Tomato Jam

By Mark Bittman

Tomato Jam
Evan Sung for The New York Times
Total Time
1 hour 30 minutes, plus chilling
Rating
5(1,645)
Comments
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Good tomatoes and balance are crucial. You need sugar for the kind of gooey, sticky quality we associate with jam; otherwise, all you’re producing is a tomato sauce, no matter how different the flavor is from the classic. Once you add that sugar, however, you need acid, because even though tomatoes are plenty acidic, they can’t counter all that sugar. I tried lemon juice, vinegar and finally lime, deciding that I liked the last best.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 1 pint
  • 1½pounds good ripe tomatoes (Roma are best), cored and coarsely chopped
  • 1cup sugar
  • 2tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 1tablespoon fresh grated or minced ginger
  • 1teaspoon ground cumin
  • ¼teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ⅛teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1teaspoon salt
  • 1jalapeño or other peppers, stemmed, seeded and minced, or red pepper flakes or cayenne to taste
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

230 calories; 0 grams fat; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 58 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 55 grams sugars; 2 grams protein; 535 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Combine all ingredients in a heavy medium saucepan, Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often.

  2. Step 2

    Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until mixture has consistency of thick jam, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning, then cool and refrigerate until ready to use; this will keep at least a week.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
1,645 user ratings
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Comments

Len

Folks,

You may want to check out a pectin called Pomona's Universal Pectin. It differs from "normal" pectins in that it does not need any sugar to make the jam. The pectin is from citrus skins. It uses Calcium (provided as the catalyst). Find it on amazon. We are reducing sugar intake (typically 50 to 85% in jams). This makes a very good jam. For a light sweetness, we use maple syrup or honey. You can also use artificial sweeteners. Jams actually taste fruity. Highly recommend.

Melinda

When I am too lazy to put much effort into dinner, I toast some bread, spread this jam on top, then scramble an egg with hot pepper flakes and parmesan cheese and put that on top also.

Mary Ann

Nice flavor but too much sugar. I would start with 1/4 cup and add up to 1/2 cup as needed. I also put 1 chopped yellow pepper and 1/2 chopped red onion into it.

Emily Rose

I especially like this on peanut butter toast. I've made it twice, each time with cherry tomatoes and habanero from the garden.

Cooking with Cats

Canned about 5 jars using Mark's recipe and adding a few extra spices. Pectin enhanced sugar and sterilized jars were the key. Haven't tried it yet but a taste test before putting into jars was promising.

Audrey M

Amazing recipe. Great way to use up a bunch of extra tomatoes from the garden. I've made this recipe twice - the second time I cooked it for about ~15 minutes longer than instructed to get my desired consistency. I used a mix of different varieties of tomatoes (whatever I had on hand) and it turned out great. We love it on eggs and toast!

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