# Newbie Tomato Canning Question



## OnlyMe (Oct 10, 2010)

This is my first year canning; I completed a hands-on canning class via an extension school this summer. I have a lot of tomato plants doing well (am freezing the cherry tomatoes - I didn't want to blanch and peel them lol) but the full size tomatoes aren't ripening at the same time which leads to my question.

Our instructor told us to water bath can tomatoes within 24 hrs of picking - but I don't have enough to can after a single picking. How "important" is this 24 hr rule? If I have to pick green ones and wrap them in newspaper to ripen before a frost (it is New England) are they candidates for canning? I have a dehydrator as well (found it at a tag sale - new but I've never used it) but would prefer to practice canning first.

Thank you so much for any guidance. I really really appreciate it. 
PS: My only option is water bath canning.


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## katydidagain (Jun 11, 2004)

People here and even at official canning sites recommend freezing tomatoes (washed) until you have enough to or time to can. Apparently it works--someone will come and give you a link and more info.


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## Limon (Aug 25, 2010)

Yep, just freeze them until you have enough to use. Added bonus is the skins will slip right off as they start to defrost.

For the cherries, you don't have to peel them if you run the cooked tomatoes through a sieve or food mill before canning. It'll catch the peels and seeds for you. I just canned up a batch of tomato juice the other day that contained a lot of cherry tomatoes in it.


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## stef (Sep 14, 2002)

I was given this tray full of tomatoes on Saturday.Some of them were still a bit green. Today they are all almost ripe. I probably won't can them until Tuesday, which means they will have been picked at least four days and I'm not a bit hesitant to wait until then to plop them in hot water, skin and process them.

Classes geared to new comers try to err on the side of caution, which is wise, until you build up your own personal experience.







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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

I'm a BIG fan of picking my maters then bagging them up for the freezer until I have enough to make it worth while canning (for me, that is at least 15 quarts of maters or pasta sauce or 25 pints of salsa).

Place frozen maters in pot, fill pot with hot water. The skins slip right off. Just core them & cut them.


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## Gladrags (Jul 13, 2010)

24 hours? Good grief. I'd never get anything else done!


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## Feisty Farm (Apr 10, 2012)

Well, right now I have about 15 bushel of tomatoes in my garage, and we pick about 5- 5 gallon bucket fulls a day. So, there is NO way I can process in 24 hours nor freeze them, or sell them all. I simply add citric acid powder to all of my tomatoes to make sure they are at the correct ph. An over ripe tomato is lower in acid, however, I do not wait until mine are dead ripe to pick either. I have been doing this for years, and have never had a problem. But, that is just the way we do it.


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## Kato2010 (Jun 24, 2012)

I use citric acid as well. I don't worry about how long since they've been picked. I care more about whether they are over ripe or not. I won't use any tomato that has a crack, bruise or flaw. I have a ton of ripe tomatoes as well, but they have to wait until tomorrow, because the apples are hollering to be canned first.


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## countryfied2011 (Jul 5, 2011)

We pick our tomatoes just as they are turning pink if we didn't we wouldn't have any because our chickens free range (even with fencing they fly over). They sit in all the window sills until they ripe. Been doing this for a few years and we are all still alive.


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## Gladrags (Jul 13, 2010)

I would venture to guess that any 24-hour "guideline" was geared toward flavor instead of safety. I can't imagine a tomato that was picked 25 hours ago would be dangerous in any way.


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