Freezing Tomatoes: What You Should Consider

If you have more tomatoes at home than you can handle, freezing is a great solution. However, there are a few things to keep in mind.

Here’s how to properly freeze your tomatoes

If you want to preserve your tomatoes, you have several options. We explain how to do this:

• Whole: If you want to freeze the tomatoes whole, you should first wash them well and then peel off the skin (otherwise the tomatoes could burst). To do this, scratch a small cross on the underside of the tomatoes and blanch them briefly. Then quench them in cold water and the skin comes off easily. Cut out the stalk and the tomatoes are ready for the freezer.
• Diced: Another way to freeze tomatoes is to dice the fruit beforehand. So you don’t have to remove the skin. Wash the tomatoes thoroughly beforehand and cut off the stalk.
• Pureed: You can also boil the tomatoes, puree them, and season to your taste before freezing them. So you have a ready-made tomato sauce straight out of the freezer. For tomato sauces made from fresh tomatoes, it is also advisable to peel the fruit beforehand. This method is the best way for the tomatoes to retain their aroma.

The use of frozen tomatoes

The water in the tomatoes expands with the cold. That affects the taste.

• After freezing, the tomatoes are no longer as aromatic and usually mushy. Therefore, they are no longer suitable for raw consumption.
• However, you can use the frozen fruit for cooking, for example for sauces, soups or stir-fried vegetables.
• To freeze tomatoes, freezer bags, plastic cans, or mason jars are suitable. With whole tomatoes, it’s a good idea to freeze them on a baking sheet first and then put them in a container.
• The frozen fruit will keep for about a year. You can also freeze dried tomatoes.