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Notes -
We planted too many tomato plants this year (even our four-year-old has been remarking that Daddy needs to scale it back next year), and now we're canning massive amounts of strained tomato. Any tips for unusual flavor complements? We've already experimented with fresh ginger, and I'm considering picking up some fresh turmeric to try that next.
Have you tried making your own paste? I take a basket of tomatoes, cut off bad parts, quarter, squeeze out the seeds, and place on a baking sheet with a bit of olive oil. I roast them at 350 until they start browning a bit. Then I run them through a grinder with strainer attachment to get rid of the skin.
The strained pulp is poured back on the baking sheet and roasted at 350 until it thickens down to your desired thickness. I stir occasionally and push it together as it thins to minimize the amount burned at the edges. Let it cool, and scoop in tablespoon sized hemispheres on a parchment paper lined tray. Freeze. When solid, you can pop them into a freezer bag for instant use at any time in helpful tablespoon portions.
Best part of frozen paste is you can use it directly for recipes or add it with water where recipes call for sauce. I also like it as an easy way to make a pseudo-marinara by combining it 1 to 1 with ketchup and spices (garlic, onion, bit of sriracha, basil, and oregano).
Hmmm.... our freezer is pretty small, but that might be worth a try. Particularly the part about freezing small individual portions, as I've noticed in the past with the 6-ounce cans of tomato paste that it's hard for me to use up the whole 6 oz before it goes bad.
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None unusual on their own, but what about a gazpacho mix? Onion and garlic powder, bell pepper powder, chives, salt and pepper.
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This is the kind of question I've been turning to AIs for lately. With all those cooking and recipe websites out there they must of had a lot of training data.
These were chatGPT's suggestions (condensed):
I'm not a huge fan of tomatoes, but I've always found acids to change their flavor in a way that lets me enjoy them more. So if the people around you are getting sick of tomatoes, maybe something with lemon juice or balsamic vinegar.
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Do you have small cans, and a good variety of spices (from a commercial spice rack or simply self-assembled)? Just make one of each, and see how it turns out. I wouldn't imagine that cinnamon tomatoes tastes great, but I've been wrong before.
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