It’s time to start freezing tomatoes!
Even though it took a while for our tomatoes to ripen this year, once they started, they ripened in big batches. This morning we picked what you see in the basket. Add those to what we picked yesterday (top bowl below), and you can see that I have some work ahead of me. And there are still a lot on the plants.
We’ve already given several tomatoes to friends and family as well as made our favorite summer pasta dish – Pasta with Fresh Tomatoes and Basil. I’ve also made several batches of Tomato Confit and frozen those. Then of course, we’ve had a variety of tomato salads. This weekend I’ll be making a chunky gazpacho. However, after all of that, we still have more tomatoes. YAY!!!!
Now it’s time to freeze some. For years I froze peeled tomatoes by blanching in a hot water bath, then transferring to an ice water bath. Afterwards, the peel came off relatively well. Then I had to clean up the mess.
A few years ago, I read about freezing tomatoes by just coring them, then freezing. No water bath, no ice bath, no peeling, no mess, no fuss. Sounded pretty good to me, so I gave it a try. It’s worked beautifully! Just freeze the tomatoes whole, pull out what you need when you need some and let them thaw in a bowl or defrost in the microwave. Once thawed, the skin slides right off. After doing it once, it’s now the only method I use. Peeling is actually easier than the water bath. I guess the only challenge is having enough room in the freezer, because they do take up more space than the blanching method.
To see the method for freezing tomatoes, scroll down to the step-by-step guide below.
Freezing Whole Tomatoes
Step 1 – Wash the tomatoes. Using a sharp, narrow knife, remove just the stem and core of each tomato.
Step 2 – In a freezer bag, lay the cored tomatoes in a single layer. cored side up.
Step 3 – Seal the bag, gently push as much air as possible from the bag. Lay the sealed bag FLAT in the freezer. Once frozen, you can move the bag to wherever you it want in the freezer. They don’t have to remain flat.
Step 4 – Thawing and Peeling – When ready to use, remove as many tomatoes as you need from the bag. Place in a bowl and let thaw, or defrost in the microwave. Once thawed or nearly thawed, pinch the peel at the based of the tomato and squeeze the pulp from the peel. The peel slides right off.
Can it get any easier than that? AND, the only thing you need to clean afterwards is a knife and cutting board. Hope you give this method a try. It has saved me a lot of time and a lot of fuss.
Below are a few dishes for using frozen tomatoes.
This is brilliant and so easy. Too bad I don’t have a garden anymore to have tomatoes to freeze but I will pass this on and sometimes I buy too many and we don’t get to them fast enough. Love this idea .. .thanks
Thanks Judee. Can’t get any faster than this and the result is amazing.
Wow – I’ve never seen anyone freeze whole tomatoes before and it’s such a great idea! Those tomatoes look so bright, red, and delicious!
Thanks Amy. When I first saw it, I thought it was a great idea as well. I was thrilled when I saw how well it worked.
Now this is just BRILLIANT! How can I thank you enough for teaching me this new trick! My tomatoes are all picked for the year, but I think there are some left at the local farmers’ market! Plus, MJ, I have to say, your tomatoes are about as perfect as possible! What are your gardening secrets to get similar results?
Thanks Roz. I think my secret was to just find the perfect tomato for this climate. We’ve grown LOTS of different types of tomatoes over the years with not near the results of these genuwines. We started growing them about six years ago and now that the only tomatoes we grow. Delicious, meaty and very prolific.
This is such an enlightenment for me being “tomato addict”: until today, I made several batches of canned spaghetti sauce and a lot of boiled and peeled tomatoes to store in the freezer but this is going to speed up the whole process !!!!!! Thank you dear MJ !
Thanks Darling. I think you really LOVE this method. Talk about easy and a real time saver.
Lucky you!! Your tomatoes look fantastic! I have never tried freezing a single tomato! I’ll keep in mind all the fascinating tips!
We’ve been having such an awful summer… the worst in the past 15 years and maybe even earlier, so I don’t have many tomatoes to harvest (though mini tomatoes on a balcony should be less demanding), not to mention chillies.
Thanks Sissi. Sorry about the problem you’re having with you garden. Some years are just better than others. Last year we got a ton of squash, this year – nada. Oh well. We’ll just eat tomatoes. š
I do the same but I first place the cored tomatoes directly ( without a plastic bag) on a freezer shelf on top of parchment paper. If shelf space is not available then in a pan with parchment paper and in the freezer on top of other frozen foods. Freeze for at least 24 hours then place in freezer bag.
I do the same with roasted hatch peppers, strawberries, tri tips, steaks, and especially fish like salmon. I do wrap all meat and fish products in plastic wrap after frozen then in a freezer bag.
The idea is to keep ice crystals to a minimum. Meat and fish much more susceptible to ice crystals forming during the freeze.
Thanks Jerry. Keeping meats from ice burn is a real challenge. I, too have found that double wrapping works best.
And I think of all the hours we spent peeling scalding hot tomatoes!
I know – right? Never again. š
I’m very envious of all of your tomatoes. Once we downsized, I have no room to grow tomatoes anymore … and the ones I tried in pots just didn’t do very well. Back in the day I used to get harvests like you and would freeze with the water bath method. I might have to buy some tomatoes from the farm stand market just to try this easier method. I’d love to have some fresh tomatoes for the winter. Thanks for this post MJ
Thanks Lea Ann. I hope you do give it a try because it’s such an easy way to get tomatoes in the freezer for the winter.
wow what a great idea. your tomatoes look lovely too even tho i am not a tomato fan:) But this is a brilliant idea. i do the same with garlic cloves – freeze ’em skin and all, then just run them under warm water and the skin slips off – well, after you chop off the hard end. so easy!
Thanks Sherry. Thanks for the tip on the garlic. That I’m going to try!
Oh my word, did you grow these gorgeous beauties? Never seen such beautiful tomatoes! Love this quick and easy hack. Going to try it this summer as have so many fall recipes using tomatoes. Thank you!
Thanks Bobbi. Yes, those are our homegrown. š I hope you do try it. I’ll never go back to the hot and cold water bath. The is so much easier and works just as well if not better.
Wow, are those your homegrown tomatoes? They are a gorgeous color and meaty! I bet they taste wonderful. Many years ago I grew tomatoes and would freeze them. It’s a great method to put them up to make sauces, salsa’s and to add to soups.
Thanks Jan. And yes they are my homegrown tomatoes. š We discovered them about 6 years ago and have grown them every year. This year, they are the only tomatoes we grew. They are SO good and prolific that we need to grow other types. They also tolerant our dry, hot weather making them perfect for here.
What is the name of the tomato in your pictures?
These are Genuwines. They are a “marriage” of two heirlooms – The brandwine and the Genovese. I buy the plants from White Flower Farm in the spring. They grow very well here in the dry climate of the southwest and are very prolific as you can see. They are indeterminates so they produce into the fall, usually until our first frost.
Those home grown tomatoes are looking seriously good! I love the idea of freezing the whole..so much easier.
thanks Angie. They are pretty darn good tomatoes. š
That is some fine looking tomatoes. Comparing those to the tomatoes you get in the store makes a person sad.
Thanks Milo. Oh, there’s absolutely no comparison. :0
Gorgeous looking tomatoes! And what a great method for freezing — so easy. Thanks!
Thanks John. It’s amazingly easy!
That is such a great idea! I just wish that I had a bumper crop of tomatoes to freeze. I don’t have as green of a thumb as you do!
Thanks Laura. We have to work hard for this bumper crop, but it sure is worth it. š