What to do with many tiny tomatoes?
September 22, 2014 7:50 PM Subscribe
This year's garden produced tons of tomatoes, but they're really small. The Roma/plum tomatoes are like golf ball-size, and the grape tomatoes are barely the size of grapes. What can I do with them, bearing in mind their tiny, labor-intensive size?
Their flavor is awesome, to be sure, but I have gallons of these things -- so blanching & skinning would be an endless task with very low return on effort.
I have already frozen a pile of bags, each holding 2 cups of washed, chopped, and seeded tomatoes; these are for chili and for deep dish pizza. If I try to cook them down into sauce without skinning them, will they turn out nice, or will the skins make them nasty?
We don't do tomato soup here. We do like "little thimbles" pasta (small pasta served with garlic, chopped grape tomatoes, basil, and diced mozzarella), and I am hopeful that freezing & thawing will go unnoticed once they are thrown in the pan.
Also, this was the last night of harvesting, and I regret that I won't have that yellow powder or Tomato Smell on my hands until next summer. *sigh*
Their flavor is awesome, to be sure, but I have gallons of these things -- so blanching & skinning would be an endless task with very low return on effort.
I have already frozen a pile of bags, each holding 2 cups of washed, chopped, and seeded tomatoes; these are for chili and for deep dish pizza. If I try to cook them down into sauce without skinning them, will they turn out nice, or will the skins make them nasty?
We don't do tomato soup here. We do like "little thimbles" pasta (small pasta served with garlic, chopped grape tomatoes, basil, and diced mozzarella), and I am hopeful that freezing & thawing will go unnoticed once they are thrown in the pan.
Also, this was the last night of harvesting, and I regret that I won't have that yellow powder or Tomato Smell on my hands until next summer. *sigh*
Spaghetti sauce, that's what I did with mind - reduce some of the sugar since the grape tend to be sweeter. I never skin or seed mine but chop them semi small (for example, the grapes I just cut in half) and use a potato masher on them. Throw them in a crockpot with the rest of the ingredients from a good sauce recipe along with an extra can or two of paste. Cook for 8-12 hours.
I also like this balsamic bruschetta recipe with grape tomatoes but my girlfriend finds it too sweet and likes the roma better. Add more parm and basil either way, we also found kosher or sea salt is better then regular table salt.
Forgot to mention - for chili and the frozen tomatoes - you are cooking it so long that it doesn't really matter. I wouldn't use frozen tomatoes in anything where consistency is important but I cook and freeze chili all the time using garden tomatoes and it turns out fine. I can't imagine using frozen tomatoes would be any different.
posted by lpcxa0 at 7:59 PM on September 22, 2014 [3 favorites]
I also like this balsamic bruschetta recipe with grape tomatoes but my girlfriend finds it too sweet and likes the roma better. Add more parm and basil either way, we also found kosher or sea salt is better then regular table salt.
Forgot to mention - for chili and the frozen tomatoes - you are cooking it so long that it doesn't really matter. I wouldn't use frozen tomatoes in anything where consistency is important but I cook and freeze chili all the time using garden tomatoes and it turns out fine. I can't imagine using frozen tomatoes would be any different.
posted by lpcxa0 at 7:59 PM on September 22, 2014 [3 favorites]
First of all, you take the seeds out of your tomatoes?? Boy, aren't you fancy. Next:
If I try to cook them down into sauce without skinning them, will they turn out nice, or will the skins make them nasty?
Making tomato sauce without skinning the tomatoes can definitely come out fine and not at all "nasty." Our garden kind of sucks but we have gotten pounds of tomatoes in our CSA boxes for the last few weeks and made lots of sauce, never peeling the tomatoes first. You may not want to serve such a sauce to guests, depending on how much you care about such things, but it definitely tastes fine.
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 8:01 PM on September 22, 2014
If I try to cook them down into sauce without skinning them, will they turn out nice, or will the skins make them nasty?
Making tomato sauce without skinning the tomatoes can definitely come out fine and not at all "nasty." Our garden kind of sucks but we have gotten pounds of tomatoes in our CSA boxes for the last few weeks and made lots of sauce, never peeling the tomatoes first. You may not want to serve such a sauce to guests, depending on how much you care about such things, but it definitely tastes fine.
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 8:01 PM on September 22, 2014
Response by poster: N.b.: I have something like five gallons of the little things! :7)
posted by wenestvedt at 8:01 PM on September 22, 2014
posted by wenestvedt at 8:01 PM on September 22, 2014
I suspect freezing the cherry/grape/smaller tomatoes won't affect the final result, as long as you tend to cook them until they burst and collapse.
To get the skins out of sauce (if you're that picky) without peeling, you can put them through a food mill (if you have one) or strain through a mesh sieve. I've gone ahead and made tomato sauce without peeling plum tomatoes by just throwing them in a blender raw, then cooking.
posted by WasabiFlux at 8:02 PM on September 22, 2014 [4 favorites]
To get the skins out of sauce (if you're that picky) without peeling, you can put them through a food mill (if you have one) or strain through a mesh sieve. I've gone ahead and made tomato sauce without peeling plum tomatoes by just throwing them in a blender raw, then cooking.
posted by WasabiFlux at 8:02 PM on September 22, 2014 [4 favorites]
You have a lot of tomatoes. If it were me, I would allocate a certain portion of them, since you have so many, for a family outdoor food fight. Let them get soft first.
posted by 724A at 8:16 PM on September 22, 2014
posted by 724A at 8:16 PM on September 22, 2014
N.b.: I have something like five gallons of the little things!
Well, there is going to be no particularly easy way to process 5 gallons of any vegetable - you're looking at probably a solid couple days of work regardless of what you pick (unless you have a chest freezer and can freeze literally 90% of them).
What have you done in past years? Do you have any friends you could pawn them off on in return for, say, a decent quantity of sweet potatoes or winter squash a couple months hence?
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 8:21 PM on September 22, 2014 [1 favorite]
Well, there is going to be no particularly easy way to process 5 gallons of any vegetable - you're looking at probably a solid couple days of work regardless of what you pick (unless you have a chest freezer and can freeze literally 90% of them).
What have you done in past years? Do you have any friends you could pawn them off on in return for, say, a decent quantity of sweet potatoes or winter squash a couple months hence?
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 8:21 PM on September 22, 2014 [1 favorite]
Susie Bright does not believe in skinning or seeding any of her tomatoes for her roasted tomato and pepper sauce (some images on the side rails may be NSFW because hey, Susie Bright). Maybe it'd be different with cherry tomatoes, but since you have such a huge amount, it can't hurt to experiment a little.
posted by rtha at 8:24 PM on September 22, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by rtha at 8:24 PM on September 22, 2014 [2 favorites]
How old are your kids? We have disposed of mass quantities of cherry/grape tomatoes by sending them to school, for the teachers and as show 'n' tell for the little ones, who eat them as a snack!
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 8:49 PM on September 22, 2014
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 8:49 PM on September 22, 2014
I made this the other day to use up a bunch of little tomatoes and it was delish!
posted by klugarsh at 8:54 PM on September 22, 2014
posted by klugarsh at 8:54 PM on September 22, 2014
I never skin or seed tomatoes, and actually prefer that for pasta sauces etc. I find there's more of the Fresh Tomato Taste when you leave the skin on to cook them.
Recently I had 20lbs of fresh tomatoes, and I diced them and froze them. It's a lot easier and faster without the skinning and seeding steps. But even easier than that, apparently you can freeze tomatoes whole... the skins will even slip off as they thaw, if you really want to get rid of them. I haven't tried it before but I have a couple of test tomatoes in the freezer right now.
For other ways to use some of them up, grape tomatoes roasted whole are awesome. Coating of olive oil and a bit of salt and pepper is all it takes, roast on a cookie sheet at 375+ for 10-15 minutes, serve with other roast veggies or with pasta.
posted by snorkmaiden at 9:48 PM on September 22, 2014
Recently I had 20lbs of fresh tomatoes, and I diced them and froze them. It's a lot easier and faster without the skinning and seeding steps. But even easier than that, apparently you can freeze tomatoes whole... the skins will even slip off as they thaw, if you really want to get rid of them. I haven't tried it before but I have a couple of test tomatoes in the freezer right now.
For other ways to use some of them up, grape tomatoes roasted whole are awesome. Coating of olive oil and a bit of salt and pepper is all it takes, roast on a cookie sheet at 375+ for 10-15 minutes, serve with other roast veggies or with pasta.
posted by snorkmaiden at 9:48 PM on September 22, 2014
Roast them whole in the oven, with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper then mix them through spaghetti with a bit (ok, a lot) of crumbled feta on top. I could easily get through 5 gallons of tomatoes in less than a week just doing that.
posted by Wantok at 9:55 PM on September 22, 2014 [3 favorites]
posted by Wantok at 9:55 PM on September 22, 2014 [3 favorites]
Blanching & skinning isn't necessary. Heat and strain.
posted by vapidave at 10:35 PM on September 22, 2014
posted by vapidave at 10:35 PM on September 22, 2014
Freezing skins is IIRC not recommended - the texture gets kind of funky.
But, if you decide you want to skin them, it really is pretty easy - just blanche them in hot water for 20-30 seconds and the skin will fall right off, basically in one piece. Even easier than that would be to cook them down a bit and then run everything through a food mill.
posted by zug at 10:44 PM on September 22, 2014
But, if you decide you want to skin them, it really is pretty easy - just blanche them in hot water for 20-30 seconds and the skin will fall right off, basically in one piece. Even easier than that would be to cook them down a bit and then run everything through a food mill.
posted by zug at 10:44 PM on September 22, 2014
Just chiming in to say freeze 'em as is to use in sauces and stews (wash them first, obv). Give the rest away.
posted by SpecialSpaghettiBowl at 11:05 PM on September 22, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by SpecialSpaghettiBowl at 11:05 PM on September 22, 2014 [1 favorite]
How are you with Bloody Marys? You could throw a party.
posted by happyroach at 12:05 AM on September 23, 2014
posted by happyroach at 12:05 AM on September 23, 2014
Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic, a pinch of salt and sugar (brown), roast and have on focaccia or on top of a creamy risotto. Lucky you
posted by tanktop at 12:29 AM on September 23, 2014
posted by tanktop at 12:29 AM on September 23, 2014
I have excess cherry (and other) toms, I freeze them whole in 1lb batches, then unfreeze them, blend them, and make simple marinara sauces with them. Tastes good! Five gallons is a lot, though.
posted by carter at 4:49 AM on September 23, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by carter at 4:49 AM on September 23, 2014 [1 favorite]
Actually I will roughly dice the larger toms before freezing; nothing fancy though, no blanching or skinning.
posted by carter at 4:51 AM on September 23, 2014
posted by carter at 4:51 AM on September 23, 2014
Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper, add a head of peeled garlic cloves and roast at 225 degrees for three hours -- don't even cut the cherry tomatoes. Eat over grilled meat or over pasta or just by themselves. So delicious.
posted by Malla at 5:01 AM on September 23, 2014
posted by Malla at 5:01 AM on September 23, 2014
Make the best pizza sauce EVER: wash tomatoes, rough chop the larger ones (quarters or halves are fine), chop a few onions, peel garlic cloves. A few gulgs of olive oil, salt, pepper, and oregano. Toss in a large roasting pan, reduce in the oven or on the grill until it makes a sweet, thick tomato sauce. Freeze in individual ziplock bags, and enjoy delicious pizza all winter long! And no peeling or seeding necessary.
This is how we have enjoyed ambitious numbers of PYO cherry tomatoes. We usually picked in the very hot summer, and so cooking up in a foil pan on the grill outside has been the preferred method.
posted by teragram at 5:17 AM on September 23, 2014 [2 favorites]
This is how we have enjoyed ambitious numbers of PYO cherry tomatoes. We usually picked in the very hot summer, and so cooking up in a foil pan on the grill outside has been the preferred method.
posted by teragram at 5:17 AM on September 23, 2014 [2 favorites]
If you don't like skins, and you have a garden capable of producing 5 gallons of tomatoes a year, why not get a food mill? One of them should hold 1-2 quarts of tomatoes, and it'll only take you a few minutes to process each batch --- I'd say you could get through your five gallons in an afternoon, leaving you with a ton of skin-free purée to either make into sauce, or freeze, or make into tomato paste. (Might want to roast a few trays before you run 'em though the mill ---roasted tomatoes are great for chilis and salsas.)
You can find them at any kitchen store, or a restaurant supply store if you have one handy. They usually go for $35-$50, can't recommend a specific brand although the other oxo stuff I have is pretty good.
posted by Diablevert at 5:28 AM on September 23, 2014 [2 favorites]
You can find them at any kitchen store, or a restaurant supply store if you have one handy. They usually go for $35-$50, can't recommend a specific brand although the other oxo stuff I have is pretty good.
posted by Diablevert at 5:28 AM on September 23, 2014 [2 favorites]
Seconding Diablevert. I somehow got 5 cherry tomato plants this year (was supposed to be 3 cherry, 1 roma and two beefsteak). I've been running them through my food mill and have made three giant pots of pasta sauce this year.
posted by Sophie1 at 7:45 AM on September 23, 2014
posted by Sophie1 at 7:45 AM on September 23, 2014
How about a nice chutney-
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2949/homemade-tomato-chutney
Works well with green tomatos too, but it will make the house smell of vinegar. Bottle it up and give as Christmas presents to be served with some good cheese.
posted by RandomInconsistencies at 8:14 AM on September 23, 2014
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2949/homemade-tomato-chutney
Works well with green tomatos too, but it will make the house smell of vinegar. Bottle it up and give as Christmas presents to be served with some good cheese.
posted by RandomInconsistencies at 8:14 AM on September 23, 2014
You could always puree the sauce if you don't like the texture with the skins, no?
This sort of thing is delicious and will keep the skins soft -- and, again, you could puree it when it's done. (I did something like this recently but in a 200-degree oven for like four hours. I'm fussy about the texture of skins and this came out totally fine.)
posted by clavicle at 9:30 AM on September 23, 2014 [1 favorite]
This sort of thing is delicious and will keep the skins soft -- and, again, you could puree it when it's done. (I did something like this recently but in a 200-degree oven for like four hours. I'm fussy about the texture of skins and this came out totally fine.)
posted by clavicle at 9:30 AM on September 23, 2014 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: (BTW, it's Giada's recipe that we made: Little thimbles sciue-sciue)
posted by wenestvedt at 10:28 AM on September 23, 2014
posted by wenestvedt at 10:28 AM on September 23, 2014
I've found that if I add fresh small grape tomatoes to soup 3-5 minutes before taking it off the heat, they'll survive intact and give a very interesting accent to the flavor as you burst them with your teeth -- but you need to be a little careful because they also retain the heat quite a bit better than the body of the soup!
Frozen ones would probably break open in the soup, but I wish I had your opportunity to try it.
posted by jamjam at 11:08 AM on September 23, 2014
Frozen ones would probably break open in the soup, but I wish I had your opportunity to try it.
posted by jamjam at 11:08 AM on September 23, 2014
Yep, a food mill is going to be your friend here, if you want to cook them into sauce and de-skin them.
Or just cut them in half in batches with the "two takeout lids" trick* and either roast or slowly dry them in the oven, then freeze.
*You trap a herd of small tomatoes between two lids - yogurt lids or deli container lids or tupperware - the lip on the bottom lid keeps them from rolling away and the top lid lets you press down on them so they don't just roll out of the way of the knife while you slice through them all at once, horizontally.
posted by janell at 6:10 PM on September 23, 2014 [2 favorites]
Or just cut them in half in batches with the "two takeout lids" trick* and either roast or slowly dry them in the oven, then freeze.
*You trap a herd of small tomatoes between two lids - yogurt lids or deli container lids or tupperware - the lip on the bottom lid keeps them from rolling away and the top lid lets you press down on them so they don't just roll out of the way of the knife while you slice through them all at once, horizontally.
posted by janell at 6:10 PM on September 23, 2014 [2 favorites]
After thawing, I use a stick blender to mash them to a liquid, the skins disappear and are mashed in too, personally I think it helps the flavour, or at least does not detract from the flavour. A stick blender is more useful than a real blender, in many ways, you can get a decent one starting from about $40.
posted by carter at 10:15 AM on September 26, 2014
posted by carter at 10:15 AM on September 26, 2014
This thread is closed to new comments.
Store in an airtight container.
If you have a dehydrator, same thing.
Enjoy!
posted by jbenben at 7:59 PM on September 22, 2014 [4 favorites]