Here's a genius way to bottle tomatoes while leaving the skins on.

Ingredients

12 quart pan
10 pounds tomatoes (preferably red)*
4 cups water
1 large carrot
1 celery stalk
1/4 of a medium yellow or white onion
immersion blender**
mason jars
lids
screw bands
steamer

     Directions Below

 

 

 

      

Step ONE:

12 quart pan
10 pounds tomatoes, stems removed*
4 cups water
1 large carrot
1 celery stalk
1/4 of a medium yellow or white onion
sea salt

Clean tomatoes, carrot and celery.  Add water, onion, carrot and celery to 12 quart pan. Bring to boil uncovered. Add tomatoes. Keep on medium-high heat. The tomatoes will start to become soft after about 15 minutes. Stir with wooden spoon every 5 minutes to help cook tomatoes evenly. Once tomatoes are all soft and juicy, remove from heat. Approximately 45 minutes. Avoid over cooking. You want soft, clumps of tomatoes not straight juice. Blend with immersion blender** until clump free. 

Step TWO:

mason jars, cleaned
1 teaspoon sea salt per mason jar
lids, new
screw bands, rust free
steamer

Fill steamer full of water and place on high heat. Leave lid off for now. Fill each mason jar with tomatoes up to bottom of ribbed neck. Add 1 teaspoon salt to top of tomatoes (no need to stir salt into tomato mixture). Clean the outside of the ribbed neck and rim of jar until completely free from any debris. I use a towel. Place new lid on jar and screw on band. You want a tight seal but not too tight or the bottle will break or explode while steaming. Place on steamer. When steamer is full (mine holds 7 bottles), place lid on. Keep on medium-high heat for 45 minutes. Start timer when the water boils and you can see steam coming out of the lid. When done, take lid off (I lift the lid straight up and back while leaning back a little to prevent getting a gust of steam on my face or arms). Place jars on cooling rack. After jars cool, twist the band until tight. Test to see if they sealed by pressing the center of the lid. It shouldn't pop. If it does, see Tips below. Date the bottle with sharpie and put away for future use. 

*Red tomatoes are more acidic than yellow and some heirloom tomatoes (purple, orange, or various colors). Use one type of tomato or multiple types of tomatoes making sure most of them are red. Cherry tomatoes work great in this. They tend to be a little sweeter and are delicious! 

**A blender can be substituded for an immersion blender. It takes a lot more time and may not mix all the ingredients as well. Not to mention the risk of burning yourself. Do yourself a favor, make life easier and buy an immersion blender. You won't be disappointed. 

Tips:

If your tomatoes don't seal you have two options. One, reseal them or two use them in a near future meal. To reseal tomatoes, remove previous lid and rim. Clean the outside of the ribbed neck and rim of jar until completely free from any debris. Place new lid (however many you need) in small sauce pan with seal facing down. Cover with small amount of water. Bring to boil and wait about 2 minutes. You want the seal to heat up and become soft. With tongs or similar device, pick up lid and place on jar. Screw band on (remember not too tight) and place in steamer. Repeat steaming process. 

Don't let your steamer run out of water. It can burn your pan and cause a fire. Not to mention it stinks! Not that I've done it before :)