Do I have to peel and seed tomatoes to make marinara sauce from scratch?

[momskitchen]

I've got a ton of tomatoes left over from canning....I can't stand thte thought of peeling and seeding them to make a pasta sauce. Do I have to?

[letsindulge]

Not if you have a food mill proper, or make-shift.

[thrivingveg]

When it's summer and the tomatoes are nice I never do it. However, in the winter you might want to take the time to peel the tomatoes because the skins seem to be tough and bitter then. I don't usually bother with the seeds, though. I've heard it can make a sauce bitter, but I've never had that happen to me or I just don't pick up on it. I kind of like what the seeds add myself. Romas are generally a good bet year round. Those were not appetizing the last time I went shopping so I went with hot-house and the sauce was actually pretty good, for a fresh tomato winter sauce. Best bet in the cold months is to splurge on a can of San Marzanos. You won't regret it.

[treb]

Use a food mill, it takes care of skins and seeds.

[sushigirlie]

I think the issue with seeds is not the seeds themselves,but the fact that there is a lot of juice surrounding them. If you don't remove them, then depending on the tomato, the sauce might be too watery and not reduce enough in a reasonable time.

As for skins, I think they detract from the appearance of the dish (unless you're pureeing--then they don't make any difference), but I don't mind their taste or texture.

[jvanderh]

That goop surrounding the seeds is the best-tasting part of the tomato. Well worth the extra reducing time. If you're really in a time crunch, spread the tomatoes out across a big skillet and crank up the heat.

[alkapal]

"tomato caviar," says josé andrés.

i agree. one of his tapas uses the excised, intact seed "filets" as the tomato component of a dish. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/st...

[scubadoo97]

I admit to cutting out seed sacs more often than not but here is a tapa I made from harvesting the seed sacs

[hala]

It really depends on your tolerance. I can't stand the texture of tomato peel, so I usually use the concasé method for things like gaspacho. However, last year I decided to make a rather large quantity of tomato sauce on a rather hot day, so I ended up peeling with a a tomato peeler. Not the most efficient way, but it was pretty cool.

[Jay F]

<<<I ended up peeling with a a tomato peeler.>>>

Is that easier than the boiling water method?

[John E.]

We have one of those peelers and if you only need to peel a few, less than 5 or 6, then the peeler is easier. (I use ours on fuzzy peaches when peeling is needed). Otherwise, if you have a lot of tomatoes to peel, the blanching and ice water bath is the way to go. I stopped canning tomatoes a while ago and now use a food mill for everything except when making salsa, then I peel and seed roma tomatoes. It's a lot of work, but worth the effort. I much prefer seeded tomatoes over watery salsa with tomato seeds.

[pine time]

Will admit: have never used a food mill. (1) looks like it would be a pain to clean, and (2) looks way too big for my 2 person household. Do they make different sizes? Any tips on cleaning?

[John E.]

I have to clarify that we actually use a Chinois rather than a foodmill with a disc, which can be a PITA to wash. If making tomato sauce we just wash the tomatoes and remove the stem and any bad spots, cut them in half and cook them. Then carefully put the cooked tomatoes in a blender and then through the Chinois and back to the stove another kettle to cook to the desired consistency and adding salt and other spices that you wish to include.

I remember my parents (actually my mother) canning tomato sauce a lot during August and September. My father had a huge garden (it gets bigger every time he talks about it now) and he usually had at least a hundred tomato plants. We actually do not can a lot of tomato sauce anymore because we don't grow enough tomatoes and if I'm going to buy tomatoes to make sauce I'd rather just buy the tomato sauce. I do however make salsa.

http://www.amazon.com/Fox-Run-3-Piece...

VLPMQ/ref=sr_1_23?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1311780853&sr=1-23

Oh, I forgot to mention that I have only seen the one size and it is made out of aluminum and might be a little different than the link I provided because I think that one is SS. they are not anymore difficult to clean than an aluminum or SS colander (the plastic colanders I found can be difficult to clean).

[pine time]

Thanks, John E. A chinois I can do. :)

[hala]

I have seen several sizes of food mills. My mom uses hers quite a bit, but I never got into the habit.

[scubadoo97]

No. The blanching in water is the easiest way to peel a tomato. I added one plum tomato to dish I was making last night and used my gyuto knife to peel it. It's really sharp so it did cut the peel without losing flesh. I did this only because I didn't want to boil a pot of water for one tomato. I have a half dozen plum tomatoes that will be used for a pasta sauce and I will definitely blanch them to peel.

[hala]

Well, I did not want to deal wtih a huge pot of boiling water on a hot day, so yes, it was easier. Usually, it's not easier.

[ItSnotjavi22]

My kitchen is also extremely hot in the summer.if u don't need many tomatoes. What I do is slice an X in the bottom of the tomato and use a cheese grater all ur left with is the peel in ur hand. Works with peppers too,its how u start a basic sofrito.

[khickok]

I don't peel and most of the time I don't seed either - especially if they're Roma tomatoes. If not, I seed about half of the tomatoes. You've gotten a lot of replies. I hope this helps.

[jvanderh]

I do not peel or seed, but I do hit the pot with an immersion blender. After someone brought it up, I examined my sauce and there are tiny rolled up pieces of tomato skin, but they don't bother me.

[momskitchen]

Thanks to all that replied. Yes, I do know how to peel a tomato by cutting an X in the bottom and dipping in boiling water. Pardon me if I didn't want to do it - I just peeled a half bushel of them to can salsa and I personally didn't want to do even one more! And a food mill is a huge pain in the butt, too. In my experience with not peeling and seeding proved to me that it doesn't need to be done. I cut the tomatoes in large chunks, seeds, peels and all, cooked them up with some onions, basil, oregano and lots of garlic overnight on low in the crockpot, and then this morning, I put them in the blender and it came out beautiful! I could see adding some tomato paste to it, too. You should try it sometime @LiviaLunch. Also, I have slow roasted and pureed them with their peels on and that comes out well, too! No need to add tomato paste to that....

[Bada Bing]

I respect your experience and might try your approach--would that I only had enough tomatoes!--but your original query was whether you "have to do" something (peeling and seeding) that, in this post, you say you've already proved does not have to be done.

Were you in fact looking for a discussion of the differences between the two approaches?

[momskitchen]

Actually, I just performed the experiment myself....I originally posted asking whether I had to peel and seed, and then I tried not doing it. Read all my comments for the complete story...

[Mestralle]

I agree with the hassle factor in peeling tomatoes. By your username, I'm assuming you have kids, but how old are they? Do you have a gas stove or fireplace? Sometimes when I'm too lazy or hot to boil a pot of water and turn my kitchen into a sauna, I'll put a tomato on the end of two-pronged fork thingie (don't know the name) and turn it a few times over the open flame of our gas burner. The skin will peel right off. I've also enlisted the help of some older children I was looking after (with appropriate supervision of course), and they for some reason thought it was highly fascinating.

As to the actual question, if I'm making a "fresh" tomato sauce, I'll peel a few either by blanching or the above method and then just squeeze out most of the seeds/juice. A little peel or a few seeds don't bother me in the least, so I'm not usually too careful about it. If I were trying to make a true marinara to impress/can/serve, I might do something more.

[thew]

but that's chowhound for you. you ask a simple question, and get techniques with the implication you're not doing it right as an answer. i've seen it a million times, and i no longer sweat. nature of the beast. i asked about which deep fryers, eg, have bottom drains for easy emptying, and any experiences - i got many posts about why cooking in a pot with a thermometer is better than a deep fryer - all ignoring that cooking pots do not have bottom drains, and thus have nothing to do with what i asked. I've seen it on threads about cooking duck, cookware, and every sort of technique under the sun,

this is what happens when people - myself included - think we are experts at something. it's a common disconnect - and an endemic one here at CH

[jmckee]

Lynne Rosetto Kasper makes the case in "The Italian Country Table" for NOT peeling / deseeding. She says that a lot of compounds make the taste of a tomato, and many of those are in the peel, seeds, and the pulp surrounding the seeds.

I've never peeled / seeded a tomato for ANY application; it seems to be needlessly "fussy" to me.

[junescook]

DW makes many qts of sauce a year with ingedients from the garden and cans them. She simply rough chops tomatoes and zooms in food processor. Ditto witn onions, herbs, etc. No oil. Cooks, adds paste, cans., and we're set for a year. No peeling, no seeding, delicious.

[morwen]

I just chunk them, throw them in the pot with seasonings and cook until tender. Then I hit them in the pot with the stick blender, not until smooth but til well broken up. After that I run it all through the food mill. Takes no time at all, gets rid of the seeds and bits of skin and makes everything nicely smooth. If you like, return it to the pot and simmer to thicken up a bit.

[dave_c]

How about oven roasting the tomatoes cut in half or thirds?
Add some fresh herbs, olive oil and garlic (sort of like Bruschetta) and bake on a cookie sheet for about an hour at 350-375F.
After that you can puree and freeze.

[Gio]

That was going to be my reply....
I put halved seasoned tomatoes in a preheated 375F oven, roast 2 hours, basting two or three times with the oil and juices that collect in the pan. I don't peel or seed the tomatoes, but I do take out the core just at the stem end with a sharp paring knife. Cook the pasta and add it to the pan when the tomatoes are done.

[dave_c]

Sometimes I don't even wait for the pasta to cook. I just spoon onto some toasted baguette rounds, especially when the tomatoes are nicely browned. :-)

[pine time]

I'm trying a new recipe of roasting the halved tomatoes, with spices, on a low and slow method--7 hours at, I think, 200 degrees. Anyone do this?

[grangie angie]

Yes,pinetime,all the time.

Doesn't take 7 hours either,more like 2-2 1/2.

Good luck!

[pine time]

I think my oven calibration must be off, 'cause it was closer to 8 hours. Either that or extra-juicy tomatoes. I've done 2 1/2 hr roasts at higher heat, but this was the first low-and-slow. Delicious, sweet, and will blend some for pizza sauce today.

[jvanderh]

Yup. I cook them for many hours too. After 2 hours at 200 degrees, the tomatoes look pretty much like when they went in the oven. I like mine to shrink a bit.

[gourmanda]

I'm with Dave & Gio. Just did this last night. . .I had 4- 9"x13" pans of halved tomatoes, skin on. Roasted with with garlic cloves (skin on), olive oil and zinfandel for about 2 hours. Took the skin off the garlic, left the skins on the tomatoes put it all in a stock pot. After blending w/ the immersion blender I finished the sauce in a 185 degree oven overnight for about 7 hours. Such a revelation in flavor and ease of prep! For everyone who says "just blanch and peel"--not so easy with hundreds of pounds of heirloom tomatoes (which can be wrinkly or not perfectly round like a beefsteak).

[chefathome]

Same here. I roast the tomato halves (low and slow) with lots of garlic cloves, onion and a carrot. Blend them all together, add fresh basil (if desired) and done!

[thew]

i know im going against the wisdom of the ages, but - no. you do not.

[momskitchen]

I'm with you, thew! I'll let you know how it turns out...no food mill, no peeling, no nothing.

[greygarious]

A lot of the tomato's flavor is in the jelly encasing the seeds, so use a food mill if the skins and seeds bother you - you'll still get the jelly. I don't mind the seeds at all. The skins can be a little unpleasant if the tomatoes were in large chunks, so chopping them into half-inch pieces is a good idea. Be sure to have tomato paste on hand. You MIGHT like a sauce made with fresh tomatoes only, but chances are you will not be happy with it and will need paste to rescue it. I would include it at the start, sauteeing it with the garlic.

[momskitchen]

I am going to crock pot this marinara all night....I don't care about peels or seeds. Stay tuned for news!

[LiviaLunch]

There's not really any mystery about what you'll end up with: lots of tough indigestible little tomato skins curled into threads throughout the sauce. Some people notice them more than others. You can crock pot them for a month and they won't break down. It's mainly a texture issue.

Seeds do add bitterness. And tomato paste should be mandatory to round out the taste.

[guster4lovers]

The seeds and "juice" in a tomato has been scientifically proven to be the most "tomato"-y tasting bit of the tomato. I have to profoundly disagree that they are bitter on that basis.

I never peel my tomatoes either, and I've NEVER had "tough indigestible little tomato skins" in my sauce. When they're chopped finely, they rarely are noticeable.

[southernitalian]

Same here guster. I've been making sauce 7 or 8 times a year for probably 20 years and have never peeled and/or seeded.

[oldunc]

The thought of "rescuing" a fresh tomato sauce with paste is appalling- if the tomatoes are that bad (and if you got them at the supermarket they probably are) far better to use canned. It's clear from comments on this board that there are a lot of really bad food mills out there- a good one is a real joy.

[wattacetti]

Seeds and skins are not a problem if you're using something like a Vita-Mix set on high for a couple of minutes per batch. Without one, I'd suggest a food mill.

[John E.]

Why don't you cook the tomatoes and run them through a food mill? Or a blender and then a sieve/china cap?

[Cherylptw]

You don't have to but I'd at least remove the skins...just boil a pot of water, blanch for two minutes and peel. I don't normally remove the seeds when I make sauce.

[alkapal]

this is the best method -- and easier than the food mill.

[RealMenJulienne]

I agree, no need to seed, but absolutely peel. Also, if you cut a shallow "X" into the base of the tomato before blanching, the skin peels off even more easily.

[scubadoo97]

I just peeled a dozen roma tomatoes for gazpacho. Took no time at all. The X is key to making it easy to pull off the skin. I don't think it even takes two minutes.

[greygarious]

I've not tried it, but have read that an easy way to peel is to freeze the whole tomato. The skin will come off easily when run under warm water. Sounds more pleasant than boiling water in hot weather.

[scubadoo97]

Interesting, but it takes way more planning to freeze and then you have skinless frozen tomatoes. I most recently use a small pot of water, hey I'm not making pasta, which took little time to boil and did 4 romas at a time. It really doesn't take more than 1 min to loosen the skins. While I peeled the first 4 the next were in the water.

[pine time]

I do the X, boiling water for just a minute, then drop into a bowl of ice water. Skins practically peel themselves.

[Caroline1]

I used to peel tomatoes with the boiling water method, but it's too much work. Now I just rinse the tomatoes, dry them off a bit (not really necessary), then line them up on my cooktop all in a row and hit them with my kitchen torch. I do have to turn them to get the back, then roll them over to hit their stems, but it's a LOT easier and quicker than boiling water and I happen to enjoy the slightly smokey flavor the torch gives them. It also makes it really easy to seed the naked tomatoes. Just slice them across the middle and squeeze!

If you want to know how to do things the easiest possible way, just ask a lazy cook! That's me... '-)

[pine time]

Oh, I dearly love lazy! Thanks.

[corneygirl]

I don't mind not seeding tom's for sauce, but I don't like peels. Depending on the quantity that you are making if you cut a tomato in half and grate the pulpy side on a cheese grater you easily separate the skin from the rest. It doesn't take long (+- 5 min) to go through a couple pounds of tomatoes, but if you are making a huge batch to freeze it would be a PIA.