Tomato Conserva
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Author Notes: An oven-roasted, highly flavorful tomato concentrate, it trumps any store-bought tomato paste you've ever tasted. This is adapted from Molly Watson's blog The Dinner Files. She adapted her recipe from Paul Bertolli's book, Cooking by Hand. - Marisa
Makes 1-2 pints
- 10 pounds tomatoes
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- Chop tomatoes into quarters. Combine them in a large pan with 1/4 cup olive oil and bring to a simmer. Cook until they are soft and the peels begin to detach from the tomato flesh.
- Push warm tomatoes through a food mill, sieve or chinois, so that you separate the tomato pulp from the seeds and skins.
- Divide the tomato pulp between two large, rimmed baking sheets (I used two half sheet pans).
- Place baking sheets in the oven and bake at 350° F. Check tomatoes every half hour, stirring the paste and switching the position of the baking sheets so that they reduce evenly.
- Over time, the conserva will start to reduce to the point where it doesn’t fill the baking sheet any more. At this point, I combine the contents of the two pans into and continue to bake.
- When the conserva is shiny, brick-colored and has reduced by more than half, it is done. There shouldn’t be any remaining water or moisture separating from the paste at this point.
- Scrape finished conserva into clean half or quarter pint jars. Top with a layer of olive oil and place in either the refrigerator or the freezer. As long as you keep it well-covered with olive oil and ensure that you only use a very clean spoon to remove it from the jar, it will keep in the fridge for a month or so. Frozen, it will keep for up to nine months.
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8 months ago AmandaO
I made this tonight. I used the larger disk on my Rosle food mill (0.3 cm). It excluded the skins nicely, but much of the seeds passed through. The conserva tastes great; I don't think the seeds in the end product lent too much bitterness. Next time I might try the 0.1 cm disk, though.
Out of 10 pounds of tomatoes (mixed romas, plums, and grapes from my garden), I ended up with 1.75 pints. It took about 3.5 hours to cook down.
I added the salt with the olive oil in the first step.
8 months ago lindycindy
I noticed you used aluminum pans to reduce the tomatoes. Did you have any problems with the acid in the tomatoes interacting with the metal?
8 months ago Chef Lynchini
Can this be "canned" in jars using the hot water boil method ?
8 months ago vivbest
Is there something that you would recommend to do with the seeds and skins? I hate to waste food!
8 months ago Hibatt
Compost them. They will grow great plants next season ;)
8 months ago AmandaO
Out of 10 pounds of tomatoes, I ended up with less than a cup of skins/seeds after it goes through the mill. I think you'd have more waste if you cored and sliced them!