Learn how to make and can a delicious and simple homemade tomato sauce! Canning tomatoes is a perfect way to use all of those garden tomatoes.

With five tomato plants growing in our garden this year we knew we were going to have a lot of tomatoes come late summer. While we try and eat as much of the fresh produce as we can, there is still a lot of extras that we don't want to go bad. So, we decided we were going to make them all into homemade tomato sauce and can it. There are a lot of different ways to preserve tomatoes, but I use tomato sauce a lot in recipes during the winter so it is the perfect thing for me to have on hand.

While my husband and I have experience with canning pickled jalapenos, we have never canned tomatoes. So, we were sure to do our research and make sure we did it right.

Below I detailed how we turned our fresh picked garden tomatoes into homemade tomato sauce and then canned it. It was a process, but we really enjoyed using some new tools and learning a new canning process! Scroll to the bottom for a printable recipe.

Please be advised: PRESERVE FOOD AT YOUR OWN RISK; BEFORE YOU CAN ANYTHING YOU SHOULD READ USDA RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CANNING AND PRESERVING. Improper canning will not properly preserve food and can lead to food borne illnesses. Check out the USDA's National Center for Home Food Preservation Website and be sure to do your research before preserving any food!

A Couple of Tips...

Keeping everything clean is key! Be prepared to sanitize everything and keep a clean work station. This helps to prevent food-borne illness.
If you are canning the tomato sauce be sure to add the lemon juice to the jars, this is necessary to increase the acidity and prevent any food borne illness.
Be sure you buy canning supplies early! Come August they are very hard to find in stores or online! (I have linked quite a few supplies in this post, but some may not be in stock in late summer.)

Making Homemade Tomato Sauce...

Start with garden fresh tomatoes...

roma tomatoes to be used in the tomato sauce

We started with 10 pounds of garden fresh Roma tomatoes. We love Roma tomatoes for their taste and size. Plus they are great for cooking!

Cut tomatoes into quarters...

Cut the tomatoes into smaller pieces to be able to use the strainer tool and remove the seeds and skin.

Run tomato pieces through strainer tool...

This strainer tool is AMAZING, I highly recommend it! It took so much of the hard work out of peeling and removing the seeds from the tomatoes. You set it up, add the pieces of the tomatoes, and run the crank. The tomato sauce comes out the front and the leftover skin and seeds come out the side.

the strainer tool in use for removing the seeds and skin from the tomatoes

I recommend setting it up outside if you can because it does splatter a little bit.

Strain the tomatoes a second time...

We ran all of the seed and skin excess through the strainer again to get any additional tomato liquid and pulp out. It worked great to get the most sauce out of your tomatoes. The above picture shows all that was left of our 10 pounds of tomatoes after running them through the strainer twice.

Cook down tomato sauce...

Add 1 teaspoon of sea salt to the tomato sauce.

In a large stock pot bring the tomato sauce to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour or until it is the thickness you desire.

Once the sauce is the thickness you want you can store it. While I like to can, if you don't have canning materials you can always freeze tomato sauce in bags or plastic containers. Below I have outlined how we canned our tomato sauce.

Canning Homemade Tomato Sauce...

Sanitize all jars and lids...

Wash all jars and lids with soap and water. Then sanitize them on the stove top. Add jars and lids to boiling water and allow them to boil for at least 10 minutes. Then remove from water and fill.

Add lemon juice and salt to jar...

This is REALLY IMPORTANT for canning tomato sauce. A lot of tomatoes do not have enough acid to prevent any bacteria or microbes from growing when canned. So, to make sure it has a high enough acid content to prevent any problems add a tablespoon of lemon juice to each jar.

Optional- add a 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt in the jar as well to enhance the flavor.

Fill with tomato sauce...

Fill jars with tomato sauce. Be sure to have a towel down to catch any spills. Leave 1/2 inch of space at the top of the jar.

Cap and Water Bath for 40 minutes...

adding pint jars to hot water bath for canning

To water bath can you will need a large stock pot and canning rack along with other canning tools like jar lifters. Be sure that you have a big enough stock pot for the size jars you are going to use.

First bring the water to a rolling boil. Put the jars into the jar holder and carefully lower into the water. Make sure there is at least 1 inch of water covering the jars for the entire time (you may need to add additional boiling water during processing time). Once the water returns to a rolling boil begin timing the 40 minutes and leave the jars fully submerged in the boiling water for the entire time.

Allow to cool for 24 hours...

When the time is up carefully remove the jars from the water bath and allow to sit and cool undisturbed for 24 hours. After taking jars out of water bath the lids will make a pop noise, this means that the lid has properly sealed to the jar. Be sure to listen for all of the jars to pop. If one does not pop that means it probably did not process long enough and is not sealed; once cool place that jar in the refrigerator and enjoy first.

Enjoy Homemade Tomato Sauce...

jar of tomato sauce sitting in the garden

Allow canned goods to rest for about 4-6 weeks before using. It is recommended to consume home canned goods within one year.

Homemade Tomato Sauce

This recipe is so easy for making simple homemade tomato sauce with only three ingredients! Then preserve the sauce by canning to use all year long!

10 lbs tomatoes
4 tsp sea salt ((divided))
6 tbsp lemon juice ((divided))

Making Tomato Sauce

Remove tomato seeds and skins.
Place tomato sauce in large stock pot and add 1 teaspoon of sea salt.
Bring tomato sauce to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 45 minutes or until reduced to the desired thickness.
Store tomato sauce by either freezing in plastic containers or canning.

Canning Tomato Sauce

Place 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt into each mason jar.
Pour cooked tomato sauce into each jar, leaving 1/2 inch of space at the top of every jar.
Place lid on jar.
Hot water bath jars for 40 minutes to process and seal jars.
Remove from hot water bath and allow to cool for 24 hours.
Store in a cool dark place for 4-6 weeks before enjoying.

How to Make and Can Homemade Tomato Sauce

A Couple of Tips...