The absolute easiest way to can tomatoes! This step-by-step photo tutorial will show you how to can tomatoes in no time. No peeling, no coring- just cut out the stem and dice them up. It’s super easy, plus if you grow your own tomatoes, it’s a big money saver too!
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I started canning diced tomatoes several years ago after having an “aha moment” one evening while preparing dinner. As I was opening a can of diced tomatoes that I needed for the recipe I was making, I suddenly wondered why in the world I never tried canning them myself. I mean how hard could it be?
I grew up helping my mom can tomato juice and tomato chunks. And every year since we’ve been married, I’ve canned tomato juice as well as things like salsa and marinara sauce, so I was quite familiar with the process of canning tomatoes.
I decided to give it a try and it worked like a charm! It was not only super simple, it has also saved me from needing to buy diced tomatoes from the store.
How do you can tomatoes? Let me help you learn the process!
Supplies for Canning Tomatoes
- Tomatoes, salt and bottled lemon juice
- Dishpan or containers to put the tomatoes in
- Knife (This one is my favorite for slicing tomatoes!)
- Cutting board (The groove on this one is awesome because it catches the juice, creating less mess.)
- Vidalia Chop Wizard (Not a necessity, but you can dice the tomatoes in about half the time if you use it.)
– This gadget is also awesome for dicing tomatoes, onions, and peppers for salsa and potatoes and carrots for soups. - Wide Funnel
- Damp cloth to wipe jar rims
- Water Bath Canner (or this Canning Rack may work depending on what size pot you already own)
- Canning jars with lids and rings
- Jar lifter
- Old towels or rags to set the hot jars on
How to Can Diced Tomatoes- a step-by-step tutorial
1. Wash tomatoes thoroughly.
Cut out the stem and any defects or blemishes.
Some people also peel the tomatoes, but I never do and we honestly have not noticed the peelings at all and I’m even funny about textures like that in food.
I figure, why bother with the extra step? Plus it’s a bit healthier too!
2. Cut up the tomatoes.
Slice tomatoes into about ½-inch thick slices, then dice them into whatever size you want. I love using the large dicing side of my Vidalia Chop Wizard for this!
3. Place diced tomatoes into a clean canning jar.
A funnel makes this super easy. Gently shake the jar to settle the tomatoes so that you can fill it completely.
The tomatoes should be packed tightly to produce enough juice. It won’t hurt if you press down on them a bit to get the jar packed full- in fact, this is probably going to be necessary.
The jar should be full to the base of the neck.
4. Add salt and bottled lemon juice.
For the salt, use ½ tsp. per pint and 1 tsp. per quart. You do not need to add salt when canning tomatoes, but I recommend it because I think it helps enhance the flavor.
For the lemon juice, use 1 Tbsp. per pint and 2 Tbsp. per quart.
Once the salt and lemon juice are added to the tomatoes, wipe the rim of each canning jar with a damp cloth to remove any tomato residue that may be there. (If there is even a slight bit of tomato juice on it, it may not allow it to seal properly.)
I updated the original post to include the instructions to add lemon juice after several readers commented and said that to be safe, you really should add it.
5. Prepare the canning lids. (This may be optional!)
Update: Some canning lid manufacturers now say that it’s not necessary to preheat the lids. So before doing this, check the instructions that came with the lids you are using.
Once you have 7 jars filled, place 7 metal canning lids in a small pan. Cover with water; bring to a boil.
When the water boils, use a fork or lid lifter to lift the jar lids out of the water and place them on the jars. Be careful not to burn yourself!
Secure each lid with a jar band/ring. (Heating the lids softens the rubber, allowing for a better seal.)
6. Place the filled jars of tomatoes in the canner.
Once jars are full and have the ring and lids on them, place them in the canner.
Then add hot water to the canner, enough to cover the jars by 1 to 2 inches. Cover the canner with a lid. Turn the burner to medium-high heat.
Once the water starts to boil, reduce the heat slightly and process for 45 minutes, making sure the water is boiling gently and steadily the whole time. (You may need to adjust the heat to keep the boil going nicely, but as long as it is boiling, you are fine.)
7. Remove the jars of canned tomatoes.
After processing the canned tomatoes for 45 minutes, turn the burner off.
Remove jars using a jar lifter- you may want to have a dishrag in your other hand to catch any hot water that drips from the jars as you remove them- and place on an old towel, blanket or another padded surface. (This is to protect your counter from the super hot jars.)
Allow at least a little bit of air space around each jar, making sure not to have jars close enough to touch. Do not move until the jars are completely cool.
Jars should seal as they cool and you will typically hear a snap or pinging sound as the vacuum seal is formed. The lids will be slightly concave when sealed.
To test the seal, once the jar has totally cooled you can lightly tap the center of the cooled jar lid. If it is firm and does not move, it should be sealed. If it pushes in, it didn’t seal properly. You can still use unsealed jars, just put them in the refrigerator and use them as soon as possible.
After the jars are completely cool, you can remove the rings. Jars should be wiped clean before storing them.
Enjoy!
HELPFUL TIP: 1 pint of canned diced tomatoes is equivalent to 1 (15 oz.) can of diced tomatoes.
Other canning recipes you might also enjoy:
How to Can Diced Tomatoes
Equipment
- Dishpan or containers to put the tomatoes in
- Knife
- Cutting board
- Vidalia Chop Wizard (Not a necessity, but you can dice the tomatoes in about half the time if you use it.)
- Wide Funnel
- Damp rag to wipe tops of jars
- Canner
- Canning jars with lids and rings
- Jar lifter
- Old towel, blanket or other padded surface to put hot jars on
Ingredients
- fresh tomatoes (approximately 2 3/4 lb. for 1 quart jar)
- salt (1 tsp. per quart or 1/2 tsp. per pint)
- bottled lemon juice (2 tbsp. per quart or 1 tbps. per pint)
Instructions
- Wash tomatoes thoroughly. Cut out the stem and any defects or blemishes. Some people also peel the tomatoes, but I never do and we honestly have not noticed the peelings at all- and I’m even funny about textures like that in food. I figure why bother with the extra step, plus it’s a bit healthier too!
- Slice tomatoes into about ½ inch thick slices, then dice them into whatever size you want. I love using the large dicing side of my Vidalia Chop Wizard for this!
- Place diced tomatoes into a clean canning jar- a funnel makes this super easy. Gently shake jar to settle tomatoes so that you can fill it completely. The tomatoes should be packed tightly in order to produce enough juice. It won't hurt if you press down on them a bit to get the jar packed full- in fact, this is probably going to be necessary. The jar should be full to the base of the neck.
- Add salt (½ tsp. per pint and 1 tsp. per quart) and bottled lemon juice (1 Tbsp. per pint and 2 Tbsp. per quart). Wipe rim of each jar with a damp cloth to remove any tomato residue that may be there. (If there is even a slight bit of tomato juice on it, it may not allow it to seal properly.)
- Update: Some canning lid manufacturers now say that it's not necessary to preheat the lids. So before doing this, check the instructions that came with the lids you are using. Once you have 7 jars filled, place 7 metal canning lids in a small pan. Cover with water; bring to a boil. Once the water boils, use a fork or lid lifter to lift the jar lids out of the water- be careful not to burn yourself!- and place them on the jars. Secure each lid with a jar band/ring. (Heating the lids softens the rubber, allowing for a better seal.)
- Place 7 jars in canner. Fill with enough hot water to cover the jars by 1 to 2 inches. Cover canner with a lid. Turn the burner on medium high heat. Once water starts to boil, reduce heat slightly and process for 45 minutes, making sure the water is boiling gently and steadily the whole time. (You may need to adjust heat to keep the boil going nicely, but really, as long as it is boiling, you are fine.)
- After processing for 45 minutes, turn the burner off. Remove jars using jar lifter- you may want to have a dishrag in your other hand to catch any hot water that drips from the jars as you remove them- and place on an old towel, blanket or another padded surface. (This is to protect your counter from the super hot jars.) Allow at least a little bit of air space around each jar, making sure not to have jars close enough to touch. Do not move until jars are completely cool.
- Jars should seal as they cool and you will typically hear a snap or pinging sound as the vacuum seal is formed. Lids will be slightly concave when sealed. To test the seal, once jar has totally cooled, lightly tap the center of the cooled jar lid. If it is firm and does not move, it should be sealed. If it pushes in, it didn’t seal properly. You can still use unsealed jars, just put them in the refrigerator and use them as soon as possible.
- After jars are completely cool, you can remove the rings. Jars should be wiped clean before storing them.
Connie
I’m trying my hand at canning right now! so easy! Wondering, what is the shelf life for tomatoes? I’m sure they won’t sit too long on my shelf but would like to know for my own knowledge!
ThriftyFrugalMom
That’s great, Connie! And I love that you’ve found it to be easy because I think often people get scared away from canning because it seems complicated, when overall, it’s really not that way. I don’t know the official answer too your question about how long tomatoes are “good”, but I can tell you that I recently discovered a couple of jars that were 2 years old (yes, I apparently didn’t do a good job of rotating my jars!) and they were just fine when I used them. Hope that helps and happy canning!
Kay
Have you used this recipe/method before? I loved how easy it was and have made a few batches now following this method. You had me at “no peeling”;)! I have had two family members now question me about the safety of the method (or really, question me about canning tomatoes in general- especially without pressure canning). I even added a tablespoon of vinegar to each pint jar to make it more acidic to reduce concerns of botulism. I just wanted to follow up to see if this is a tried or tested method or get any input on canning safety.
ThriftyFrugalMom
I know! When I discovered that you didn’t notice the peel when you do the little dices like this, I was more than happy not to need to worry about it!
I’ve canned diced tomatoes for 3 years and my mom has canned larger chunks using this method for 47 years! 🙂 We’ve been totally fine- but at the same time, I don’t claim to be an expert and realize that everyone has different views on the whole subject of canning.
I looked at the Ball’s FreshPreserving.com site and this is what they said:
Hope that helps!
crystal
How long after jarring them are they good for one week two weeks a month 3 months 6 months a year?
ThriftyFrugalMom
They’re good for at least a year. I’ve had some longer than that and they’ve been fine too. So handy!
Lee longo
I did some tomatoes with the skin on last year and I found they were not the first ones I felt like using. I liked the skinless better. You have to try this method of removing the skins if you have never done it like this before.
I took a whole box of tomatoes from the farm and emptied them in my sink. Rinsed & sorted them quickly.
I poured a canning pan full of water over them and waited till the skin split. About ten minutes.
I drained the sink, let them cool a bit and cored and skinned them in less than a half hour. It was amazing. No pulp left on the skin either. The farm attendant shared this with me. Feel free to share. Thanks for your channel. I had good luck last year with your recipes.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Thanks for that tip for removing skins easily. I’ve heard of dumping the tomatoes into boiling water, but this sounds much easier…enough so, that I’m tempted to give it a try next year!
Robyn
I found a really handy magnetic lid lifter at walmart for under a dollar. It works great for getting the lids out of the water! I will be canning tomatoes today!
ThriftyFrugalMom
I’ve heard that there is such a thing, Robyn. I grew up helping my mom can and we always used a fork to get the lids out so to me it’s just easier that way. But the magnetic thing would probably be handy, especially if you are concerned about burning yourself with the water!
ella ruth
I used to use a fork but found the lid lifter at walmart and love it.
ThriftyFrugalMom
I’ve heard lots of people say they love the lid lifter too, Ella Ruth! I guess I should try one to see what the fuss is about. 🙂
Melanie Redd
I’m always impressed with articles and ideas like this one! Thanks for sharing these suggestions. Your pictures are great, and I love the idea of dicing my own tomatoes.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Thanks, Melanie! There’s something about preserving my own food that just makes me feel good. And when it’s as easy as this, it makes it even more fun!
Be
It’s been many years since I’ve done any canning but your tutorial pictures are reminding me of the good old days and are almost putting me in the mood to do some canning again! Your recipe looks pretty easy to do and looks tasty too.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Yes, I’m all about easy! 🙂
Janet
What would cause your tomato juice to be real dark red.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Are you asking about the tomato juice in my picture or are you asking because you’ve canned tomato juice yourself and it was dark red and you were puzzled as to why it was so dark? If it’s my juice, it’s a combination of 2 things. The lighting in my kitchen made it look a bit darker than it really is, but I’ve found homemade tomato juice is also often darker than store bought. I don’t know if it’s the type of tomatoes that are used or if it’s because the tomatoes that I use are typically quite ripe and nice and dark red and the store bought stuff is made with less ripe tomatoes or what. The other thing is that I juice mine pretty hard and so it is thicker than store bought canned tomato juice too, which might make it darker. At any rate, my juice is often just a bit lighter than the picture shows, so still fairly dark. Hope that answered your question!
Seminte
What kind of tomatoes do you like to use? I grew Roma variety especially for caning as I think it is the best for that purpose.
ThriftyFrugalMom
Roma tomatoes are great, especially for making tomato juice or spaghetti sauce since they are more meaty and not as juicy! For things like these canned diced tomatoes or salsa, I’m fine with using a regular tomato since the meatiness of the tomato isn’t really something that matters as much, although I have used them for making diced tomatoes occasionally too. If I’m growing my own, I usually pick an heirloom variety like Brandywine. But many times I just buy them from a semi-local tomato grower that sells their seconds for really cheap and so I obviously just take whatever they have available.
Jessica Lasseter
Learning how to make my own diced tomatoes and can them was on my goal list this year, and I completely forgot about it! I just happened to come across your post and it was providential. Thanks!
ThriftyFrugalMom
Oh, that’s awesome, Jessica! Hope you are still able to do it. It’s not hard, especially once you get the tomatoes diced.
Jessica
This seems easy enough! Do you not need to add any other liquid, does it fill up that much (like store bought canned diced tomatoes) just from the juice when you dice them?
Lydia Beiler
It is super easy, Jessica! And you are right, you don’t need to add any other liquid since the juice from the tomatoes will come out when cooking and fill it up just fine.
Becky
What is the self life after processed?
Lydia Beiler
They’re good for at least a year, but as long as the seal is good on them they actually will be good for longer, they just might get a little more soft over time.