Homemade Tomato Juice Recipe

Supplies You’ll Need

• Water bath canner with a rack: The pot should be deep enough to hold your jars with at least 2 inches of water over the tops.
• Pint or quart canning jars: Check each jar carefully and do not use jars with chips or cracks.
• New canning lids and clean bands: Always prepare the lids according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
• Large stockpot: Use stainless steel or another nonreactive pot for cooking the tomatoes.
• Tomato strainer or food mill: This removes the tomato peels and seeds while keeping the juice and pulp.
• Knife and cutting board: You will need these for removing the cores, blemishes, and damaged areas.
• Potato masher or sturdy spoon: This helps release the juice while the tomatoes begin cooking.
• Canning funnel and ladle: These make it much easier to transfer the hot juice into the jars.
• Headspace tool: Use this to check the space between the juice and the top of each jar.
• Jar lifter: This is essential for safely moving hot jars in and out of the canner.
• Clean towels: Set hot jars on a towel or cooling rack rather than directly on a cold countertop.

If you are making a large batch, a tomato strainer saves so much time. This is the exact one I use when I am making several batches.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Tomatoes: Use ripe, flavorful tomatoes that are free from decay, bruises, and damaged areas.
• Water: A small amount keeps the tomatoes from sticking before they release their own juice.
• Seasonings: Salt, onion salt, and celery salt give the juice its familiar savory flavor.
• For canning: Bottled lemon juice provides the consistent acidity needed for safe water bath canning.

Ingredient Additions and Substitutions

The basic seasonings in this recipe give the juice a traditional flavor, but there are a few ways you can adjust it.

• Citric acid: You can use citric acid instead of bottled lemon juice. Use ½ teaspoon per quart jar or ¼ teaspoon per pint jar.
• Bottled lemon juice: Always use commercially bottled lemon juice when canning. Fresh lemon juice does not have a standardized acidity level.
• Black pepper or cayenne: Add these to individual glasses after opening the jar for extra heat.
• Worcestershire sauce: A little Worcestershire sauce is good in tomato juice, especially when you are using it for a Bloody Mary. Add it after opening rather than to the canning jars.
• Balsamic vinegar: A splash can add sweetness and tang, but it is best stirred into the juice after opening.
• Fresh herbs: Basil, parsley, and oregano can be added when serving. I do not recommend adding fresh herbs directly to the jars unless you are following a tested canning recipe that includes them.

Do not add fresh onions, garlic, celery, peppers, carrots, or other vegetables to this recipe before canning. Those ingredients change the acidity and require a tested tomato-and-vegetable juice recipe with its own preparation and processing instructions.

Best Tomatoes to Use

Almost any ripe tomato can be used for making tomato juice, especially tomatoes that are grown in your own garden. I usually prefer a mixture of juicy slicing tomatoes and meatier paste tomatoes. The slicing tomatoes provide plenty of liquid, while the paste tomatoes give the juice more body.

Some of my favorite varieties include:

• Park’s Whopper
• Early Girl
• Beefsteak
• Better Boy
• Celebrity
• Brandywine
• Roma
• San Marzano

Look for tomatoes that are deeply colored, heavy for their size, and have a fresh tomato smell. Avoid tomatoes with mold, decay, deep cracks, or insect damage. Do not use tomatoes harvested from dead or frost-killed vines for canning.

The variety you choose will also affect the color and texture. Paste tomatoes make a thicker juice, while large slicing tomatoes usually make a thinner, juicier batch. A mix of the two gives me the best balance.

Plan on approximately 3 to 3½ pounds of tomatoes for every quart of finished juice. The exact yield will vary depending on the variety and how juicy the tomatoes are.

How to Make Tomato Juice

1. Wash and prepare the tomatoes. Wash the tomatoes thoroughly under running water. Remove the cores, stems, bruised spots, cracks, and blemishes, then cut the tomatoes into quarters or large chunks. You do not need to peel them first.
2. Cook until soft. Place the tomatoes in a large stockpot and add just enough water to prevent sticking. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, crushing and stirring the tomatoes as they begin releasing their juice. Simmer until the tomatoes are very soft and broken down.
3. Remove the skins and seeds. Working in batches, press the cooked tomatoes through a tomato strainer, food mill, or fine colander. The juice and pulp will pass through while the skins and seeds are left behind. Discard or compost the scraps.
4. Measure and season the juice. Return the strained juice to the clean stockpot and bring it back to a gentle boil. Measure how much finished juice you have, then add the salt, onion salt, and celery salt according to the recipe amounts for each quart. Simmer briefly so the seasonings can blend into the juice.
5. Fill the jars. Add the required bottled lemon juice to each clean, hot jar. Ladle in the boiling tomato juice, leaving ½-inch headspace. Wipe the jar rims, center the lids, and apply the bands until fingertip tight.
6. Process and cool. Place the filled jars in a boiling water bath canner and process according to the jar size and your elevation. When the time is complete, turn off the heat, remove the lid, and let the jars rest in the canner for 5 minutes. Transfer them to a towel or cooling rack and leave them undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours before checking the seals.

Canning Safety

Tomatoes vary in acidity depending on their variety, growing conditions, and ripeness. Because of this, every jar of tomato juice must be acidified before it is processed.

Add the acid directly to each jar before adding the hot juice:

• Quart jars: 2 tablespoons bottled lemon juice or ½ teaspoon citric acid
• Pint jars: 1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice or ¼ teaspoon citric acid

Do not reduce or leave out the acid, even when using naturally tart tomatoes. Salt is added for flavor, but the bottled lemon juice or citric acid is what provides the required additional acidity.

Fill each jar with hot tomato juice, leaving ½-inch headspace. The jars must then be processed in a boiling water bath canner. Simply pouring hot juice into jars and waiting for the lids to seal is not a safe canning method.

Water Bath Processing Times

Make sure the jars are covered by at least 2 inches of water because the processing time is longer than 30 minutes. Start the timer only after the water has returned to a full rolling boil. If the boiling stops at any time, bring the water back to a boil and restart the full processing time.

After processing, let the jars cool undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours. Remove the bands and press the center of each lid to check the seal. The lid should be firm and should not flex or make a clicking sound.

These acidification amounts and processing times follow the tested tomato juice instructions from the National Center for Home Food Preservation. For more information about safe home canning, read our Canning 101 Guide and Water Bath Canning Guide. Our guide for How to Can Whole Tomatoes also has helpful information about preparing tomatoes and adjusting for elevation.

Recipe Tips

• There is no need to peel the tomatoes first. The skins and seeds are removed when you run the cooked tomatoes through the food mill or tomato strainer.
• Measure the juice before adding seasonings. The amount of juice you get will vary, so do not add all the seasonings based only on the starting weight of your tomatoes.
• Use a tomato strainer for large batches. A hand-crank or electric tomato strainer separates the juice from the seeds and skins much faster than pressing everything through a colander.
• Use a heavy, nonreactive pot. Stainless steel is a good choice. Avoid aluminum, which can react with the acid in tomatoes.
• Start with the smaller amount of water. The tomatoes will release plenty of liquid as they heat. Only add more water if the tomatoes begin sticking to the bottom of the pot.
• Keep the tomatoes moving. Stir frequently, especially during the first few minutes, to prevent scorching.
• Use the hot-break method to reduce separation. Start by heating and crushing a small amount of tomatoes until boiling. Gradually add the remaining cut tomatoes while keeping the mixture boiling. Maintaining the heat helps slow the enzyme activity that causes the pulp and liquid to separate later. Separation is harmless, but this method can make the juice look more uniform.
• Run the scraps through twice for pulpier juice. If you like thick tomato juice, put the skins and pulp through the tomato strainer a second time. This can help extract a little more tomato pulp without leaving large pieces of peel or seeds in the juice.
• Keep the jars hot. Filling a cold jar with boiling tomato juice can cause thermal shock and may crack the glass.
• Do not overtighten the bands. Turn them only until fingertip tight. Air needs to escape from the jars while they are processing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Troubleshooting

• Why did my tomato juice separate? Separation happens when enzymes in the tomatoes break down the natural pectin before the tomatoes become hot enough. To reduce separation, heat and crush a small amount of tomatoes until boiling, then gradually add the remaining tomatoes while keeping the mixture boiling. Separation is usually a quality issue rather than a safety issue. Shake or stir the juice after opening.
• Why is my tomato juice too thin? Juicy slicing tomatoes naturally produce thinner juice. Use a mixture that includes Roma, San Marzano, or another paste tomato for more body. You can also run the leftover pulp through the strainer a second time. If you simmer the juice longer, do it before filling the jars and keep the consistency pourable rather than reducing it to a thick paste.
• Why is my tomato juice too thick? The juice may be thick if you used mostly paste tomatoes or ran the pulp through the strainer more than once. You can use a mixture of paste and slicing tomatoes in the next batch. After opening a jar, thin the juice with water or broth if needed for drinking or cooking.
• Why does the juice taste salty? Salt, onion salt, and celery salt all contribute sodium. Always measure the finished juice before adding the seasonings. If a batch is too salty, dilute it after opening with unsalted tomato juice, water, or broth. Reduce the seasoning amounts in your next batch, but keep the acidifier and processing time the same.
• Why does my juice taste too acidic? The bottled lemon juice or citric acid is required for safe canning and should not be reduced. Citric acid may have a less noticeable flavor than bottled lemon juice. You can also add a small amount of sugar after opening the jar to soften the tart flavor.
• Why did my tomato juice scorch? Tomatoes can stick before they release enough juice. Use a heavy-bottomed stockpot, begin with the recipe’s small amount of water, and stir frequently. Pay special attention to the bottom and corners of the pot.
• Why did liquid leak out during processing? This is called siphoning. It can happen when jars are overfilled, bands are too tight, the heat changes suddenly, or the jars are removed immediately after processing. Leave the full ½-inch headspace, maintain a steady boil, and let the jars rest in the canner for 5 minutes before removing them.
• What should I do if a jar does not seal? Refrigerate the jar and use it within 3 to 4 days, freeze it in a freezer-safe container, or reprocess it within 24 hours. To reprocess, pour the juice into a pot, bring it back to a boil, fill a clean hot jar, use a new lid, and repeat the entire processing time.
• How can I tell if canned tomato juice has spoiled? Discard any jar with a loose or bulging lid, leaking liquid, mold, spurting liquid, rising bubbles, an unusual color, or a foul odor. Never taste tomato juice to decide whether it is safe.

Make Ahead and Storage

For the best results, prepare and can the tomato juice on the same day. If you need to pause, refrigerate the strained juice promptly, then bring it back to a full boil before filling the jars.

Fresh tomato juice: Store in an airtight jar or bottle in the refrigerator and use within 3 to 4 days.

Opened canned tomato juice: Refrigerate after opening and use within 3 to 4 days.

Frozen tomato juice: Cool the juice completely and transfer it to freezer-safe jars, bags, or containers. Leave extra room for expansion. Freeze for up to 1 year for the best quality.

Canned tomato juice: Label and date each jar, remove the bands, and store the sealed jars in a cool, dark, dry place. For the best quality and nutritional value, plan to use home-canned tomato juice within 1 year. Always inspect the lid, seal, and contents before opening.

Pairing Ideas

Homemade tomato juice is useful for much more than drinking. Use it as the base for Cafe Zupas Tomato Basil Soup, Grilled Sirloin Steak with Tomato Basil Sauce, Mom’s Cheater Chili, or Creamy Tomato Basil Soup with Sausage. It is also great in vegetable soup, stew, Spanish rice, meatloaf, pasta sauce, and any recipe that needs a flavorful tomato base.

More Canning Recipes

Once the canner is out and the garden is producing, try some of our other favorite canning recipes:

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