Tomatoes may be frozen raw or cooked, whole, sliced, chopped, or puréed. Tomatoes do not need to be blanched before freezing. Frozen tomatoes are best used in cooked foods such as soups, sauces and stews as they become mushy when they're thawed.
Dip wholes tomatoes in boiling water for 30 seconds to loosen skins. Core and peel. Freeze whole or in pieces. Pack into containers, leaving 1-inch headspace.
You can freeze all different types of tomatoes, from petite cherry tomatoes to meaty beefsteaks and pretty heirlooms. But before you freeze them, make sure the tomatoes are fully ripe so that they taste their very best. There are several ways to freeze tomatoes, but the easiest is freezing them whole.
Store in the freezer for up to one year. To use the tomatoes, simply pull out as many as you need at a time and thaw them or put them frozen into your soup pot or crock pot. Use frozen whole tomatoes just like canned whole tomatoes in your recipes.
Seriously you just remove the core, slice, freeze and then place in a freezer bag. DONE! If you've been taking advantage of the sale of the dwindling tomatoes crop this time of year, then try freezing a few batches and let me know how you like them. They will keep in the freezer for 6-9 months.
Frozen tomatoes hold their flavor fairly well. “Thaw and dump” pint or quart-sized portions conveniently found in the freezer section of your very own kitchen hold a lot of appeal and will add a bit of summer to those cool weather comfort foods.
Tomatoes can be preserved by canning, drying, freezing, or pickling. They can also be used in creating fruit spreads like jams, jellies and marmalades. Raw tomatoes or raw tomato products can be kept refrigerated (below 40 degrees Fahrenheit), but will spoil over time due to bacteria, yeasts, and molds.
Slip skins off. Place in food processor or blender container. Pulse until crushed to desired consistency. Freeze at least 12 months.
Frozen tomatoes lose their texture once they are thawed, so they are best used in recipes that don't require them to be in their original state — like marinara sauce. Once your frozen tomatoes are cooked down, they are a great treat during the winter months.
As glass jars became more widely available, however, Italians began preserving their tomatoes by filling jars with their homegrown produce and submerging them in boiling water for sterilization. This process, known as “bain-marie,” is still used today.
Tomatoes can be frozen raw or blanched first. Freeze tomatoes by washing them, scoring them, and blanching them in boiling water. Place the tomatoes on a cookie sheet in the freezer until completely frozen—typically a few hours.
Freezing Raw Whole Tomatoes
Arrange the whole tomatoes on a parchment paper-lined baking tray (no need to peel them first!). Make sure the tomatoes are not touching each other. Place the tomatoes in the freezer for 1 to 2 hours. Once frozen, transfer the tomatoes to a freezer bag or vacuum seal bag.
Tomato Puree is simply blanched or cooked tomatoes that are blended to a fine consistency and later strained with or without the addition of salt. If you have an excess of tomatoes and don't know what to do, my easy suggestion is to purée them and freeze them in ice cube trays.
Tomatoes contain a large amount of malic acid and citric acid, which will trigger gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). In addition, eating too many tomatoes can also cause other gastrointestinal problems such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
Tomatoes may be frozen raw or cooked, whole, sliced, chopped, or puréed. Tomatoes do not need to be blanched before freezing. Frozen tomatoes are best used in cooked foods such as soups, sauces and stews as they become mushy when they're thawed.
Frozen tomatoes become soft after thawing so you wouldn't be able to use them raw, such as in a BLT sandwich. For cooking though, they are perfectly fine. In fact, freezing tomatoes for sauce is ideal when it's tomato season yet you don't have time to make sauce until after the summer harvest rush.
To sum it up, canned tomatoes don't taste like fresh tomatoes, but at least they taste like cooked tomatoes. Frozen then thawed tomatoes don't taste neither like fresh, nor like cooked. They are just not that good to eat. Frozen tomatoes will lose all their structure, so are only of use for cooking.
Blanching is a heat-and-cool process. It stops or slows natural enzymes in the tomatoes that could cause a loss of flavor and color. Blanch tomatoes before freezing if they'll be in your freezer for more than a couple of months. Blanching your tomatoes also makes easy work of peeling them.
If the tomatoes are not yet ripe, they are best stored on the counter for a few days until they ripen. (You'll know they're ripe when they're fragrant and give a little bit to the touch.) Once they're ripe, either consume them or go ahead and put them in the refrigerator to preserve their freshness.
Toss tomatoes in a freezer bag and put in freezer. When ready to use, preheat oven to 400 and partially thaw tomatoes. Toss partially thawed tomatoes with olive oil, basil, salt and pepper. Put on a cookie sheet and roast for about 40 minutes.