Comments on: Crushing Canned Whole Tomatoes

By: Bob Foster

Bob Foster — Thu, 21 May 2009 03:59:05 +0000

This may be an old wives tale, and it sounds a little nuts but I read somewhere long ago that tomatoes thicken naturally when they’re cooked whole, so where the dish allows I always put them in whole, go through the simmer cycle and fish them out and snip them with scissors before doing whatever comes next.

If you want a sauce and not bits of tomato, though, a recent Cook’s Illustrated tells me it’s faster and just as good to buy a good brand of crushed tomatoes. They specifically mentioned Muir Glen Fire Roasted, which I mention only to illustrate that “good brand” doesn’t need to mean an $8 can from Italy.

By: Kris

Kris — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 09:21:56 +0000

If you have a decent potato masher (not a ricer, just a masher) then that works pretty well to mush them up into smaller pieces- just put them in a bowl and mash.

I’ve also done the scissors/knife in can trick mentioned in another comment.

By: Johanna

Johanna — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 22:10:17 +0000

I love when they burst like a water balloon! It’s the best part of cooking with them.

By: Pesto

Pesto — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 00:41:59 +0000

I have a maple bowl and a round chopper (sort of like a mezzaluna) that I use for chopping canned tomatoes (I also use them for chopping hardboiled eggs, nuts, and a few other things). I’ve found it’s the best way to chop without losing any liquid, and I can control the size of the pieces really well.

BTW, you can avoid the splattering if you crush them by hand by stabbing a little hole in each tomato before you squish it.

By: Adam Fields

Adam Fields — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 19:43:05 +0000

You can use a pair of scissors to snip them while they’re still in the can. This is less messy, and won’t pulverize them the same way a stick blender will.

I’ve found that the diced or crushed tomatoes don’t seem to taste quite as fresh as the whole ones - I’d assume they use the already damaged ones for those.

By: paul

paul — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 02:55:43 +0000

I use an immersion blender right in the jar/can.

By: mom

mom — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 02:08:35 +0000

Does this mean that you had a bit of a problem with tomatoes? A few years ago I decided to just stock diced tomatoes on my pantry shelf. They have a good fresh flavor and you don’t have to break them up.

By: michelle

michelle — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 21:15:15 +0000

forget my clothes…in my experience goggles and a shower or swim cap are helpful to wear when using my hands to split them.