling a little over the prices, and finally crowding back into my father's ancient Buick surrounded by bushels of hot and sweet peppers and, of course, perfectly ripe plum tomatoes. Some years the back porch or our first floor apartment would get so crowded with bushels that it was difficult to negotiate the way through them and down the stairs.

After the hundreds of jars were washed and examined for chips on the rim (which would prevent a perfect seal from forming to keep the tomatoes in a sanitary vacuum), the sorting of the tomatoes would begin. After rinsing, the best were set aside to be peeled and put up whole in jars, with a little salt and a few leaves of basil. The less-than-perfect tomatoes were destined to become puree, and they went into the pot, skins and all, to be cooked down and then passed through a food mill to remove seeds and skin. I witnessed the process so many times that, the first time I tried it on my own, I recalled every step.

If you haven't tried home canning before, remember that it is hot work. If the weather is already hot and humid, it will become more so when you start boiling jars and reducing puree. Keep the idly curious out of the kitchen, have plenty of cool drinks handy, and follow the process from start to finish without interruption. The reward is the very best preserved produce you can imagine. Nothing in a can will even approach it for flavor and freshness.

WHOLE TOMATOES PUT UP IN JARS

Doing the tomatoes like this makes the canning process easier. You can pass them through the food mill to eliminate any remaining seeds when you use them.

Makes about 5 or 6 quarts.

12 pounds whole, ripe plum tomatoes

12 sprigs basil

2 tablespoons salt, divided

1. Wash six 1-quart mason jars in hot soapy water. Rinse them in hot water and invert them on a clean towel to drain. Rinse the lids and rings (the outer part of the cover that screws onto the jar and keeps the lid in place) in very hot water and drain on a towel.

2. Rinse and pick over tomatoes; remove any blemished ones to use for puree or another recipe. Remove stem ends of tomatoes with the point of a small stainless steel knife. Bring a large pan of water to a boil and immerse the tomatoes, a few at a time, in the hot water for about 30 seconds. Remove with a skimmer and cool briefly in a single layer. When cool enough to handle, slip off skins and set peeled tomatoes aside in a bowl. Then, make a 1-inch slit in the side of each and gently squeeze tomato to force out seeds.

3. When all the tomatoes are peeled, stemmed and seeded, begin to arrange them in the jars: Bring a pan of clean water to a boil and immerse each jar in it for a minute or so to sterilize it. Remove from boiling water with tongs and fill to 1/3 with the whole tomatoes. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a sprig of basil. Fill to 2/3 level and add another sprig of basil. Use a rubber spatula to press tomatoes and compress them slightly. Fill jar to within 1/2-inch of top and add another 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Use the spatula to make sure tomatoes are tightly packed and that there are no large air pockets in the jar. Wipe the top rim of the jar with a clean, damp cloth and cover with a clean, new lid. Screw ring onto jar and repeat with the remaining tomatoes and jars.

4. After all the jars have been filled, they must be processed in a boiling water bath: Place a rack in the bottom of a large pot and add the jars. Make sure the jars are not too close together; it may be necessary to process the jars in two batches. Fill the pot with boiling water to cover jars and place cover on pot. Bring to a boil and regulate heat so that the water boils fairly fast for 30 minutes, adding more boiling water as necessary to keep the jars submerged.

5. Remove cover and allow jars to cool in water to lukewarm. Remove jars from water and cool them, well apart. You will hear and occasional "pop" as the jar lid becomes concave and seals. Check jars to make sure they have all sealed (the lids are concave when they are sealed). Label, date, and store in a cool, dry place.

TOMATO PUREE PUT UP IN JARS

Though the process is a bit longer than with whole tomatoes, your preserve will be more concentrated and require less cooking to turn it into an excellent sauce later on.

Makes 5 or 6 quarts.

10 pounds whole, ripe plum tomatoes

2 tablespoons salt, divided

1. Rinse tomatoes and go over them, eliminating any blemishes by cutting them away with a stainless steel paring knife. Remove stem ends and halve tomatoes.

2. Film the bottom of a large non-reactive pan with 1/4-inch water and add tomatoes. Cook over low heat until tomatoes are swimming in water. Stir occasionally and allow to reduce somewhat, so that they are less watery, about 30 minutes.

3. While the tomatoes are cooking, prepare the jars: Wash six 1-quart mason jars in hot soapy water. Rinse them in hot water and invert them on a clean towel to drain. Rinse the lids and rings (the outer part of the cover that screws onto the jar and keeps the lid in place) in very hot water and drain on a towel.

4. Once the tomatoes are sufficiently reduced, remove from heat and pass through a food mill to eliminate skins and seeds.

5. Return puree to pan and return it to a boil. Reduce further over low heat if you wish, stirring often to make sure tomatoes don't scorch.

6. To fill the jars, bring a pan of water to a boil and immerse a jar in it. Remove jar with tongs and fill with the boiling tomato puree to within 1/2 inch of the top. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Wipe rim of jar with a clean, damp cloth. Using tongs, immerse lid in boiling water and place lid on. Screw on ring and set jar aside to cool.

7. Repeat with remaining puree and jars. As the jars seal they will pop, as with the whole tomatoes described above. Label, date, and store in a cool, dry place.

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