Yes, you can leave skin on tomatoes when making sauce! Just use a food processor to transform whole tomatoes into sauce. This saves lots of time from having to boil the tomatoes first to loosen the skin enough to peel. We also figure keeping the skins on retains all the vitamins and minerals that the skin contains. The main reason people peel tomatoes for sauce is that if not processed, then you get little curled up skins in your sauce. But a food processor grinds them all up and even makes a thicker sauce, so this is the only way we do it. Especially during harvest season, when it seems that there is never enough time to pick and preserve the harvest!
NO-PEEL TOMATO SAUCE RECIPE:
INGREDIENTS:
• Tomatoes (as many as you have)
NO-PEEL TOMATO SAUCE RECIPE:
INGREDIENTS:
• Tomatoes (as many as you have)
• Diced onion
• Diced garlic (more is better!)
• Minced carrots and celery (optional but good!)
• Fresh (or dried) Herbs such as Basil, Parsley Thyme, Rosemary
• Peppers (sweet or hot, optional but delish!)
• Peppers (sweet or hot, optional but delish!)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
Just core, slice in half and process the tomatoes in a food processor until smooth. Fry up some diced garlic, carrots, celery and onions in a little olive oil, then pour tomato mixture into stock pot and boil down for 30 minutes or so to condense. We also like to throw in some minced herbs that we have on hand like basil, parsley, thyme or rosemary. Let cool, then freeze in reusable containers or use right away. To can the sauce, see below.
Canning Method (Shelf-Stable):
1. Prepare boiling water bath in a large pot
with room for 4-6 quart-sized canning jars
(wash jars and lids with soap, rinse and then boil jars to disinfect.
Remove and drain water, set on a towel on countertop)
2. Put 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice per jar
(this makes it more acidic and shelf-stable)
with room for 4-6 quart-sized canning jars
(wash jars and lids with soap, rinse and then boil jars to disinfect.
Remove and drain water, set on a towel on countertop)
2. Put 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice per jar
(this makes it more acidic and shelf-stable)
3. Follow the directions above to make the sauce, transfer the hot tomato sauce into the hot jars, leave about 1 inch of headspace
4. Dip lids in boiling water, then wipe rims clean, put hot lids on top, then seal with bands
5. Process the jars in boiling water for 40 minutes, adjusting time for high altitude as needed.
Yeah, that's right: NO need to peel those tomatoes!
The skins are delicious and nutritious, too!
We like to throw in fresh oregano and basil at the end for an extra burst of flavor, and add salt and pepper to taste. Of course, adding hot peppers to this to spice it up is always a welcome addition to us spicy-food-lovers!
So next harvest season when you have a ton of fresh homegrown heirloom tomatoes, save time and skip the boiling and the tediousness tomato peeling – just grind them all up in a food processor and cook them down!
