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To Can Tomatoes

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Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Aug 19, 1915

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 92, No. 41.

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To Can Tomatoes

By M. M. Telford

THE one vegetable that is easy to can is the tomato. The trouble that housewives have in canning tomatoes is entirely needless, as they contain so much acid and so little protein that bacteria have little opportunity to cause trouble if the canner does her part intelligently. The trouble nearly always results because tomatoes beginning to spoil are used, or because an attempt is made to preserve fully ripened tomatoes. If decay has already begun, the bacteria that cause fermentation in the jars are present in large numbers, and some of the spores are almost sure to escape unless heat is applied for a long time. The amount of acid is small in fully ripened tomatoes.
For canning, select sound tomatoes the least bit underripe. Wash them, scald them for an instant, cool them, remove the skins, and pack them whole into the jars. Add a level tablespoonful of salt to each quart, but no water. Steam the jars twenty-five minutes and then seal them.—M. M. Telford.