Canning Black Tomatoes?
 

I have an abundance of Carbon tomatoes. I know acid level is a concern for canning yellow or even pink tomatoes..what about ones?

I canned about 50 litres of tomato sauce made from black or black/purple tomatoes in the last 2 years. I recently used a jar from 2 years ago that was made from black and purple tomatoes and it was delicious...no problems...and smelled great straight out of the jar (no onions or garlic yet added - which only could be called a bonus addition afterwards). I've used Carbon, Black Krim, Black from Tula and Purple Cherokee in the past. I'll be expanded upon that list this year and in the future.

Low acid
 

[quote=ddrsheden;139795]I have an abundance of Carbon tomatoes. I know acid level is a concern for canning yellow or even pink tomatoes..what about ones?[/quote]

ALL tomatoes have the same acid, except jet star, and can be canned in the normal manner.

Icelord

all tomatoes have the same acid, but not the same acid levels.

not sure how much it may effect canning, but does effect taste.

Tom

While paste tomatoes tend to have a higher pH, others are similar in acid (pH) ranging generally between 4.2 and 4.8. There is not a meaningful correlation between tomato color and pH, so no reason the think black or pink tomatoes will have a higher pH. The pH varies more with ripeness, soil and growing conditions than color or variety.

For canning, the rule of thumb is that a pH above 4.6 requires adding acid and/or pressure canning to avoid botulism. Most tomatoes are below 4.6 but about 15% of samples test above. Other factors affect pH as well in canning, such as degree of ripeness and added vegetables. Therefore most experts recommend adding acid to all canned tomato products whether canned in a BWB or pressure canner. This can be done with vinegar, lemon juice, or citric acid, the latter having the lease effect on taste.

Here is some good reading on the subject:

[URL]http://www.uwex.edu/ces/cty/pepin/flp/documents/B2605-TomatoesTartandTasty.pdf[/URL]

TomNJ