I am searching for new ways of using my tomatoes

Drying tomoatoes is super easy. It takes a lot of time, but it's easy to do. I normally dry romas, but you can dry any kind. First decide if you want skin off or on. Either is fine. If you want the skin off drop tomatoes in boiling water for about 30 seconds, then remove them and put them right into a bowl of ice water. The skins will come off very easily. Next quarter the tomatoes and remove seeds if there are any. (Romas don't have many seeds, so I don't remove them.) Then place them on a shallow tray that has sides on it to keep juices from running off. Sprinkle them with sea salt or dried herbs (I use basil) if you wish. Finally it's time to dry them out. You can heat your oven to 150 and dry them for about 15 hours. You'll need to flip them from time to time to make sure both sides are exposed. You can also place the tray on the dash board of you car on a really hot sunny day. This way may take a bit longer. If you choose this method you should cover the tomatoes with a cheesecloth. Put them on the dash, roll up windows, and maked sure the car is in the sun. They may take a couple days this way. You tomatoes are done when they're kind of rubbery/chewy...not brittle. Hope this helps!

Good morning, marguicha! I, too, find that the tomatoes ripen, just about the time that I am harvesting everything else, so at that time...there is a flurry of preserving to do. The only thing that I trouble myself with making at this time is salsa...the rest of the tomatoes are quartered, put on a baking sheet, and frozen! Then I put them in a food saver bag, vacuum and seal them! Later, in the fall, when time is not so rushed, I make stewed tomatoes (garlic, celery, mushroom, onions, peppers, basil and thyme...)in a huge pot, whilst simmering add 1/2 a lemon, unpeeled and a little honey & nutmeg....this makes a wonderful base sauce for all your pasta's, for putting over cabbage rolls, cooking sausages in, and I even reduce the liquids in my bread, and add a cup of this sauce, with some shredded cheese, for a delightful bread to eat with soups. Freezing them seperately, on the cookie sheet...means they don't all clump together, so you can just take out the number of pieces you need, too, for your dish of the day! I have a dehydrator, and was not as pleased with the end result as I hoped that I would be, lacking the juice, the flavour seemed somewhat diminished. I think that I will experience, again, sun-drying...I made a 3 foot x 3 foot wooden frame, used window meshing, Place all four corners, on blocks..which allowed the air to circulate, turned them a coupla times...and they were much better (you could almost taste the sun in them...LOL!) And, will do more research, but I think there are Heritage varieties more conducive to sun-drying! I do have a link to a wonderful site...for Heritage tomatoes, and probably some of the best growing advice that I have ever read, really taught this old dog some new tricks, even tho' it seems I have been growing tomatoes forever! I don't think I can post the link here....but I think you are friends with "Antiquelady" and I can send it to Jo...if you like. Take care...and Cheers!

If you have no time to prepare them, why not try this: Place them as they are in plastic bags and freeze them. Then you can take them out one or two at a time and thaw them under the water tap until you can peel them - the peel falls off very easily. Then just put them into any soup or a sauce and stir - they will fall into pieces and give your food color and taste. Happy cooking..

wow congratulations. i love tomatoes too and i have few shrubs at home.the sticks really help in making them stand firm. what i love about tomatoes are its health benefits. Tomatoes contain a lot of vitamins A and C, mostly because of beta-carotene, and these vitamins act as an anti-oxidant, working to neutralize dangerous free radicals in the blood stream. These dangerous free radicals can cause cell damage. And keep in mind, the more red the tomato, the more beta-carotene it contains. Also, remember that cooking destroys much of vitamin C, so stick with raw tomatoes for these benefits.

Hi! I LOVE tomatoes! I wish I could have some all the time right now! I don't get them often because I don't do shopping, but I like them just the same. I have never had very many of them and when we did grow them, we only had one or two plants and I was part of a big family so they usually got used up before they had a chance to go bad. I have no suggestions on how to use them other than just eating. All I can say is eat some for me!

I usually use tomatoes for seasoning or for adding taste. Try to search rellenong bangus. Bangus is milk fish :) At times when I grill meat, I make dip using tomato. I add soysauce, and chopped tomato with onion :D

you can blanch and freeze them. I have never dried tomatoes but I do dry peppers. I just string them up then when they are completely dried out, I grind them into chili powder. also, you can look at salsa. If you cook it, then you can can it!

The rotten ones can be used for throwing during bad performances.

you can bottle them or make tomatoe juice for food storage

i love eating tomatoes but have never dried them.i like frying tomatoes with eggs,so tasty!!!!

You plant tomatoes for yourself? you don't have intend to sell them?

I don't have a clue. To me eating it raw after washing leaves a good taste. I like tomato juice although i don't recall using tomato sauce. By the way tomato is a fruit that a vegetable. When you learn your relishes and chutneys please share.