The perfect sauce to make the most of fresh summer tomatoes and basil. You can bottle it, freeze it or eat it right away. Perfect for pasta, on pizza, with meatballs, in spaghetti bolognese or in lasagne.
It's the March "made from scratch" challenge! If you missed the last ones, you can check out all of the previous challenge recipes here.
Bottling tomatoes is a reasonably new thing to me. I've always bottled fruit, made jams and chutneys but it was only since I started making tomato salsa and canning diced tomatoes that I've really discovered the whole new world that comes with bottling tomatoes.
Last year I used my garden tomatoes to make pasta sauces that I froze. This was an awesome way to do it but I am terrible at remembering to take things out of the freezer before I need them. This is one of the things that I love the most about canning or bottling. The jar is sitting on your shelf and can be opened and used immediately!
Plus, I get so much satisfaction from seeing jars of homemade preserves lined up on the shelf.
Because I know a lot of you are interested in canning, this is the tested recipe that I have been using out of the Ball Blue Book of Preserving. As you know, using a tested recipe when it comes to canning is crucial, particularly when tomatoes are involved. For more information on canning, check out this post.
If you are not into preserving, this recipe can also be frozen - the bonus of that is that you can add any extra vegetables while you are making it as they freeze well. Try carrots, zucchini, peppers or spinach. If you are canning, you can't change the ratios or just add in vegetables as you please as this will change the acidity of the recipe meaning that it may not be safe for canning.
Alternatively you can try my marinara sauce recipe - perfect for making a double batch of and freezing!
Equipment needed:
- Water bath canner or large stockpot with rack/trivet
- Jars, lids and bands
- A second large stockpot to cook the sauce in
- Chopping board, knife, tea towels, ladle, jar funnel
- Food mill or stick mixer/food processor
How to make the sauce:
- Prepare your water bath canner. Wash jars and lids and bands in hot soapy water. Keep the jars hot in the water bath and keep the lids and bands in a small jug covered with warm water.
- Wash the tomatoes, remove cores and cut into quarters. Set aside.
- Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until transparent. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Run the hot mixture through a food mill. Discard the skins and seeds. If you don't have a food mill you can puree it in a food processor or with a stick mixer. For a smoother sauce, after you have done this, press the mixture through a sieve to remove skins and seeds.
- Add the tomato puree back to the pot along with the salt and the basil. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until volume is reduced by about one third to one half, stirring to prevent sticking. This will take about 1 hour.
- Add ¼ teaspoon citric acid or 1 Tablespoon bottled lemon juice to each hot pint jar. Ladle hot sauce into hot jars leaving ½ inch headspace. Use a chopstick or small spatula to remove air bubbles. Wipe the rim clean and center the lid on the jar. Apply band and adjust until it is fingertip tight. Place jar in boiling water canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.
- Process pint jars for 35 minutes. Turn off the heat and remove canner lid. Wait 5 minutes, then remove jars and cool.
How to get creative:
While you can't adjust the amount of low acid ingredients such as onions and garlic in this recipe, you can experiment with herbs and spices. I did 3 different varieties of this sauce:
- ¼ cup fresh basil for a basic tomato basil sauce (this is how the recipe is written below)
- 2 Tablespoons fresh basil and 2 Tablespoons fresh flat leaf parsley
- Replace the basil with ¼ cup fresh coriander + add to each jar, 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin, ½ teaspoon chilli powder, ½ teaspoon paprika, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, ¼ teaspoon black pepper for a Mexican tomato sauce that I will use as a base for enchiladas or in nachos/burritos
This sauce is perfect for stirring through pasta, adding to cooked mince to make spaghetti bolognese or lasagne or even for using as a pizza sauce! It makes dinner quick, easy and so tasty!
Recipe adapted slightly from Ball Blue Book of Preserving
Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce
Equipment
- 8 pint/500ml glass preserving jars with lids and bands
Ingredients
- 9 kg tomatoes
- 1 cup chopped onion (about 1 medium)
- 6 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ¼ cup fresh basil , finely chopped
- ¼ teaspoon citric acid or 1 Tablespoon bottled lemon juice per hot jar
Instructions
- Prepare your water bath canner. Wash jars and lids and bands in hot soapy water. Keep the jars hot in the water bath and keep the lids and bands in a small jug covered with warm water.
- Wash the tomatoes, remove cores and cut into quarters. Set aside.
- Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until transparent. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Run the hot mixture through a food mill. Discard the skins and seeds. If you don't have a food mill you can puree it in a food processor or with a stick mixer. For a smoother sauce, after you have done this, press the mixture through a sieve to remove skins and seeds.
- Add the tomato puree back to the pot along with the salt and the basil. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until volume is reduced by about one third to one half, stirring to prevent sticking. This will take about 1 hour.
- Add ¼ teaspoon citric acid or 1 Tablespoon bottled lemon juice to each hot pint jar. Ladle hot sauce into hot jars leaving ½ inch headspace. Use a chopstick or small spatula to remove air bubbles. Wipe the rim clean and center the lid on the jar. Apply band and adjust until it is fingertip tight. Place jar in boiling water canner. Repeat until all jars are filled.
- Process pint jars for 35 minutes. Turn off the heat and remove canner lid. Wait 5 minutes, then remove jars and cool.
- Remove the jars carefully from the water bath and let cool to room temperature. Check to make sure the jars have sealed correctly (if any jars haven’t sealed correctly, they will need to be refrigerated/frozen or re-processed).
Rebecca says
Hi Laura! Is it safe to leave the skin on? I read that tomato skins are not recommended for canning (so if I tried to stick blend method). New to canning Thanks!
Laura says
Hello! They are safe, it's more that they can go quite leathery during the canning process and are just not a pleasant texture! But a good go with the stick mixer should take care of this!
Cowgirl says
Hi, wanting to try this recipe but not sure how much dry basil to use please help:)
Laura says
I would probably use about 1 Tablespoon of dried basil
Lia says
Hi there
Do the tomatoes need to weigh 9kg as is after picking, or after they've been de-cored?
Also, if im going to hand stick blend them, does this include the seeds and skins.
Thank you! Im doing this method for the first time.
I usually peel and decor at the start (with hot then cold water) but if I can avoid this, yaye!
Laura says
9kg after picking.
And totally up to you peel them first or not, you will get a smoother end product if you do (even if you are stick mixing the sauce) but give it a go without and see what you think! The stick mixer does a pretty good job of blitzing it all up!
Jess says
I cant wait for my tomato's to ripen to make this!! How would I go about adding capsicum to this? Do I reduce the kg of tomato's and add capsicum or can I just add that in aswell?
Laura says
I wouldn't add capsicum, they will mess with the acidity of the sauce and may make it unsafe for canning. Best to look up a recipe that does use capsicum or add the capsicum and then freeze the sauce instead!
Leanne Williams says
Hi can I roast this recipe to remove skins and add some balsamic vinegar to it ?
Laura says
Hi there, you sure can! Sounds yummy!
Jan S says
the best pasta sauce ever the whole family love it
Kristy says
Hi Laura, how long are you able to keep the sauce in the pantry for before opening? Thanks!
Laura says
As long as the jar sealed properly, it will keep almost indefinitely, but the quality will start to deteriorate over time. I work on using them within 1-2 years
Lisa says
Is it possible to use quarts instead of pints and if so what is the cook time for quarts?
Laura says
You sure can, process them for 40 minutes!
Colleen says
why do you add the citric acid to the jar and then put the sauce in it
Laura says
The citric acid is what adjusts the pH level of the sauce to make it safe for water bath canning - putting the citric acid in each jar ensures that each jar has the correct level of acidity
Sophie says
Is it okay to stir it all together or does the citric acid need to be at the bottom?
Laura says
You can stir it! Either way is fine
Robyn Skerten says
Hi Laura, I know canning is more sterile, but I wonder if you have tried using previous store bought pasta sauce jars and metal lids? I could add some cider vinegar and a little sugar. Thank you, Robyn
Laura says
Hi Robyn. You can still water bath using old pasta sauce jars and lids as long as the lids are in good condition! I would not recommend using the overflow method for this sauce as it's too low in acidity to be sure it's safe at room temperature
Amber Brooks says
Hi there I have a batch of pasta sauce on the oven in one of the comments it says you can use a normal pan for canning how do you do this? Thank you!
Laura says
Hi Amber, yes you can use a large stockpot to waterbath, if you read this post, it will take you through the process - https://www.thekiwicountrygirl.com/beginners-guide-to-water-bath-canning-bottling/
Tammy says
I don't have a water bath is it just as easy to make sauce and freeze it?
Laura says
It sure is! I've done this a lot too!
Danika says
How come salt is listed but then not mentioned in the recipe? Thank you!
Laura says
That is a great question and it's because I forgot to put it in the instructions! Thanks for pointing that out! I've amended the recipe card now, I add the salt with the basil after I have run the tomatoes through the food mill!
Maria says
Good recipe ... I always oven bake quartered tomatoes with de-skinned red capsicum, garlic, olive oil & seasoning ... this method really brings out the sweetness in the tomatoes.
Angie says
Hi, our family have always made tomato relish and put into hot jam jars with pop lids that reseal. It does have a lot of sugar and vinegar in it though. Is that what makes the difference where relish can be kept this way, but a sauce as per your recipe can't be?
Cheers, Angie
Laura says
Hi Angie, that's exactly it! The sugar and vinegar helps preserve things like relishes it without the need for water bathing (although I still water bath everything now, just for that extra peace of mind!
Cassy says
Hi, my Tomatoes are ripening slowly and sporadically, can I freeze them whole in say 2kg lots until I've enough to make this recipe, or will the consistency be affected by using defrosted tomatoes?
Laura says
Hi Cassy, you can absolutely do this!
Lucy says
Hi there,
I'm wanting to make a pasta sauce using my yellow cherry tomatoes but in much smaller quantities than this, more like 1kg toms, does the amount of onion and garlic make a bit difference if preserving? Also what about the basil? Alternative is that I just add basil to the tomatoes and process as a passata and preserve if basil won't affect acidity etc for preserving.... Hope that makes sense! Thanks
Laura says
Hi Lucy, yes you would need to reduce the amount of onions/garlic to keep the same ratio of tomatoes:onions/garlic however basil won't matter, you can add as much or as little of that as you like as that won't affect the acidity!
Helen says
If I want to freeze the sauce, does the recipe still require the citric acid/lemon juice?
Laura says
Hi Helen, no you can leave that out if you are freezing it!
Marion says
Can I just add to mixture to hot jars and seal them with the bands? I don't have a canner like yours.
Laura says
Hi Marion, not with tomatoes, they are a bit tricky when it comes to preserving. Any large stockpot will work but if you don't have anything suitable, you can freeze this sauce too.
Andoria Watherston says
I always make my pasta sauce (as per your recipe no lemon juice and put into j clean hot jars and seal). My tomato sauce is also just put in same clean hot jars. Never a problem.