• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
All She Cooks
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • About
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Find a Recipe
  • About Us
  • Free Planner!
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Find a Recipe
    • About Us
    • Free Planner!
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home » Canning/Preserving

    How to Can Tomatoes - Canning Made Easy

    Updated: Sep 29, 2020 · Published: Jun 12, 2016 · This post may contain affiliate links.

    Jump to Recipe - Print Recipe

    Learning how to can tomatoes is easy.

    I love canning food in the late summer and early fall.  Ever since I first learned how to can tomatoes, for some reason I've found it to be therapeutic. Give me a good Blackberry Mojito Cocktail to sip on in the kitchen, and I'll work at canning tomatoes all afternoon.

    There's nothing quite like turning twenty pounds of blemished tomatoes into eight or nine quarts of whole tomatoes that will add the perfect amount of garden zest to a crock-pot full of chili or soup in the winter.  It's amazing what you can do with this (which by the way I picked up at the Farmers Market for 50 cents a pound because my garden did so poorly).

    If you're not familiar with canning, processing tomatoes is probably one of the easiest places to start.  It's a little different than making a simple Pico Sauce, because you're going to want to ski the tomatoes first. This is really easy to do though.

    As far as canning the tomatoes, all that is required is a water bath canner, jars, and lids.  You'll also want to use a jar lifter when removing the jars from the boiling water. If you're just getting started, this canning kit is the one that I have used for years and it has everything that you need in it to get started. With the exception of the jars...which you can get at any retailer, or you can order those on Amazon as well.

    Depending on whether you are canning whole tomatoes or delving into delicious salsa recipes, you'll want to have both quart and pint jars on hand. I highly recommend having a combination of quality canning jars in stocked up.

    I've used the same USDA approved process for the last eleven years, and it is simple and easy.

    Recipe:

    This recipe is great because it can be used for any number of tomatoes. You can can a few jars at a time if that's what your garden is producing. Or, if you happen to either have an overly abundant garden--in which case I'm SO jealous--or have loaded up on a couple boxes of fresh tomatoes from your farmers market or farm share, then you can also use this recipe to make loads of jarred tomatoes.

    Use it for whole tomatoes, diced tomatoes, sliced tomatoes--whichever way you like your canned tomatoes. The joy of this recipe is the acidity of the tomatoes and lemon juice work perfect magic and you can enjoy your jarred tomato creations ALL year long.

    And that's yum!

    Wash jars and lids in hot soapy water and rinse good.

    Drop tomatoes into a pot of boiling water and let sit for 30 seconds or until skin has cracked.  Remove tomatoes and set aside until cool enough to handle.

    When tomatoes have cooled off, slip off skin and remove cores and imperfections using a corer, melon ball utensil, or knife.  Fill jars to within a half to ¾ of an inch of the top, squishing the tomatoes down so the juices cover them.  Use a wooden spoon or a spatula around the inside of the jar to get rid of any air bubbles.

    Add 1 teaspoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to each jar.

    Wipe down the jar rims and place new lids on jars and screw on.  Process the jars by placing them in a water bath canner in boiling water for 45 minutes.  I always start the water while I'm filling the jars so I don't have to wait as long for the water to boil again once the jars are placed in the canner.

    Recipe

    Canning tomatoes. Learn how to can tomatoes with this easy recipe that you can use every year to can tomatoes from your garden or farm stand. Canning tomatoes is easy and they are so tasty when captured at the peak of ripeness.

    How to Can Tomatoes – Canning Made Easy

    All She Cooks
    Canning Tomatoes Made Easy. Learn how to can tomatoes with this easy recipe that you can use every year to can tomatoes from your garden or farm stand. Canning tomatoes is easy and they are so tasty when captured at the peak of ripeness.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Recipe Saved!
    Prep Time 5 minutes mins
    Cook Time 45 minutes mins
    Total Time 50 minutes mins
    Course Side Dish, Side Dishes
    Cuisine American
    Servings 4
    Calories 6 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • Tomatoes
    • Lemon juice
    • Salt

    Instructions
     

    • Wash jars and lids in hot soapy water and rinse good.
    • Drop tomatoes into a pot of boiling water and let sit for 30 seconds or until skin has cracked. Remove tomatoes and set aside until cool enough to handle.
    • When tomatoes have cooled off, slip off skin and remove cores and imperfections using a corer, melon ball utensil, or knife. Fill jars to within a half to ¾ of an inch of the top, squishing the tomatoes down so the juices cover them. Use a wooden spoon or a spatula around the inside of the jar to get rid of any air bubbles.
    • Add 1 teaspoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to each jar.
    • Wipe down the jar rims and place new lids on jars and screw on. Process the jars by placing them in a water bath canner in boiling water for 45 minutes. I always start the water while I'm filling the jars so I don't have to wait as long for the water to boil again once the jars are placed in the canner.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 6kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 1gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 2mgPotassium: 73mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 256IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 3mgIron: 1mg
    Keyword can tomatoes, how to make can tomatoes
    Grab your Free Meal Planner!Use our free printable meal planner to plan your meals, keep your grocery list, and more.

    And wallah- awesome canned goodness.

    Save

    Save

    Save

    Save

    Save

    Save

    Save

    Save

    More Canning/Preserving

    • easy pear jam recipe without pectin
      Pear Ginger Jam
    • Slow Cooker Apple Butter
    • No Pectin Citrus Marmalade
    • dehydrator recipes banana chips are so delicious
      Homemade Banana Chips

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

      Leave a Comment Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




    1. Karen

      June 12, 2016 at 9:37 am

      I do it the same way when I have enough to can - I haven't checked the farmer's market not sure what they charge around here

      Reply
    2. Joni

      August 19, 2016 at 3:01 pm

      I have been canning for over 40 years. I never put any salt in mine because I season when I cook with them. I also don't add lemon juice because most tomatoes have enough acid.
      You can cut down on the time for water processing by hot packing. I put mine in a large electric roaster and bring them to a simmer. Pack in hot jars & process 12mins for quarts 10 mins for pints. I can because I can!!!!

      Reply
    3. diyandkawa

      April 09, 2017 at 8:35 am

      What size jars are used for your recipe? I understand many different sizes can be used... but which size goes with your measurement of 1 tsp of salt and 2 tbsp of lemon juice? Thanks!

      Reply
      • Jessica McCoy

        May 01, 2017 at 2:30 pm

        I normally can with quart sized jars. The salt and lemon measurements are what I always use for that.

        Reply
    4. Darlyn

      May 19, 2018 at 12:02 pm

      Hi how long do these stay good for? I make salsa to sell so just wondering how long it will stay good in my pantry.

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Nicole is a recipe developer, food photographer, and published cookbook author. At All She Cooks, she shares simple recipes to make every day a little bit more delicious. About Us →


    click to get our printable weekly meal planner

    Trending

    • Cinnamon Sugar Cruffins
      Cinnamon Sugar Cruffins
    • pumpkin cheesecake with pecans
      Copycat Cheesecake Factory Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe
    • soft and chewy peanut butter cookie
      Old-Fashioned Peanut Butter Cookies
    • pumpkin bars
      Easy Pumpkin Bars

    Hot New Recipes

    • how to make cheese balls
      Mini Bacon Ranch Cheese Balls
    • Blueberry Cruffins
      Blueberry Cruffins
    • Holiday Cookie Bars
      Cake Mix Cookie Bars
    • chicken stroganoff
      30-Minute Creamy Chicken Stroganoff

    Footer

    Contact Us | Privacy Policy, Disclosures, & Terms of Use
    As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more here.

    Copyright © 2025 Hook & Porter Media

    1.5K shares

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.