Sun-dried tomatoes: make your own!

Until a few years back almost no one north of the Alps had heard of sun-dried tomatoes, whose natural habitat was the well-stocked pantry of the Italian home. 

Things have changed nowadays and this delicacy is widely available everywhere, but if deli jars are too expensive for your pockets and the supermarket offer feels too processed for your taste, we have a solution in everybody’s reach: make your own sun-dried tomatoes!

Even if you live where the penguins tread or in an unforgivingly wet climate, using an oven is a good approximation of the mediterranean way.

INGREDIENTS

There is no hard and fast rule as to which tomatoes you should use, but small varieties are the best. Our first choice is cherry tomatoes, firstly because they are very tasty; and secondly because they don’t take a lifetime to dry. You can also use oblong types (san marzano, piccadilly) even though you may need to remove some of the pulp.

UTENSILS

For the drying bit

You will need a metal grill or mesh so that air can circulate under and between your tomatoes. You may want to cover these with a food net to keep those pesky bugs and birds from pecking at your lunch.

For the preserving bit

You will need one of the following items:

• A vacuum machine.
• Freezing bags or containers.
• Glass jars.

SUN METHOD

Find a place in the sun for your grill / mesh. In Italy cherry tomatoes take 3-4 days to dry under the scorching August sun whereas larger varieties need up to one week. 

• Wash the tomatoes and cut them in half lengthwise.
• Place the tomatoes on a metal grill, spacing them out to maximise contact with air and sun.
• Place the grill under the sun.
• Store the tomatoes in the fridge overnight.
• Add salt to taste when they are almost ready.

OVEN METHOD

If for logistic or climatic reasons sun-drying isn’t an option, you can achieve a similar result using an oven. The process takes between four and six hours depending on the size of your tomatoes.

• Wash the tomatoes and cut them in half lengthwise.
• Place the tomatoes on a baking grill and the grill in a ventilated oven at 90ºC.
• Watch your tomatoes as they shrink.
• Add salt when they are close to being ready.

STORE YOUR TOMATOES

Ok, so now you have this amazing stash of sun-dried tomatoes for dozens of sandwiches and endless salads.

But how can you keep it?

You have three options:

1. Vacuum pack the tomatoes

If you have a vacuum packing machine… zip them in and store in the fridge. You can enjoy your tomatoes whenever you fancy, rehydrated in water or nice and chewy straight out of the bag.

2. Freeze them

Easy: place the tomatoes in some freezing bags and the freezing bags in the freezer.

3. Preserve them in oil

While the first two methods don’t require any additional explanation, preserving the tomatoes in oil is a bit more laborious. Here’s how to go about it:

• Choose a pretty glass jar; we love small ones because they look great in the pantry and make for a fantastic gift.
• Sterilise the jar and its cap in the dishwasher at 70ºC; you cannot wash your dirty dishes at the same time, so use this method only if you are sterilising multiple jars; if you are not mass-producing preserves, however, you can achieve the same result in ways that won’t destroy the environment.
• Place the sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl and add thinly sliced garlic to taste.
• Boil the tomatos and garlic for one minute in 95% water and 5% vinegar.
• Dry the mix with a paper towel.
• Sprinkle your chosen spice on it.
• Fill the jar and press down with a spoon to compact the tomatoes.
• Cover the tomatoes with high quality olive oil.
• Close the jar; you won’t need to sterilise it again or create a vacuum seal because oil is a great preservative.
• Keep the jar in the fridge and consume within 30 days.

SERVE YOUR TOMATOES

In your sweet pecorino sandwich, with smashed avocado on sourdough, or as an antipasto with mozzarella bites and almonds.

ENJOY!