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Tomatoes cooked down until sticky sweet, this Easy Tomato Jam is simple to make. Tangy, sticky and perfect for entertaining. All you need is a little time, patience and some will-power….so you don’t eat the whole batch all by yourself.
It’s raining tomatoes. At least in my area it is. I found this amazing, secret farm stand just around the corner from my house about a month or two ago…..just in time for the end of summer.
And I’ve lived here for two years now, this is the first I ever stumbled upon it. I really need to open my eyes when I drive around, I’m missing out on all kinds of things…like a cheese shop that I keep driving by and everyone says is fabulous.
But I have yet to venture inside because I’m afraid I may never leave. I mean, it’s a cheese shop. The only thing better than a cheese shop would be a butter shop and I haven’t come across one of those yet.
Back to the farm stand….they sell a bazillion tomatoes and every time I show up they have bushels of them for $5. Yes, $5. FIVE DOLLARS! It’s crazy, so I’ve been whipping up sauce, all kinds of sauce…Bolognese Sauce, Stovetop Marinara, you name it.
I shipped some off to Penn State this weekend….it was a Vodka sauce and now that I think about it, I should have shot some photos and posted the recipe for you. I’ll add it to the ever-growing list of things I want to share with all of you…my lovely internet friends.
Because you ARE my friends….you keep coming back here to eat with me and listen (um….watch…read?) to me yammer on about crazy stuff that’s going on in my present, past and possible future. See….I’m off track again.
Since my freezer is adequately stocked for winter like we’re a family squirrels (except tomatoes instead of nuts…because we’re already nuts) I had to do something with the 30 bushels of tomatoes sitting around.
I whipped up a tomato and goat cheese crostata and paired it with a fresh bloody mary, then I imagined myself eating a crisp, buttery cracker topped with goat cheese and tomato jam. The problem, I didn’t have tomato jam so I played around with a recipe I had printed out a while ago with every intention of making it…canning it…and squirreling it away for winter. Let me tell you this….there’s no need to can it.
What is Tomato Jam? (Or tomato marmalade for that matter.)
Tomato jam is a sweet spread made with fresh tomatoes, sugar and a bit of spices. It’s cooked down to a jammy consistency and is perfect on top of that avocado toast everyone is posting on Instagram lately.
How do you make a Sweet Tomato Jam recipe?
Much different than a Savory Tomato Jam, which reminds me of a tomato sauce that’s overly thick, this sweet tomato jam is earthy and tangy and sticky and sweet.
You simply stir together the tomatoes, sugar and spices then cook down for a bit until it’s thick, sticky and….well, sweet. You can do this with regular tomatoes or make a cherry tomato jam recipe just the same way with those cute as a button cherry or grape tomatoes.
Why, you ask? Because it’s so good (and doesn’t make that much to begin with) you will eat all of this Easy Tomato Jam before it has a chance to go bad. And it’s so simple, with easy to find ingredients….it has a little kick to it from cayenne pepper and a beautiful spice from fresh ginger.
It goes swimmingly with the goat cheese I mentioned a little while ago and it would be amazing on some avocado toast for a quick, healthy breakfast. You really should make this very soon….really….go…go now.
If you’re not really in the tomato mood then you should DEF try this Easy Orange Marmalade recipe, it’s like the best ever with a little hint of vanilla OR whip up this super simple Strawberry jam, it’s so amazing and so incredibly easy. The the best ever refrigerator jam. And this FIG Jam is always a hit….great to save for the winter months as an epic freezer jam.
And I just used up the rest of the summer blueberries for this EASY Blueberry Jam that’s going in the freezer until winter. Cause I’m a planner like that….for now.
Easy Tomato Jam
Ingredients
- 2 pounds very good ripe tomatoes, cored and coarsely chopped, ( I used roma tomatoes)
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated or minced ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a heavy bottom saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil stirring frequently to prevent the bottom from burning.
- Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has thickened to the consistency of jam. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Do you leave the skins on the tomatoes?
Yes, I do not peel the tomatoes.
Can you do this in a crock pot?
I haven’t tested it in a crock pot so I can’t say for sure.
I haven’t test it in a crock pot so I can’t say for sure.
Do you peel the tomatoes?
I do not, I use the whole tomato.
This is my third tomato jam recipe I tried this year and it is by far my favorite. I doubled this recipe and used only cherry tomatoes. It took 2 hours of simmer time to get to a jam consistency. I put some in the fridge to eat now and some in the freezer for later. Can you tell me how long it will last in the freezer?
I freeze it for up to 6 months with great results.
Can you water bath for more stability and longevity
I haven’t tested with a water bath so I don’t know for sure.
Hi There,
A glut of tomatoes here at the moment so much appreciated for this, looking forward to giving it a whirl during the week – any idea approx how long it will keep in a sealed preserving jar (not refrigerated)?
Thanks in advance…
I haven’t tested for canning so I can’t be sure. I freeze mine.
I have all the ingredients to make this delicious sounding recipe except for cloves! Do you think allspice would work?
Allspice would work very well!
Delicious. I like to change recipes I find to make them my own so I used 5 different kinds of tomatoes from our garden, plus it was a little spicier than I wanted so I threw some honey in for fun. Took about an hour for mine to cook down incase anyone’s wondering.
Thank you, Krystle! Honey is a great addition to balance the heat. I’m happy you liked it!
I made this jam last years and loved it, so I’m making it again this year. I have lots of tomatoes and this is a great way to use them up.
Thank you for your comment! I love to hear that you make this each year, it is definitely a keeper.
My tomato jam turned out runier than I would like. Followed the recipe.
I made salsa the same day and it was much thicker. Not sure what happened.
Hi Morgan, you need to let it cook down. Some readers have commented their tomatoes took two hours to cook down, others only 30 minutes. It really depends on how much juice your tomatoes are holding on to.