My aunt changed how I think about canned tomatoes

I was over at my aunt's place last Tuesday helping her clean out her pantry and she pulled out a can of whole peeled tomatoes that had to be at least 2 years old. I said maybe toss it but she just laughed and said those are actually better for sauce because they break down smoother. She made a quick pasta sauce right there with just that can some garlic and a pinch of sugar and honestly it was way better than the crushed ones I always buy. I always thought older canned stuff loses flavor but she said with tomatoes the texture actually gets softer over time which makes them easier to cook with. Now I'm wondering if I've been tossing perfectly good cans for no reason. Anybody else got a stash of old canned goods they swear by?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_william11d ago

Well damn, she's totally right. I used to throw out old canned tomatoes too, but one time I was broke and used a can that was a year past the best by date and the sauce came out perfectly smooth. The texture really does soften up over time, and the flavor actually gets more concentrated, not worse like I thought. The whole "harder to break down" thing with fresh crushed tomatoes is real, older whole tomatoes just melt into the pan. I keep a rotating stash in my basement now, just for that reason. Ain't no reason to toss them unless the can is rusted or bulging.

clark.alex10d ago

A five year old can? @the_william, I gotta ask... did you look at it funny before you opened it or just crack it like normal? I found a dented can of San Marzanos in the back of my pantry once that was two years expired and the lid practically popped off by itself when I touched it. The tomatoes were this weird deep brown color and I just stared at them for a solid minute before deciding to risk it. Ended up being the richest sauce I've ever made, but the whole experience made me feel like I was inviting botulism to dinner.

diana_west279d ago

Totally agree with this. I found a dented can of whole tomatoes in my grandma's basement once that was probably 3 years old, made a soup with em and they just fell apart in the pot. Never looked at fresh crushed cans the same way since.