Tomatoes are starting to flood into the kitchen…FINALLY! But, now what do you do with all these fresh tomatoes? Luckily I found this easy homemade ketchup recipe that is a perfect way to use up garden tomatoes.
Last year I was swimming in tomatoes. Not from my own garden, but from many of my neighbors gardens!
My tomatoes last year didn’t yield a whole lot. However, God always provides and within a weeks period I had multiple neighbors pull in and offer me tomatoes.
What are the best ways to use up fresh garden tomatoes?
My rule of thumb is…. never turn down tomatoes! You can make so many tomato products to enjoy all year long when tomatoes aren’t growing. Some of the things we always have on our shelf are:
- salsa
- marinara sauce
- pizza sauce
- tomato paste
- ketchup
- BBQ sauce
If nothing else, stick them in your freezer to make into sauce or something later.
Making your own homemade ketchup is easy.
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By the time the last neighbor had pulled in asking if I wanted bags of tomatoes, I had already gotten plenty of jars of marinara sauce, pizza sauce, salsa and homemade tomato paste. I was thinking…. what else can I make?
That’s when I was searching a new cookbook I had gotten, Naturally Sweet Food in Jars, and found an easy homemade ketchup recipe.
It uses simple ingredients, which is what I look for in a recipe. We don’t like to do much sugar, so I was thrilled when the sweetener in this recipe wasn’t cane sugar. It calls for maple syrup.
My family loves this ketchup better then the store-bought version because they say the taste is like a cross between ketchup and BBQ sauce. Even little kids approve of it!
This great recipe has it’s own tangy flavor… perfect for cheeseburgers and homemade French fries or even on hot dogs!
Making a homemade version of our favorite condiments, that uses basic ingredients, is a perfect way to use up garden produce. No more heading to the grocery store when you are out of condiments!
What equipment will you need to can delicious homemade ketchup?
I love to make things in the kitchen with little effort. If I don’t have to peel, core, or run tomatoes through a food mill I definitely won’t.
However, for this ketchup recipe the best way to get a smooth ketchup is by using a food mill. You will just get the smoothest product and when it comes to ketchup, we like it to be smooth.
I love my Victorio Strainer that I purchased on Amazon years ago. It easily attaches to a table or countertop and does a fantastic job removing all the seeds and skins and leaving you with just the pulp and juice.
I also sometimes use this food mill that I also bought on Amazon. This one doesn’t make as much of a mess but it doesn’t do as well of a job leaving you with all the pulp and juice. It does remove the seeds and skins well, but I feel like it wastes a lot of the good pulp.
You will also need a water bath canner and basic canning supplies. I bought both of these on Amazon when I first got started canning years ago for very inexpensive.
The perfect recipe to can and get on your shelf to use all year long.
The best part is this is a canning approved recipe! This means you can safely water bath can it and enjoy this delicious ketchup all year long.
Now I know there are plenty of canning rebels out there that don’t care about only following canning approved recipes, I am one of them…. but for everyone who is concerned, you can rest assured that this one is approved!
This easy ketchup recipe makes approximately 6 half pint jars. I find that half pint jars are the perfect size because they will fill a little squeeze bottle when you are ready. It’s the perfect amount to have in your fridge, but not too much that it goes bad before you can use it.
Main Ingredients:
- 8lbs tomatoes
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 cups apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup bottled lemon juice
- 1 TBSP salt
- 1 tsp celery seeds
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp whole cloves
- 1 tsp yellow mustard seeds
- 1 tsp whole all spice
- 1 cinnamon stick, crushed
How to Can Homemade Tomato Ketchup:
I like to use fresh Roma tomatoes from the garden for this recipe, however you can use any tomatoes you have! Wash and chop your tomatoes, make sure to remove any stems. Add your tomatoes, onion, and bell pepper to a pot. Bring to a boil and cook for about 30 minutes or until entirely soft.
Once your tomatoes, onion, and bell pepper are soft use a food mill to remove all the seeds and skins. Place your tomato puree into your large pot and discard the seeds and skins. Feed your seeds and skins to your chickens as a nice treat!
Add the vinegar, maple syrup, lemon juice, salt, celery seed, and cayenne to the pot. Using a piece of cheese clothe or tea bag, bundle all the remaining spices and place them in the pot.
Simmer everything over medium heat, stirring regularly, until the mixture has reduced by half and is thick. This can take anywhere from 1-3 hours. We like our ketchup on the thicker side, so ours takes about 3 hours or even a touch longer.
When you ketchup is at the right consistency you are ready to can it!
Wash all your jars, lids, and rings in warm soapy water. Fill your canner and turn it on to heat up. Place clean jars in the canner to stay warm while ketchup is finishing up.
Remove each jar from the canner. Using a wide mouth funnel, fill each jar with the hot homemade ketchup leaving a 1/2″ headspace.
Using the back of a wooden spoon or canning wand, stick it in each jar to remove any air bubbles. Wipe rims of jars with a clean dish towel, make sure they are completely clean.
Add the lids and rings to each jar and tighten finger tip tight.
Place jars in the hot canner. Make sure the jars are completely submerged in water with about 1-2″ of water above each jar.
Put your lid on, bring canner up to a rolling boil, and process jars for 10 minutes, adjust for elevation. Make sure that you are not starting your timer until your water is back to a rolling boil.
Once your timer has gone off, turn stove off, remove lid, and give the jars a minute to adjust to the temperature.
Carefully remove each jar and place on a clean dish towel. Leave jars on your counter, undisturbed, for 12-24 hours. I usually leave them sitting over night.
Once cool, check each jar to ensure they properly sealed and remove your rings. Wipe each jar clean and label with the contents and year. They are ready to add to your shelf!
The next time a neighbor pulls in to give you tomatoes or you are about to give tomatoes away because you just have so many, don’t forget about making your own homemade ketchup recipe! It won’t disappoint!
Easy Homemade Ketchup Recipe: with canning instructions
Equipment
- 1 Food Mill
- 1 Water Bath Canner
Materials
- 8 lbs chopped tomatoes
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 cups appl cider vinegar
- 1 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup bottled lemon juice
- 1 TBSP salt
- 1 tsp celery seeds
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp whole cloves
- 1 tsp yellow mustard seeds
- 1 tsp allspice
- 1 cinnamon stick, crushed
Instructions
- Combine tomatoes, onion, and pepper into a pot. Bring to a boil and cook for 30 minutes or until completely soft.
- Once soft, run everything through a food mill to remove the seeds and skins. Once the tomato pulp is separated from the seeds and skins, add back to the pot.
- Add in vinegar, maple syrup, lemon juice, salt, celery seeds, and cayenne pepper to your pot.
- Using a piece of cheese cloth or tea bag, bundle all other spices together and add to the pot.
- Bring everything up to a simmer and cook until it is reduced by half. This will take anywhere from 1-3 hours. We like our ketchup thicker, so ours takes about 3 hours.
- When your ketchup is almost to your desired consistency, fill your canner with water and turn it on. Wash 6 half pint jars with lids and rings in warm soapy water.
- Place clean jars in the canner to stay warm while your ketchup is finishing cooking.
- Once your ketchup is at it's desired consistency, remove each jar from the canner. Using a wide mouth funnel, fill each jar with hot ketchup leaving a 1/2" headspace.
- Stick the back of a spoon or canning wand in each jar a few times to remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims completely clean with a clean wet dish towel.
- Add your rings and lids on tightening finger tip tight.
- Place the jars into the canner. Make sure the jars are completely submerged in water with about 1-2" of water above each jar.
- Place lid on and bring back to a rolling boil. Once water is boiling process your jars for 10 minutes, adjusting for your elevation.
- When the timer has gone off, turn stove off and remove lid.
- Remove each jar carefully and place on a clean dish towel. Leave there undisturbed for 12-24 hours. I usually leave them overnight.
- After they are cool, check each jar to ensure they sealed and remove the rings. Wipe each jar with a clean towel. Label the lids with the contents and the year. You are ready to store on the shelf all year long!
Wondering how many pibts this makes…
I put it in half pints and it made about 10. So I would imagine about 5 pints!
This is a really easy way to do it. It’s my first time ever thank you
You are welcome! We truly love it over here!
I would love to try this. Is it possible to use the dried spices instead of the whole pickling spices? Hate to buy them for one thing but I have it all in dried and powdered. Thank you Honey!
I have never tried it but I would imagine it is safe! I’m not sure how to guide you into the measurements though. You wouldn’t want to use the same measurements with the dried vs the whole spices.
How long is it good in the refrigerator once you open a jar?
I have kept mine in the fridge for up to 6 months or longer. I have not had a problem with it going back.