Tomato paste, a thick mixture of puréed tomatoes that is cooked down for hours, adds concentrated flavor to recipes without watering them down. It's typically sold in small cans or tubes next to the canned tomatoes and is a handy ingredient for soups, stews, sauces, and more.
If you've started a recipe and realized you don't have tomato paste in your pantry or fridge, don't panic. Add it to your grocery list and make one of these home substitutions.
Canned tomato sauce can be transformed into a substitution for tomato paste in a relatively short amount of time. Start with plain (unseasoned) tomato sauce if possible.
Pour a small can (8 ounces) of tomato sauce into a saucepan and bring it to a brisk simmer over medium heat. Simmer, stirring constantly, for about 7 minutes, or until reduced by about two-thirds. Use a splatter screen to avoid a mess from the bubbling as the mixture thickens.
You should have about 3 ounces of tomato paste from an 8-ounce can. You can also use a larger can of tomato sauce, but you will need to cook the mixture for longer to reduce by at least two-thirds.
You can also use a can of whole or diced tomatoes to make tomato paste. Blend a 14.5-ounce can of tomatoes in a blender or food processor until smooth. Pour the tomato mixture into a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, for about 10 minutes, until thickened and reduced by about two-thirds.
You should get about 2/3 cup or 6 ounces of tomato paste from a 14.5-ounce can of tomatoes. You can also use less of the canned tomatoes to make less tomato paste. Purée the canned tomatoes and only use half of the can, cooking for 7 to 10 minutes until reduced. You can set aside the rest of the purée for another use or freeze for later.
Using Tomato Paste Substitutions
It's worth noting that whether you make a homemade tomato paste substitution from tomato sauce or canned tomatoes that the results will not be quite as thick as real tomato paste. Real tomato paste is cooked for hours, reducing until it forms a thick, concentrated paste. These substitutions will work in a pinch, but you may want to use a little more than the recipe calls for since the flavor won't be quite as concentrated. Depending on the recipe, you may also want to reduce the liquid in the recipe very slightly.
Homemade vs Store-Bought Tomato Paste
Tomato paste is traditionally made from fresh tomatoes that are cooked down for hours. If you're feeling ambitious and have an excess of tomatoes, you can make your own and can or freeze any extra for later.
While homemade tomato paste will capture the incredible flavor of fresh tomatoes and concentrate it for use later, it does take a very long time to make. That's why most home cooks purchase their tomato paste at the store—it's affordable and has a long shelf-life. We recommend buying the tomato paste in a tube whenever possible since it will keep in the refrigerator for about a month.
You don't have to dash out to the store if you're out of tomato paste; tomato sauce and tomato puree are both an excellent substitute. For every 1 tablespoon of tomato paste needed, use 3 tablespoons of tomato puree or sauce.
A can of diced or stewed tomatoes works well as a tomato paste substitute when you want tomato flavor with a touch of thickening power. Because these products are typically packed in a lot of liquid, you'll want to strain out the juice and only use the solids.
Tomato sauce is thinner than both tomato puree and tomato paste and it is seasoned. Tomato puree provides a rich tomato taste in a thick sauce with no seasonings whatsoever. Tomato paste has the thickest texture and consistency of all three and is used to add a savory, cooked brown note to your dishes.
Tomato paste brings a number of things to a dish: a burst of the meaty, savory flavor known as umami, concentrated sweetness, mild acidity and thickening quality. It's often added to reinforce and add depth to the taste of tomato-based dishes like marinara or tomato soup.
Cornstarch: Make a slurry of half water, half cornstarch and whisk until smooth. Cornstarch is a powerful thickener, so start by whisking in no more than 1 tablespoon of the mixture per 2 cups of simmering sauce; stir and simmer for 2 minutes, check the thickness, and repeat with more slurry as needed.
Whereas a pizza sauce is a tomato sauce, it's raw and uncooked with more herbs. Hence, many people want to know, "can you use ketchup on pizza?" The answer - yes. And we're going to help you find out how to do so perfectly, without making your pizza soggy or bad.
Tomato paste is great to have on hand when making a tomato-based pasta sauce, since it can intensify the umami tomato flavors already present. It's a key ingredient in this simple marinara sauce, which you can make entirely from canned tomatoes. It's also crucial in this salty, robust puttanesca sauce.
Instead, just combine equal parts tomato powder and hot water to equal the amount of tomato paste you need. So for example, to make 1/4 cup of tomato paste, you'd combine 2 tablespoons of tomato powder and 2 tablespoons of hot water. You can adjust the proportions to make your paste thicker or thinner.
A pizza sauce has a greater thickness to it thanks to the use of undiluted tomato paste. Pizza sauce tends to be somewhat simpler in terms of ingredients. While both feature tomatoes in one form or another, a pizza sauce's add-ins are often limited to things like garlic, oregano, basil, and olive oil.
How to Substitute Tomato Sauce or Puree for Tomato Paste. You don't have to dash out to the store if you're out of tomato paste; tomato sauce and tomato puree are both an excellent substitute. For every 1 tablespoon of tomato paste needed, use 3 tablespoons of tomato puree or sauce.
Here is how to turn canned tomato sauce into a quick tomato paste substitute. Pour 1 cup (8 ounces) of tomato sauce into a saucepan and bring it to a simmer or low boil over medium heat. While it simmers, stir constantly for anywhere from 7-10 minutes, or until the sauce is reduced by about two-thirds.
Yep, ketchup makes a surprisingly adequate tomato paste alternative! Since ketchup is already quite concentrated, you can substitute from the bottle using a 1:1 ratio (if your recipe calls for one tablespoon of tomato paste, use one tablespoon of ketchup).
Ketchup has a tomato base, but also contains vinegar, sugar, and other spices. I would only use this when you have absolutely no other replacements to use, since ketchup has a pretty distinct flavor and may actually change the flavor profile of your dish drastically.
Add Cream. Adding heavy cream will change the flavor of a tomato sauce, but it will also thicken it. Drizzle in the cream and simmer for a few minutes until the sauce has your desired consistency.
Some recipes use a combination of tomato juice, sauce, or paste along with ketchup. For a 12-serving pot of chili, up to a cup of ketchup will add the sweet and tangy flavors to each bowl. A smaller pot of chili, or one that uses diced tomatoes along with the juice, might only need ½-cup of ketchup instead.
Introduction: My name is Melvina Ondricka, I am a helpful, fancy, friendly, innocent, outstanding, courageous, thoughtful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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