If you are from New Jersey, then you probably know about amazing Jersey tomatoes! That is when I went searching and testing different tomato juice recipes to see how I can use all those extra tomatoes that our summer season brings.
I played around a bit and came up with a couple of tomato juice drinks I can now enjoy all year round. While I do think our red ripe August tomatoes bring the best flavors, there are so many other varieties that work will too.
Tomato Juice Recipes
There are so many amazing ways to enjoy tomatoes – from sandwiches to additions to meals, but drinking them is probably one of my favorite ways to enjoy them. They are nutrient rich and offer so many health benefits like reducing the risk of heart issues, detoxifying the body and helping with digestions.
So, stop buying those store bought tomato juices that are filled with sodium and ingredients you cannot pronounce, and take a chance on making your own with these easy recipes. Below are 2 of my favorite juice recipes that focus on tomatoes – and a few healthy extras.
Homemade Tomato Lemon Juice
The most significant benefit of making tomato lemon juice is that you get the best of both worlds.
When it comes to tomato juice recipes, many people rarely try punch recipes either because they’re unaware of how tasty alcoholic smoothie recipes containing tomatoes are, or are simply okay with their typical juice recipe.
Tomatoes have different tastes depending on their level of ripeness or the balance of sugar and acidity in them. While it’s advisable to use the ripest tomatoes available at your disposal, you can improve the sweetness of your juice by adding a little bit of sugar. For this drink, you can use tomato paste instead if you want to shorten the preparation time.
Total Time
- 10 mins
Yield
- 6 quarts
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped tomatoes / 6-ounce tomato paste
- 2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 cups water, more if needed
- 1/4 teaspoon salt to taste
Preparation
As with most blender smoothie recipes, you can use your blender to effectively pulverize fruits, seeds and vegetables. First, wash and cut tomatoes into quarters and put them in one saucepan. Bring them to boil while stirring to crush the tomatoes. Reduce heat and simmer for five minutes.
Using a food mill, remove the skins and seeds. Put all ingredients (including lemon juice) into your blender, and then blend them until smooth.
Proceed to pour this mixture into a 1/2 gallon container and add three cups of water into it while stirring. Remember to cover the drink before storing it inside the fridge to thicken for an hour or two.
Related post: Best juicer to make celery juice
Homemade Canned Tomato Juice
Fruits and vegetables are known to not only be tasty but remarkably healthy as well. If you’ve tried canned tomato juice before, then you already know how tasty it is. If you like making juices that require a short preparation time, then learn how to make grape juice and this canned tomato juice.
Depending on how thick you want your homemade juice to be, you’re free to adjust the quantity of water accordingly. Keep in mind that when preparing a canned tomato juice, you need to add either citric acid or lemon juice to your mixture to increase its acidity.
This is because most modern tomatoes aren’t acidic enough. So, adding lemon juice changes the pH of the mixture. And as a result, there’ll be no room for bacteria to grow.
Prep Time
- 40 mins
Cook Time
- 20 mins
Total Time
- 60 mins
Yield
- 1 quarts
Ingredients
- 4 pounds of regular-sized tomatoes
- 1 cup of water
- Lemon juice
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 teaspoon onion salt
- 1/4 teaspoon celery salt
Preparation
- Wash tomatoes thoroughly and cut them into quarters.
- Pour them into a large stockpot with very little water (preferably just one cup).
- Bring to a boil.
- Use a food mill to remove seeds and skin, then proceed to discard seeds and skin.
- Pour the juice into a stockpot and boil it for the second time while adding regular salt, onion salt, and celery salt.
- When boiling is complete and you are ready to jar or can your juice, add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice into quart-sized jars.
- Pour in tomato juice while leaving about half an inch of air space in each jar.
Prepare Your Juice Like a Pro
Whichever way you slice your tomatoes, preparing tomato juice is one of the easiest things you can do to show your body that you love it. The recipes above are meant to be inspiring, so do not be afraid to make them your own by adding other elements.
You can add a little bit of celery, a touch of tabasco sauce, or even some spices to give it a kick that your tastebuds will thank you for.
