Tomato Preserves for Winter: 22 Tested Recipes, from Pickled to Sun-Dried
Tomato season is short, and you want a lot of jars: classic pickled ones, green tomatoes, and a sauce for meat. This roundup collects 22 tested tomato preserves for winter from our site: pickled whole tomatoes and tomatoes in their own juice, green tomatoes seven ways, juice, paste, khrenovina and sun-dried tomatoes. Every recipe comes with step-by-step photos, exact time and yield. The table below will help you pick where to start.
In short: ripe tomatoes are pickled whole or canned in their own juice, green ones go into salads, caviar and fermenting, and the surplus harvest turns into juice, paste and horseradish sauce. The fastest recipe of this roundup: pickled tomatoes, 30 minutes for a three-liter jar. The most unexpected: cherry tomato jam.
All 22 recipes: the table
| Recipe | Time | Yield | Why try it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pickled tomatoes (the classic) | 30 min | 1 jar, 3 L | quick classic, a three-liter jar at once |
| Tomatoes with horseradish and garlic | 30 min | 4 jars, 1 L | robust flavor, big yield |
| Tomatoes "in the snow" with garlic | 40 min + 10 h | 1 jar, 1.5 L | garlic "snow", a showpiece jar |
| Tomato slices with onion and oil | 30 min | 2 jars, 0.5 L | ready-to-eat appetizer, no sterilization |
| Tomatoes with carrot tops | 60 min + 12 h | 2 jars, 1 L | the lightest: 14 kcal, unusual marinade |
| Cucumber and tomato assortment | 50 min | 1 jar, 1 L | two vegetables in one jar |
| Tomatoes in their own juice | 40 min | 1 jar, 1 L | plum tomatoes in tomato juice, no sterilization |
| Pickled green tomatoes | 90 min | 2 jars, 3 L | autumn harvest put to work, 6 liters |
| Green tomatoes with garlic, in slices | 40 min | 3 jars, 1 L | the fastest of the green ones |
| Georgian-style green tomatoes | 60 min | 2 jars | aromatic Georgian classic |
| Korean-style green tomatoes | 85 min | 2 jars, 1 L | with carrots and spices |
| Green tomato salad | 50 min | 3 jars | no sterilization |
| Green tomato caviar | 90 min | 2 jars | a rare recipe, no sterilization |
| Fermented green tomatoes | 3 weeks | - | barrel-style fermentation |
| Tomato juice | 60 min | 1.25 L | a drink and a base for soups |
| Homemade tomato paste | 25 h | - | thick slow-cooked concentrate |
| Gorloder with garlic | 120 min | 0.5 L + 70 g | spicy sauce for meat and dumplings |
| Adjika with apples | 90 min | 2 jars | fiery, with a fruity note |
| Khrenovina (horseradish sauce) | 30 min + 20 min | about 0.8 L | a full guide: ratios and how to keep it from souring |
| Sun-dried tomatoes in the oven | 160 min | 1 jar, 500 ml | Mediterranean classic |
| Sun-dried tomatoes in a dehydrator | 24 h | 1 jar, 0.5 L | the dehydrator does the work |
| Cherry tomato jam | 45 min + 16 h | 180 ml | whole little tomatoes in syrup |
Pickled and whole tomatoes
Whole tomatoes in a jar are the main tomato genre: marinade makes them sweet and sour, and their own juice keeps the taste of summer. Seven ways, from the classic to the "snowy" jar.
Pickled tomatoes (the classic)
Whole tomatoes in a sweet-and-sour marinade, a three-liter jar at once. Only 30 minutes of active work, light: 23 kcal. The base recipe to start your tomato canning with.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Tomatoes with horseradish and garlic
A robust version: horseradish and garlic give it a strong flavor and aroma. 30 minutes gets you four one-liter jars, 26 kcal per 100 g.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Tomatoes "in the snow" with garlic
A showpiece preserve: chopped garlic settles in the jar like snowflakes. 40 minutes of work and 10 hours of slow cooling, yields a 1.5-liter jar.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Tomato slices with onion and oil
A ready-to-serve appetizer of tomato slices with onion and oil, no sterilization of the filled jars. 30 minutes, two half-liter jars. The most filling among the pickled ones: 74 kcal.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Tomatoes with carrot tops
An unusual marinade based on carrot tops. An hour of work plus 12 hours of cooling, two one-liter jars. The lightest preserve of this roundup: just 14 kcal.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Cucumber and tomato assortment
Cucumbers and tomatoes in a single one-liter jar: handy when you want both. 50 minutes of work, 30 kcal.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Tomatoes in their own juice
Plum tomatoes covered with tomato juice, no sterilization of the filled jars. 40 minutes for a one-liter jar. In winter it doubles as an appetizer and a ready-made tomato base for sauces.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Green tomatoes
An unripened harvest is not a loss but a cuisine of its own: green tomatoes are firmer than ripe ones and keep their shape in any recipe.
Pickled green tomatoes
A fix for the harvest that never turned red: two three-liter jars at once. An hour and a half of work, 55 kcal.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Green tomatoes with garlic, in slices
The fastest green option: 40 minutes, and three one-liter jars of garlicky slices are ready for sealing.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Georgian-style green tomatoes
An aromatic Georgian classic made of green tomatoes. An hour of work, two jars.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Korean-style green tomatoes
Green tomatoes with carrots and Korean spices. 85 minutes, two one-liter jars, 93 kcal.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Green tomato salad
A ready-to-eat salad, no sterilization of the filled jars: 50 minutes, three jars, 79 kcal.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Green tomato caviar
Green tomato caviar: everyone makes the zucchini kind, few have tried this one. An hour and a half, two jars, no sterilization.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Fermented green tomatoes
Barrel-style fermentation: 3 weeks of patience, but only 16 kcal and a signature tang. Store in the fridge or a cellar.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Sauces, juice and paste
When you have enough jars of whole tomatoes, the rest of the harvest gets turned into juice, paste and spicy sauces.
Tomato juice
Homemade tomato juice: an hour of work, 1.25 liters. In winter it works as a drink and as a base for borscht and sauces.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Homemade tomato paste
Slow reduction makes a genuinely thick concentrate: the cycle takes 25 hours, but the paste cooks on its own most of that time. 80 kcal.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Gorloder with garlic
A spicy tomato and garlic sauce. 2 hours of work, yields a half-liter jar plus a little extra. Serve with meat, dumplings and borscht.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Adjika with apples
A fiery adjika where apples soften the heat and add a fruity note. An hour and a half, two jars.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Khrenovina (horseradish sauce)
A full guide: exact ratios of tomatoes, horseradish and garlic, and the main secret of keeping this sauce from souring. Half an hour of active work, yields about 0.8 liters.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Sun-dried tomatoes and one surprise
A finale for gourmets: sun-dried tomatoes in oil and cherry tomato jam that will surprise anyone.
Sun-dried tomatoes in the oven
The Mediterranean classic in a regular oven: 2 hours 40 minutes, and a 500 ml jar of sun-dried tomatoes in oil is ready. The highest-calorie recipe in this roundup: 256 kcal, but also the most concentrated in flavor.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Sun-dried tomatoes in a dehydrator
The same flavor with gentle drying: the dehydrator runs for a day on its own. A half-liter jar, 64 kcal.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
Cherry tomato jam
A surprise dessert: whole cherry tomatoes in syrup look like candied fruit. 45 minutes of cooking and 16 hours of resting, a 180 ml jar.
Step-by-step recipe with photos: open.
How to choose tomatoes for preserving
- For whole-tomato canning pick firm, smallish tomatoes with sturdy skin, plum varieties: they do not fall apart in the jar.
- For juice and paste it is the opposite: the ripest, meatiest tomatoes work best, even slightly bruised ones.
- Pick green tomatoes at the mature green stage, when they start to lighten; fully dark green ones can taste bitter.
- Cherry tomatoes for jam must be whole, with firm skin and no cracks.
- Prick whole tomatoes near the stem with a toothpick so the skin does not burst from the hot brine.
Common mistakes
- Canning overripe soft tomatoes whole: they turn to mush in the jar.
- Using iodized salt: it can add an off flavor and cloudiness; use plain non-iodized coarse salt (pickling salt).
- Cutting down the vinegar or citric acid by eye: acidity is what keeps the preserve safe.
- Skipping the hot brine or sterilization step of a recipe: the jar may not make it to winter.
- Storing sun-dried tomatoes in oil at room temperature: that jar belongs in the fridge only.
- Cutting vegetables larger than the recipe says: the marinade won't penetrate them in the time the recipe allows.
See also
❓ Frequently asked questions
Which tomatoes are best for whole-tomato canning?
Firm, smallish tomatoes with sturdy skin, ideally plum varieties: they fit through the jar neck and do not burst. Leave large meaty tomatoes for juice, paste and sauces.
Can green tomatoes be preserved?
Yes, a whole section of this roundup is devoted to them: pickling, salad, caviar and fermenting. Pick mature green tomatoes that have started to lighten, and soak fully dark green ones in salted water before cooking.
What is the fastest way to process a big harvest?
Classic pickled tomatoes take 30 minutes for a three-liter jar, and juice turns several kilos into bottles within an hour. Paste and sun-dried tomatoes take longer, but they mostly cook on their own.
What does "no sterilization" mean in the recipes?
The filled jars get no additional heat treatment: hot brine, acidity and properly prepared jars keep the preserve safe. The empty jars and lids still must be sterilized. Detailed guide: how to sterilize jars and lids.
How long do tomato preserves keep?
Store sealed jars in a dark, cool place, roughly until the next season. Keep sun-dried tomatoes in oil, khrenovina and fermented tomatoes in the fridge. Finish an opened jar within 3-4 days.
Why do tomato jars swell?
The usual culprits are too little acid, skipped or shortened heat treatment, or poorly sterilized jars. Stick to the recipe amounts of vinegar and heating times, and discard any jar with a swollen lid without a second thought.
How is gorloder different from khrenovina?
Both are spicy tomato sauces, but gorloder leans on garlic while khrenovina is built on horseradish root. The khrenovina recipe separately explains why it sours and how to prevent that.
Can I freeze tomatoes instead of canning?
Yes, in slices or whole in freezer bags: in winter they go into soups, sauces and pizza. After thawing, the texture is only good for cooking, not salads.
When is tomato preserving season?
Field-grown tomatoes peak in August and September. Green tomatoes are preserved at the end of the season, when it is clear they will not ripen on the vine.