Tomato Juice
Condiments, Dressings, Sauces, Vegetables
Ingredients
- Only disease-free, preferably vine-ripened, firm fruit for canning.
Directions
About Canned Tomatoes
Select only disease-free, preferably vine-ripened, firm fruit for canning. Do not can tomatoes from dead or frost-killed vines because they may be low in acid. Green tomatoes are more acidic than ripened tomatoes and so can be canned safely using any of the methods described in this guide.
Acidification directions: To ensure safe acidity in whole, crushed, or juiced tomatoes, add 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice or ½ teaspoon of citric acid per quart of tomatoes. For pints, use 1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice or ¼ teaspoon citric acid. Acid can be added directly to the jars before filling with a product. Add sugar to offset acid taste, if desired. Four tablespoons of a 5 percent acidity vinegar per quart may be used instead of lemon juice or citric acid. However, vinegar may cause undesirable flavor changes.
Use of a pressure canner will result in higher quality and more nutritious canned tomato products.
Tomato Juice
QUANTITY: An average of 23 pounds of tomatoes is needed per canner load of 7 quarts; an average of 14 pounds is needed per canner load of 9 pints. A bushel weighs 53 pounds and yields 15 to 18 quarts of juice—an average of 3¼ pounds per quart.
PROCEDURE: Wash, remove stems, and trim off bruised or discolored portions. To prevent juice from separating, quickly cut about 1 pound of fruit into quarters and put directly into a saucepan. Heat immediately to boiling while crushing. Continue to slowly add and crush freshly cut tomato quarters. Make sure the mixture boils constantly and vigorously while you add the remaining tomatoes. Simmer 5 minutes after you have added all the tomato pieces.
If you are not concerned about juice separation, simply slice or quarter tomatoes into a large saucepan. Crush, heat, and simmer for 5 minutes before juicing.
Press both types of heated juice through a sieve or food mill to remove skins and seeds. Add 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice per quart to the jar, following acidification directions in “About Canned Tomatoes.” Heat juice again to boiling. Add 1 teaspoon of salt per quart to the jar, if desired. Fill jars with hot tomato juice, leaving ½-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process.
PROCESSING TIME:
Boiling-water Canner—Hot Pack: process pints for 40 minutes; quarts, 45 minutes.
Dial-gauge Pressure Canner—Hot Pack: process pints or quarts for 15 minutes at 12 pounds of pressure.
Weighted-gauge Pressure Canner—Hot Pack: process pints or quarts for 15 minutes at 15 pounds of pressure.
