How to Can Homemade Tomato Sauce

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Learn how to make and can homemade tomato sauce for the pantry.

Prep Time5

Cook Time20

Making the Sauce15

Total Time40

Course: canning recipe

Cuisine: American

Servings: pint jars

Cost: 12

Wash your tomatoes (if needed) and weigh the fruit, placing it in a large pot.
Fresh Tomatoes: slice the fruit in half or squeeze to break skin and quickly release juices.
Frozen Tomatoes: toss whole frozen tomatoes directly into your stock pot; they won't burn on account of the liquids they immediately release.
Cook tomatoes for 20 minutes or until mushy throughout.
Add onions, herbs and spices, cooking for another 10 minutes.
Let tomatoes cool until they're safe to handle.
You can use a food mill or a strong kitchen blender to make sauce.
If you want thicker sauce, cook the tomatoes down again until you're happy with the consistency.
Preserve hot tomato sauce in a pressure canner or boiling water bath canner.

Pr-warm jars by running hot water into them.
Measure salt and acidifying substance into your jar, according to jar size.
Use a funnel and ladle to fill your canning jars with hot tomato sauce, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace (open space) at the top.
Wipe the rim of your jar and add a canning lid and band, tightening to fingertip tightness.
Set each filled jar in the canner, until it's full.
Process according to your altitude, jar size and canner type.

After filling your canner, add a lid, and turn stove heat to high.
When the water boils, start your timer and process according to jar size and altitude.
Pint Jars
0-1,000 ft in altitude: 35 min
1,001-3,000 ft: 40 min
3,001-6,000 ft: 45 min
Quart Jars:
0-1,000 ft in altitude: 40 min
1,001-3,000 ft: 45 min
3,001-6,000: 50 min
Lift hot jars onto a cooling rack and let them sit for 12 hours. Test each one for a seal and refrigerate any that didn't take. Sealed jars are shelf stable and can be stored in your pantry.

Fill and seal your jars with tomato sauce according to directions given above.
Fill canner with lidded jars of sauce and seal the lid, making sure the vent is open.
Turn heat to high and let things warm until a steady stream of steam is escaping from the vent.
Set your timer for 10 minutes, and allow all air to be forced out of the canner.
Close the vent (or add a weight) and let pressure build to the proper PSI for your altitude and canner type (dial gauge or weighted gauge).

Pint Jars: 15 min
0-2,000 ft elevation: 6 pounds pressure.
2,001-4,000 ft: 7 pounds pressure
4,001-6,000: 8 pounds pressure
Quart Jars: 15 min
0-2,000 ft: 11 pounds pressure
2,001-4,000: 12 pounds pressure
4,001-6,000: 13 pounds pressure

Pint Jars: 15 min
0-1,000 ft elevation: 5 pounds pressure.
Over 1,001 ft: 10 pounds pressure
Quart Jars: 15 min
0-1,000 ft: 10 pounds pressure
Over 1,001: 15 pounds pressure
When the right poundage has been reached for your canner type, set the timer (hint: it's 15 minutes for ALL jar sizes!).
Process the jars, adjusting heat as needed.
When jars have been processed for the proper time, turn the oven burner off and let your canner sit undisturbed, until pounds of pressure return to 0 on the canner's dial.
Carefully open the vent (or lift the weight, if had), remove the lid and lift hot jars to a cooling rack.
Let hot jars cool for 12 hours before testing for a seal.
Sealed jars are shelf stable and can be stored in your pantry. Jars that didn't seal should be refrigerated and used in 7-10 days.

Options for acidifying your tomato sauce

Bottled Lemon Juice

5% White Vinegar

Citric Acid

Salt per Jar

Pint jar: 1/2 teaspoon

Quart jar: 1 teaspoon