Tomato paste with citric acid for the winter

Before processing, wash the tomatoes thoroughly in running water, then dry them. We cut each fruit into pieces, simultaneously cutting out defective areas and traces of the stalk. Substandard tomatoes can be used to make tomato paste, but it is important to avoid rotting as this will spoil the taste of the final product.

Grind the prepared chopped tomatoes until a fine-structured raw puree is obtained. At this stage, it is convenient to use a meat grinder with the finest mesh, a submersible or stationary blender. Place the resulting puree in a deep saucepan and place on the stove. Bring the contents to a boil and cook with constant stirring at high temperature for twenty minutes. It is necessary to evaporate some of the moisture from the tomato mass.

Pour the hot puree into a fine sieve and let the liquid drain. Stir occasionally with a spoon in a sieve to strengthen the separation of the juice. In order to maximize the amount of excess liquid in the glass, it is better to leave the tomato mass in a sieve for six hours (overnight). After the specified time has elapsed, we remove the separated liquid (one is no longer needed to prepare tomato paste, but it can be disposed of in other dishes), and we wipe the tomato paste through a sieve manually or pass it through a juicer. The main thing at this stage is to achieve a completely smooth consistency. Put the grated pasta back into the pan, add salt and granulated sugar to it. Stir the mass, bring it to a boil and boil it for five minutes. Add citric acid, mix thoroughly, cook for a couple of minutes and remove from the stove.

Banks and lids for packaging tomato paste are pre-washed with soda solution and sterilized in any way. After sterilization, let the container dry completely. We put the hot tomato paste in prepared jars and immediately tighten the lids. We wrap the seams in a warm blanket and let them cool slowly, after which we put them in a cool dark place for storage.