# What am I going to do with all these TOMATOES?!?! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 22, 2019, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478 "2019-07-22T21:29:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/1 "2019-07-22T21:29:52Z")
Ok Dopers, last summer, some type of critters were taking bites out of all my ripe tomatoes (and is the plural really spelled with an E?). But this year, they are all intact and beautiful, and HUGE? But what the heck am I to do with all of them? I just picked about 40 large beefsteak tomatoes and have no idea what to do with them. Please send me ideas and recipes!! ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/2 "2019-07-22T21:37:00Z")
Can them: [https://www.youtube.com/results?search\_query=can+tomatoes](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=can+tomatoes) ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/3 "2019-07-22T21:40:37Z")
Local food pantry. Its summertime gardening season…spread around the food !!! ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/4 "2019-07-22T21:41:48Z")
You planted basil and peppers nearby, right? Because marinara! ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/5 "2019-07-22T21:53:59Z")
You can use them in Capresse salads or bruschettas, both of which make for great _antipasti_. Tomatoes also go well at the bottom of an egg muffin, especially when wrapped in capicola. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/6 "2019-07-22T21:56:19Z")
Make a very plain chunky tomato sauce, pour it into ziplock freezer bags (in portions you deem most useful in your kitchen), and freeze the bags. You can lie them flat one on top of each other, and they take up less freezer space. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/7 "2019-07-22T22:21:37Z")
> [@Cartooniverse](#): > > Local food pantry. > Its summertime gardening season…spread around the food !!! Always call first before donating perishables, to make sure they can take them. I second canning them, or freezing them if you don’t have the equipment. You can also cook them down into sauce, and you’d be surprised at how many maters it takes for enough sauce to make a meal. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/8 "2019-07-22T22:27:06Z")
Oh to have such a problem. I actually checked your location to see if I could help out in some way. 🙂 mmm ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/9 "2019-07-22T22:28:45Z")
Few years ago, I made ketchup. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/10 "2019-07-22T22:34:29Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > mmm Tarte à la moutarde? ~Max ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/11 "2019-07-22T23:13:15Z")
I’d gladly take them, but you’re on the opposite coast from me. A shame since I’m “Jones-ing” for homegrown tomatoes, big time. I normally get the ample surplus of my neighbor, but alas, this year she didn’t put a garden in. I never had a green thumb, and running across them in farmer’s markets are too hit & miss. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/12 "2019-07-22T23:39:04Z")
Take them to a bad movie/play and chuck them at the screen/performers. That’s a thing people do, right? Or have cartoons lied to me? ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/13 "2019-07-23T00:29:15Z")
> [@snfaulkner](#): > > Take them to a bad movie/play and chuck them at the screen/performers. That’s a thing people do, right? Or have cartoons lied to me? I would never lie to you. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/14 "2019-07-23T00:51:56Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Oh to have such a problem. > > I actually checked your location to see if I could help out in some way. 🙂 > mmm Ooooh. Whereabouts in CA might you be? I am in the Bay Area. _bambi eyes_ ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/15 "2019-07-23T01:07:11Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Oh to have such a problem. > > I actually checked your location to see if I could help out in some way. 🙂 > mmm You can have some of mine, but you’re going to have to take squash too. ETA: also in Bay Area ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/16 "2019-07-23T01:10:21Z")
Last night I made an eggplant sauce for meatballs and pasta. It called for canned tomatoes but I used fresh and it came out great. Now, does anyone have recipes for cherry tomatoes. I have two volunteer plants and if only half of the blossoms make tomatoes I’m going to be buried in them. I had a recipe that called for a ton but can’t find it, and Google searches haven’t yielded much of interest. Interesting that I had the something eating the tomatoes problem last year also but not this year, but I moved the plants. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/17 "2019-07-23T01:27:23Z")
My dad used to make soup, and freeze it. He drank homemade tomato soup for breakfast (basically tomato juice) for the rest of the year. I’m jealous. I have some green tomatoes, but judging by the rest of my garden, they will be eaten by critters before they ripen. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/18 "2019-07-23T02:55:18Z")
[Throw them at people?](https://images.indianexpress.com/2017/08/tomatina-759.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/19 "2019-07-23T03:30:35Z")
If you don’t want to go to the trouble of canning them yourself, I’d wager that you could barter some of them away to get the rest canned. I know several people in my area that will do this. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478/20 "2019-07-23T07:51:33Z")
Spaghetti sauce. I make gallons and gallon in the fall, freeze it and eat it all winter/spring long. It keeps very well. This year, home-grown garlic is in the mix! Want my recipe? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-am-i-going-to-do-with-all-these-tomatoes/837478.md?page=2)