Wondering what to do with all your summer tomatoes? This Tomato Jam is perfect! Sweet and savory it’s great on bread, with cheeses, burgers and sandwiches.
I LOVE tomatoes. Seriously. Love them. I could eat them every single day. I love tomato salads, I love tomato sauce, salsa and I even love mayo and tomato sandwiches. Basically tomatoes are my favorite.
It’s because of this love of tomatoes, that I decided to plant FIVE tomato plants this year. FIVE. To say that I went a little overboard is an understatement. Now I have got more tomatoes than I know what to do with.
It’s not a bad problem to have though.
Mostly I’ve just been salting them and eating them like candy. But after staring at an overwhelmingly full bowl of perfectly ripe summer tomatoes, I figured it was time to try a new recipe. Something that would use up a bunch of my tomatoes. And while tomato sauce is always an option, I wanted something a little different.
So I set my sights on this sweet and savory Tomato Jam Recipe made with sun ripened cherry tomatoes.
What do you need to make Tomato Jam?
You will only need a handful of ingredients to make this recipe.
- TOMATOES: For this recipe, and because of my abundance of cherry tomatoes, I decided to use cherry tomatoes. They are naturally sweet and work perfectly in this recipe. You could also use whatever tomatoes that you have on hand.
- BROWN SUGAR: For sweetness and helps thicken the jam.
- APPLE CIDER VINEGAR: For acidity.
- GARLIC: Adds to the savoriness of the jam.
- SALT
- BASIL: Because basil and tomatoes go so well together!
- CRUSHED RED PEPPER: To add a little heat!
DES’ PRO TIP: If you choose larger tomatoes, simply dice them first, it will help them cook down.
How to make Tomato Jam:
Tomato Jam is easy to make. You simply combine all of the ingredients together in a heavy bottom pot and cook it down until it reaches a jam consistency. See! Easy peasy!
Since you will be cooking the tomato jam for a long period of time, about 2 hours and there is a lot of sugar, you’ll want to make sure that the jam doesn’t burn. To ensure that your tomato jam doesn’t burn use a dutch oven and stir the jam often.
You will know that the jam has finished cooking when you can run your spoon through it and it doesn’t run.
How long does Tomato Jam last?
Because this is a refrigerator jam and not canned, it needs to be stored in the refrigerator and eaten within 10 days.
So if you find yourself with more tomatoes than you know what to do with, or if you just really love tomatoes like me, make this SavoryTomato Jam Recipe.
You’ll find that it is great on so many things. You can use it as a spread on sandwiches or burgers. Spoon it over fresh mozzarella and top with chopped basil for a twist on caprese salad, or simply eat it on a cracker.
You really can’t go wrong. It’s sweet n’ tangy summer bliss.
FAQ:
They have many of the same ingredients but they do have differences in taste and texture. Tomato jam is likely to have a sharper flavor than ketchup. Tomato jam is also chunkier than ketchup.
Yes! Both terms can be used to describe it.
Jelly is made from the juice of the fruit. Jam is made from mashed fruit.
Love tomatoes? Here are more recipes where they are the star:
Ribeye Steaks with Fresh Tomato Tapenade
More Condiment Recipes:
Note: This recipe was originally posted in 2019. It was updated in 2022.
Servings
Ingredients
- 2 pounds cherry tomatoes (about 3 cups halved, halved)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients together in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until you can run a spoon through it and no liquid fills the space.
- Chill and place into a glass jar. Refrigerate and use within 10 days.
[…] Tomato Jam is a great way to use summer tomatoes! […]
I’m SO happy to hear that you enjoyed this, Rhonda! I bet it is fab with goat cheese, I’m going to have to try that too. Also happy to know that you had success canning it :)
This is so delicious! We put it on a toasted baguette with goat cheese and a bit of fresh basil on top. I would like to share that I have indeed canned this recipe and it turned out great! I put it in jelly jars and water bath them. I made it last year and gave it away as Christmas presents. My family has already been asking about it. Also, my daughter used it to make a Tuscan chicken recipe. It’s a lot of work but the reward is worth it.
[…] 23. Tomato-Infused Jam […]
Hi Jen! I’ve never made it with frozen tomatoes before so I can’t say for sure.
Would frozen tomatoes work as well?
This should have enough sugar and acid to can like any other jam.
I’m not sure about canning because I don’t any experience with it. I know you need to have precise recipes for safety and I’m not sure this meets the requirements.
Would love to try this next year! Could I can it?
Barbara, I am glad you liked it and I will definitely have to try it on pork chops! If it was a fine sieve, I don’t think it would mess with it too much.
Great flaver and consistency. Would it ruin it if I put it through a sieve to get rid of the peel from the cherry tomatoes? We had to pick them out.
Great on pork chops!
That would be AMAZING.
I would LOVE to put this on a BLT. WOW!
My sungolds are crazy too! I bet you could! You could pretty much use any tomato you have on hand :)
I want to make this jam. It must be so delicious!
I love summer tomatoes too, but my cherry tomato plants didn’t do fabulous this year. My Sungolds are going crazy though! I’m thinking I could make this with those!
This looks absolutely delicious! Yummy!
I have been looking for something tasty to make with all of these tomatoes. This sounds irresistable!
I have so many things I wanna try this on !
I was looking for a new recipe for all my tomatoes! This is a must make!