Presenting a new way of preserving season’s prime ripe tomatoes at their flavorful best!
Quick, Easy, Zero-fuss with no cooking required at all!
As I put the idea into action, I still had some reservations about how successful it would be.
But wow…the tomatoes froze to perfection! In a place like new York, which has such a long hard winter and tomato prices climb sky high, this is an absolute life saving idea! Not to mention the money it will save us!!
In the past, I use to purée, cook and make tomato paste which I would then freeze….a good idea but terribly time consuming and laborious. Reem’s idea is super easy, no effort and works fabulously!! An absolute WINNER!!
Here’s how I did it….took me all of 10 min of prep time! 🙂
Buy firm ripe tomatoes at the peak of their season.
Rinse and wipe them clean.
Quarter the tomatoes into wedges.
Line a flat tray (I used a cookie sheet) with aluminum foil.
Place the quarterd tomatoes in rows, on the lined tray.
Cover tray with plastic wrap.
Place the covered trays in the freezer overnight…
till frozen firm.
Transfer frozen tomato wedges to freezer bags and store in your freezer.
Defrost and use as and when needed!
To use frozen tomatoes for cooking…
These tomatoes defrost beautifully, as you can see the difference between the fresh and thawed ones is almost imperceptible! (The top row is frozen, bottom row is fresh)
To use frozen tomato wedges, run them under water for 5 seconds.
Let them stand for 5 minutes to thaw a little.
Slice, chop n use as needed.
If you like to use your tomatoes without the peel, just pinch off peel with your fingers, it comes off easily! 🙂
Freezing whole tomatoes…
And for smaller varieties like Campari (I like to freeze them for the best tomato soup ever) or Desi tomatoes, you can even freeze them whole!
They freeze into small ping pong balls, with their color and appearance perfectly maintained!! 🙂
Just follow the same process, just don’t cut into wedges, clean, wipe dry, freeze and transfer to freezer bag!
Even lesser work! 😉
