Monday, March 28, 2011

How to Use Tomato Powder

Last week I did a segment on  Valley Dish making a classic family favorite of ours. Eggs poached in tomato sauce.  I can't even tell you how much fun I had adapting this recipe to use...tomato powder! Monday being the day I try to share how to use food storage items. 

I did a post on Eggs in Tomato Sauce...and World Peace and in it I shared this  Israeli Egg dish called shakshuka. It seemed time for me to adapt it using food storage, since I loved it so much!   It also seemed like a perfect time to introduce folks to the basic "how to" on Tomato Powder.  Each #10 can has almost 50 1/4 cup servings, so it's very good for maximizing your space in food storage situations.  

 I had to giggle when one of my dear friends said to me, "What the heck-fire do you do with tomato powder?!" Well...I'm here to tell you that you use it anywhere you use tomato paste, tomato sauce, or tomato juice.  The perk is that it is shelf stable for up to 10 years! So no more throwing away cans of tomato sauce that have gone bad, burst, or had the acid eeek through them.  

Right off the can of  it says, "Substitute Tomato Powder in any dish that calls for tomato paste or sauce. It's perfect for stews, soups, Italian sauces, caseroles or pasta. Easily create homemade spaghetti sauce or put together a steaming soup with tomato powder. Tomato Powder can be rehydrated with a ratio of 1 part powder to 4 parts water, though this ratio can be altered to reach desired consistency for various recipes."

1⁄4  cup + 1⁄2  cup water= 6 oz.tomato sauce or 
3⁄4  cup tomato paste

 1/4 cup Dehydrated Onion, 1/4 cup dehydrated bell pepper, 2 tsp granulated garlic.




 

Added 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp black pepper (fresh ground).  I store my spice seeds whole so the shelf life is about quadruple what the ground spice shelf life is.  Just a handy little tip.  Added 1T paprika.
Add the spices to 1/2 cup tomato powder and 2 cups water for a thin tomato sauce.

I poached the 8 eggs in the sauce combination about 12 minutes and sprinkled generously with Kosher Salt...The Real Stuff sea salt.
Use tomato powder anywhere you use tomato sauce. From Pizza to ketchup...it's a great way to add tomato to your food storage!

It would be easy to make a meal mix using the 1/2 cup tomato powder, 1/4 cup onion, 1/4 cup bell pepper, 2 tsp garlic, 1 tsp cumin and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Put in a half pint jar and seal. To use for dinner:
 Just add 2 cups water until well combined.  Put in a pan and cook over medium heat, cracking eggs into the tomato sauce and cooking 12 minutes.

There you go. How to Use tomato powder!

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess

5 comments:

Gourmified said...

Oh my goodness! I just went to a Thrive party last week and was in LOVE with the tomato powder. Though I didn't end up buying it (I got the F.D. Pineapple and passionfruit yogurt for church treats for my kids), it's still on my list of things I want to have. Brilliant!

Goob said...

intrigued!

Anonymous said...

Whenever I try to make tomato soup with tomato powder, it turns our very grainy. What am I doing wrong?

tigerlille said...

To the person who reported that tomato soup made with tomato powder is grainy...3 years ago: use 1 1/2 cups boiling water to 1/4 cup tomato powder.

Unknown said...

Chef Tess I know that I have asked this in the past but I have an old brain and have forgotten. How much baking soda do you use to cut the acidity of the tomato powder. I did make up some meals with the tomato powder but they are too acidic for our taste and would like to tone them down without having to throw them out. thank you in advance for your response.

Denise Bahadar