Green Tomato Sauce

The flavor of the sauce is tangy but the herbs help to mellow the result.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 1 d 2 hrs
Total Time 1 d 2 hrs 10 mins
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Servings 40

Ingredients
  

  • 5 lbs green tomatoes (not tomatillos)
  • 1 T. dried basil
  • 1/2 t. granulated garlic
  • 1 t. salt
  • pepper

Instructions
 

Preparation:

  • Prepare 4  pint jars, lids, and rings. Sterilize the jars and keep them in the hot water till it’s time for processing. Make sure to fill your water bath canner and get the water to a simmer. Peel and core the green tomatoes.

Cooking:

  • In a large stainless steel or enameled dutch oven cook the green tomatoes(i didn't even cut them up) with 1 cup of water slowly for 45 minutes using medium heat, stirring occassionally.
  • Once the tomatoes break down you will transfer the tomatoes to a blender or using an immersion blender pulse the tomatoes until smooth.
  • At this point you can run the tomatoes through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds. (I choose to leave them). Now add your herbs and spices and stir them into the pot bringing the sauce to a boil for 5 minutes,stirring frequently. Remove from heat.

Filling the jars: 

  • On a dishtowel place your hot jars and using your funnel in each jar fill  leaving  1/2”  headspace.
  • To each jar add 1/4 t. of citric acid or 1 T. bottled lemon juice. (I used citric acid for this recipe as to not add more tartness).
  • Taking a clean papertowel wet it with warm water and wipe the rims of the jars removing any food particles that would interfere with a good seal.
  • Using your magic wand extract the lids from the hot water and place them on the now cleaned rims. Add your rings to the tops of each of the jars and turn to seal just "finger tight".

Processing:

  • Make sure your rack is on the bottom of the canner and place the jars in the water bath making sure that the water covers each of the jars by 1 to 2 inches. Add hot water to the canner if it doesn't measure up.
  • Cover the pot and turn up the heat under the canner and wait for the water to start boiling. Once the water has come to a boil start your timer for 35 minutes.
  • When complete turn off the heat and remove the cover and let the jars sit for another few minutes.
  • Remove the jars and place them back on the dishtowel in a place that they will sit overnight to cool. Do not touch or move them till the next morning.

Sealing:

  • Sometime in the next hour your jars will be making a "pinging" or "popping" noise. That is the glass cooling and the reaction of the lids being sucked into the jar for proper sealing. Some recipes may take overnight to seal. Check your lids and reprocess any jars that did not seal.
Keyword Green Tomato Sauce