'Tis the Season for Canning - Tomatoes

Tommy-toes. There is so much to can using them - tomato juice, salsa, pasta sauce, crushed tomatoes, ketchup, barbecue sauce and on and on the list could go.

To start, there are many many varieties of tomatoes - to many to even start naming. However, really any variety of tomato is good to use for canning. 

If you are intolerant of the acid in tomatoes, don't pass over them.  There are now low acid tomatoes that taste just as good as the "regular" kind.  You may pay a bit more for them, however.

Picking out Tomatoes

Tomatoes ripen from the inside out so a general rule of thumb for tomatoes is "if a tomato looks ripe on the outside, it's ripe on the inside."

1. The tomato should be free of bruises and should be a deep, bright red (unless you are buying green tomatoes to make delicious fried green tomatoes).

2. The tomato should not be soft all over. Most tomatoes will probably have a soft spot or two and if they do, try to use the tomato soon. Juicy tomatoes are heavy while unripe tomatoes are light.

3. Use the olfactory senses by smelling the tomato. They should smell like, well, tomatoes. If the tomato doesn't smell like anything, it's probably not going to be good tasting either.


Measurements

22 pounds whole tomatoes = 7 quarts canned tomatoes
14 pounds whole tomatoes = 9 pints canned tomatoes