Tomato Jam

By Mark Bittman

Published July 6, 2015

  • Evan Sung for The New York Times
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
1 hour 30 minutes, plus chilling
Rating
5(1,693)
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

  • 1 ½ pounds good ripe tomatoes (Roma are best), cored and coarsely chopped

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

  • 1 tablespoon fresh grated or minced ginger

  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin

  • ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 1 jalapeño or other peppers, stemmed, seeded and minced, or red pepper flakes or cayenne to taste

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving

58 grams carbs; 230 calories; 2 grams fiber; 535 milligrams sodium; 2 grams protein; 55 grams sugar

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
1,693 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.

kate

Do I need to peel the tomatoes?

TerryB

I make this with smoked cherry tomatoes and it’s chef’s kiss, especially spread over a block of cream cheese with crackers.

Evie

When you core a tomato, do you remove the seeds, or just the tough stem end?

Mindy

@Evie Just core it. No need to remove the seeds

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