Canning Cherry Tomatoes: How to Can Cherry Tomatoes

Cherry tomatoes are small, reddish, round or oval-shaped tomatoes. A genetic mix of garden tomatoes and wild currant tomatoes, these smaller fruits can be as tiny as a grape and as large as a golf ball. Juicy and sweet cherry tomatoes come in various colors, from yellow and orange to red and plum. These tomato plants are easy to grow in your garden and can be cultivated for cooking in a pasta sauce with spices and garlic cloves, dicing for salsa with jalapeños and onions, or tossing with olive oil, vinegar, and other vegetables for a light salad.

Can cherry tomatoes using the raw pack method to flavor them with specific ingredients and extend their shelf life. Follow these steps to raw pack your fruits:

1. 1. Purchase fresh tomatoes. If you are not picking cherry tomatoes, it can be challenging to deduce freshness. Avoid mushy, blackened, or blemished tomatoes. Decide on how many you need—usually, twenty-five cherry tomatoes can fit in a pint jar. When you bring your tomatoes home, do not refrigerate them; keep them at room temperature and preserve them within a few days.
2. 2. Wash your cherry tomatoes. Gently rinse your cherry tomatoes in cool water. You can use a colander or hand rinse them. Then, place on a paper towel to dry.
3. 3. Scrub your canning jars, rims, and lids. Run your pint or quart jars through the dishwasher along with their rims and lids, or sterilize in boiling water before hand washing with hot soapy water.
4. 4. Prepare a large pot of boiling water. The large pot will heat the water that you will use to fill your cans. Estimate a cup of water for each pint jar you are filling or one-and-a-half cups for every quart. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer.
5. 5. Prepare a water bath canner. For effective water bath canning, fill in enough water so that your jars will be covered by an inch or two when submerged. Bring the water to a boil and then lower to a simmer.
6. 6. Pack your tomatoes. Once your jars are clean and dry, add your whole cherry tomatoes to the jars, packing in tightly. You can mix red, orange, and yellow cherry tomatoes. Combining different kinds can make for a more varied and colorful jar.
7. 7. Add in lemon juice. A tablespoon of lemon juice for pint jars (two tablespoons for quarts) helps keep the tomatoes fresh and vibrant. You can also add in other ingredients, such as hot pepper flakes, a dash of kosher salt, some pepper, or a garlic clove to flavor your canned goods.
8. 8. Fill with water. Use a ladle to fill your canning jars with the simmering water, leaving an inch headspace at the top. Slowly rub a fork or chopsticks along the inside of the jar to get rid of air bubbles, or tap the jar gently on the kitchen counter. Take your clean lids and cover the hot jars, twisting on the bands until secure.
9. 9. Process the cans. Place your cans in the water bath using tongs. Bring the water back to a boil, then cover with a lid and start your timer. Processing time will vary based on the size of the containers: pints will need forty minutes, and quarts will need forty-five.
10. 10. Remove the jars. After your timer goes off, turn off the canner and remove it from the heat. Let your jars sit in the water for five minutes, and then remove them from the canner using your tongs. Let them dry and rest atop a towel on your counter for twenty-four hours. The next day, make sure the seals are still tight.
11. 11. Store for up to a year. Label your jars with an expiration date—one year from the canning—and keep them in a cool, dry place.

Follow these step-by-step instructions to preserve cherry tomatoes using the hot pack method, which allows you to fit more cherries into each jar:

1. 1. Prepare a water bath canner. Fill your water bath with water and bring to a boil. Then, lower to a simmer.
2. 2. Clean your jars. Dip your jars into the boiling water bath to clean them, deep scrub with soap and hot water, or run the jars and lids through the dishwasher.
3. 3. Boil the cherry tomatoes. Gently rinse your tomatoes, then put them whole in a large skillet. Add water, using a five to one ratio—for every five cups of tomatoes, use one cup of water. Raise the heat and bring to a boil, letting the tomatoes boil in the water for five minutes.
4. 4. Pack the jar. Scoop your tomatoes and the juice into your jars, leaving an inch of headspace. Add a tablespoon of lemon juice and half a teaspoon of salt for pints. For quarts, add two tablespoons of lemon juice and a teaspoon of salt. Gently stir.
5. 5. Remove air bubbles. Use a straw or fork to scrape the sides of the jar to remove pockets of air. Close the jar with a lid and rim, twisting until finger tight.
6. 6. Process your jars. Place your jars into the canner, bring your water bath back to a boil, and then cover the canner. Pints will process for thirty-five minutes and quarts for forty.
7. 7. Let the jars cool. Turn the heat off and remove the canner from the burner when the processing is done. Let the jars sit for five minutes, and then use the jar lifer to remove them from the canner. Set on a hot plate or towel on your counter and let them sit there unopened for a full day.
8. 8. Check the jar seals. The next day, press the center of each lid. There should be no movement, which signifies the can lid has been fully sealed. Store the jars in a pantry where they can keep for a year to eighteen months.

There are several canning recipes for cherry tomatoes to make stews, sauces, and appetizers. Consider the following ways to use canned tomatoes:

1. 1. Stews: You can add cherry tomatoes to various soups and stews. Mix them into a tomato soup, or slice them in half and add them to the solid ingredients of a vegetable soup.
2. 2. Pasta sauce: Canned and then roasted tomatoes can work well in a tomato sauce. Use a mix of cherry tomatoes alongside garlic, canned whole tomatoes, basil, and a combination of spices, heating them together over low heat in a saucepan for a few hours to extract flavors and let the ingredients meld together.
3. 3. Bruschetta: Canning cherry tomatoes lets them soak up acidic flavors (from apple cider vinegar or citric acid) that are key to many Italian bruschetta recipes. Dice your canned cherry tomatoes and mix with other cut ingredients such as basil, red onions, and grape tomatoes alongside olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Toast a sliced baguette, and spoon the bruschetta mixture on top for a snack or appetizer.

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