Easy Homemade Tomato Paste Recipe

Conserve excess tomatoes with an easy, homemade tomato paste that can be made on the stovetop, in your oven, or in a slow cooker.

Prep time: PT25M

Cook time: PT240M

Total time: PT265M

Rating

4.67 stars (62 reviews)

tomato paste, tomato sauce

Prep and Blend
- Rinse the tomatoes well, remove the stems, and cut into chunks.
- If you want to add red peppers or other vegetables, now is the time to do it.
- Blend until smooth.
Strain
- To strain out the seeds and skin, place a mesh strainer or food mill over a large pot on the stove (or over the crock of a slow cooker pot). Pour the tomato sauce into the strainer. Use a spoon or a spatula to press the tomato sauce through the strainer into the pot below.
- Repeat with the remaining tomatoes.
Stovetop
- Simmer over low heat, stirring often as it thickens. Reduce heat near the end to prevent burning.
Slow cooker
- Cook on Low with the lid off, stirring occasionally, until thick and rich.
In the oven
- Spread on a rimmed baking sheet and bake at 200–225°F (90–110°C). Stir every so often until it reaches the desired consistency.
Store or Freeze
- Transfer the paste to clean jars or freeze in ice cube trays. Once frozen, move cubes to freezer bags for long-term storage.

Cherie on 2023-09-01 (5 stars):
I made this last night after work. I put my tomatoes in my Blendtec blender and hit the juicer button. I didn't need to cut them unless they were a little too big to go in whole. Then strained that through a fine sieve. Worked beautifully! I cooked them on my stove. When it was done, I took my mini cupcake tin and put a tablespoon of the paste in each cup and froze them. Tonight I will be wrapping each one up. Thank you for the inspiration!
Donatella Bennett on 2023-08-27 (5 stars):
Making it now ! Looks great so far. I am not sure, when you would add the olive oil if you wanted to add it ?
Cherime MacFarlane on 2023-08-23 (5 stars):
So far so good. It is thickening up after 9 hours in the slow cooker. As to canning tomatoes, that is exactly what I intend to do with the paste when done. I've been canning tomatoes for years. You can do a boiling water bath for 35 minutes but a pressure canner is a better method, 10 minutes at 10 lbs. (I've been using an electric one for a few years now and it works fine.)