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Source for tomato powder?

kitchendetective

12 years ago

Would you mind sharing where you purchase or order tomato powder? I am almost finished with the little I have and do not recall where I purchased it. The market that I thought would carry it does not. Do you have a favorite brand and/or source?

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Comments (18)

jude31
12 years ago
Penzey's???

jude
annie1992
12 years ago
Hello, Jude, I'm glad to see you again! How is the hubs doing?

I bought some at The Spice House, I don't think Penzey's has it. I will caution you, though, it has to be stored correctly (in the refrigerator, I think), or it will turn into a big chunk of tomato cement. I threw mine away, it couldn't even be chipped out of the jar. I tried covering it with water to make paste, but that didn't work either.

So, don't buy more than you can successfully keep!

Annie
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The tomato powder is fine granules and no seeds or skins, unless they are also powderized(?). Bright red color and free flowing like sugar. I keep mine in the fridge and its been lasting a long time. Far longer than sundried halves, which tend to darken. A nice meaty tomato with minimal seeds and liquid has to be the Oxheart. Being, round, and pointed at the bottoms, any way you slice them, you never see big liquid cavities and seeds inside. Use these with some good paste types too. The newer auger (conical strainers) type food strainer (dare I say that name again?) can help to get rid of ALL seeds and skins, and leaves you with pure puree and nothing else. Even for that, the optional screen for salsa will give a minced texture, but will includea few seeds but no skins. After I tried cooking down the waste of seeds and skins, I ended up with anauful tasting goo. No prepping needed for the food strainer, no blanch, no peel, no deseed, no nothing. Only thing that IS needed is to cut the toms down to the round 2 inch opening, or face a big squirt out of the big hopper. Photos for these strainer are everywhere here, unless they were all deleted.
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I'm in Zone 5, right on the edge of Zone 4, and like KatieC I find that a 60 day tomato takes about 80 days here. So much for Early Girl, it's no earlier than my favorite Rutgers or Bonnie Best. No greenhouse, no cold frame, no hoop house. I did use those little wax paper covers one year and found that the ground was so cold that it didn't help to get the tomatoes in the ground earlier anyway. In the summer our humidity hovers in the 90% or more and I'm 40 miles from Lake Michigan, so I have that extra dampness, but I also have the Lake's micro-climate. So, I grow tomatoes by the bushel, from my old favorites to newer hybrids like SunGold to old heirlooms like Taxi and Mortgage Lifter. I tried covering them for the first couple of frosts a couple of times, but that didn't work well either, so I'm stuck with basically a 90 day growing season. I've never tried tomato powder, and I get tomato paste in a tube, but I might have to give it a shot. I make little to no tomato based sauces and I did dehydrate the little cherry tomatoes one year and found them to be way over rated and a lot of trouble. Could the powder be made to last longer if it were frozen? A container of powdered dehydrated tomato would take a lot less freezer room than frozen whole tomatoes... Annie
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I'll toss in one more method for tomato powder. If you process tomatoes in hot water to remove the skins for slicing, freezing, dehydrating or canning, you can dehydrate the skins, which dry quickly. Place the crispy dried skins in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and make it into powder in a coffee/spice mill as needed. Because there are no additional ingredients to keep it free-flowing, if you powder your dried tomato skins too far ahead of time, they will compact due to moisture during storage. If you do make some powder ahead, store it in the refrigerator where it's a dry environment due to the frost-free cycle. To use dried tomato skins - powdered, 1:1 ratio with water for tomato paste, 1:2 ratio with water for tomato sauce, or any thickness you'd like. Here's a how\-to from "Making and Using Dried Foods" for making dehydrated tomato puree, which can be used as tomato leather and also crispy dried and made into powder. I've used this method in the past and kept the cut sheets of dehydrated puree in the freezer if I stop dehydrating while the tomato leather is still pliable. How to: \[Grainlady note: If you use this method, I'd go ahead and skin the tomatoes and make dried skins into tomato powder as well.\] Core and cut up ripe tomatoes without peeling. Simmer for 10\-minutes, stirring occasionally to keep from sticking. Cool slightly and force cooked pulp through a food mill, colander, or strainer. In a shallow pan over low heat or in an electric skillet set at 260\-degrees F, cook juice down to a thick puree. (You will find a similar recipe from the National Center for Home Food Preservation at the link below.) Cover trays with plastic wrap, or use fruit leather sheets, and spread a 1/8\-inch layer on the surface. \[Grainlady note: If you have a small off\-set spatula, this will make the task of spreading easy.\] Dry at the highest heat setting for 12\-14\-hours, or until firm, top is hard but sticky, and puree can be pulled away from plastic wrap. Turn over, remove plastic and discard. Dry for another 12 to 14 hours, or until hard and dry. Break into pieces and dry for another 3\-4 hours. \[Grainlady note: You can cut the sheets into equally\-sized pieces with kitchen scissors so they dry more evenly than breaking into pieces.\] To make tomato powder: Pound pieces of dried tomato puree to a fine powder using a pestle, grater, blender, or food processor. To use: For tomato puree or paste, add 1/2 to 3/4 c. powder to each cup boiling water. Stir well until dissolved and season to taste. For tomato juice, add 1 T. tomato powder to each cup boiling water. Add 1 T. powder to each cup liquid in soups, stews, or sauces. \-Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: [NCFHFP \- Drying Vegetable Leather](http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/dry/veg_leathers.html)
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fishymom
12 years ago
Amazon has it also.
kitchendetective
Original Author
12 years ago
Gosh, mine didn't clump at all. It's in a plastic jar. However, I didn't get that much because I wasn't sure that I'd use it, but I have used it a lot. Maybe it has an anti-caking agent, but it wasn't supposed to have anything but tomato in it. I think you can freeze it, but mine is just in the pantry. Nearest Penzey's does not have it, nor online, as far as I can tell.
annie1992
12 years ago
Nope, as I said, my Penzey's doesn't carry it, but their "sister" business, The Spice House, did. Mine wasn't a very big bottle but I just didn't use it very much. (shrug) It sat for maybe two months in the cupboard in the glass jar, and turned into a rock. I'd never used it before, and I didn't find it useful enough to buy any more, so although I'm sure you can probably get it from lots of places, I'm no help with any other brands or sources.

I know someone else here was also complaining that theirs turned hard and they couldn't use it....

Annie
Lars
12 years ago
I got mine at Harmony House, and I also recommend buying small quantities, due to the clumping factor. They have a lot of other dried vegetables, and I did like their mushrooms, although I normally buy those at a Japanese market. I bought the mixed vegetables and used those for soup.

Lars
grainlady_ks
12 years ago
For a variety of smaller amounts - The Spice House.

1/2 cup shaker jar, net wt. 3.5 oz. - $4.99
1 cup shaker jar, net wt. 7 oz. - $8.99
2 cup spoon-out jar, net wt. 14 oz. - $15.99

Home Food Storage:
Emergency Essentials has two sizes:
-MyChoiceÃ¢ÂÂ¢ Tomato Powder - 17 oz.- $8.50 ($.37 per ounce)
-Provident PantryÃÂ® Tomato Powder - 64 oz. - $22.95 ($.36 per ounce)

Honeyville Grain also carries it in #10 cans, but is out-of-stock just now. The nice thing about ordering from Honeyville Grain is shipping is $4.49 for your entire order.

Augason Farms - #10 can - $29.89 - 3-pounds 10-ounces

Tomato powder clumps due to exposure to moisture.

When purchasing in a 64-oz. (#10 can size) can, place the tomato powder in smaller containers (pint or 1/2-pint jars), and if you have a FoodSaver, vacuum-seal them using the jar sealer attachment. Store the jar you are using from in your refrigerator, which happens to be a dry environment due to the frost-free feature. Otherwise, tomato powder is shelf-stable at room temperature (70-degrees F.) or colder.

When using it, try to avoid letting the container sit open any longer than necessary. If you do have some clumping, you can break it apart with the back of a spoon, or by grating the clumps on a box grater or microplane. Clumping means the contents of the jar were exposed to moisture (from high humidity in the room). You can also add a moisture absorbing "pillow" to the top of the container and that will help prevent clumping. Or make a sachet of rice to place in the top of the container to absorb moisture.

-Grainlady
kitchendetective
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you for all your help. I recall the brand now: Mother Earth Products. I am not finding it, so far, online, though.

Okay, I found it by using a different search engine.

This post was edited by kitchendetective on Sun, Mar 23, 14 at 10:46
jude31
12 years ago
Annie, thanks for asking about Bob. A blood clot was found in his right leg and he had a tremendous amount of fluid, as well. He went to the hospital for treatment. As it turned out he is in rehab now, hopefully coming home soon. We have a meeting with members of the staff tomorrow so we should find out then.

jude
teresa_nc7
12 years ago
iHerb has a pound bag of Frontier tomato powder for less than $20; buy a few more items and get free shipping.

Teresa

Here is a link that might be useful: Frontier powdered tomato at iHerb
kalapointer
12 years ago
I buy my favorite tomato powder from the Savory Spice Shop. They originally started in Denver, but now there are many shops across the country or you can order online. I have attached a link to their web site.

Here is a link that might be useful: Savory Spice Shop
kitchendetective
Original Author
12 years ago
And there is one a mile from where I am sitting at this moment! I had no idea!
kalapointer
12 years ago
KitchenD - I hope you have time to visit their shop. It is fun to see all the spices and other things they carry. Savory Spice mixes their own blends. Are you in Colorado?
kitchendetective
Original Author
12 years ago
Central Texas. I had a great time talking to the manager and picked up some tomato powder. Thank you for the tip.
mustangs81
12 years ago
Thanks for the heads up on storage of the powder. I purchased a good amount when Peppi took me to the Spice House in Chicago. I will be buying more online so I will tryout some of the sources recommended.

*Jude, I'm sorry to hear about Bob. I hope he can come home soon. My HG is in the 3rd week (6 weeks total) of hyperbaric chamber therapy; he is not a happy camper. I keep telling him "Michael Jackson slept in one voluntarily."
beverlyLynch
12 years ago
Harmony House is one good option
beverlyLynch
12 years ago
Harmony House is one good option
sleevendog (5a NY 6aNYC NL CA)
12 years ago
I would be more concerned about where it is sourced and how it is processed.
Where is it from. How is it dehydrated. Or spray dried. That would be processed tomato paste and then air dried at 1000 temp. No spice house has a cute garden out back.
They get big sacks of tomato flour. From a processor in China? Then just put it in containers with cute labels. How else could they afford storefronts with employees.
(5 cent spice in a 20 cent jar with a designer label.)
It is a processed product. And we all know once dehydrated, condensed, is sugar.

I would rather see a full tomato dehydrated, then choose to grind it. I want a spice to be at least in its own shape without the unknown. Who knows the additives. We don't know nor do we have the tax dollars to sit someone at every entry port to test what comes in...

I'm not sure what the use is. I've not really liked tomato paste and have not used it in years. Powered spices in any form is a mystery, and a moneymaker for those that sell it.
I like my spices whole and a 20$ grinder.

Don't mean to be a 'sad-sack-sally' but a container of Canada or US hot house cherry toms cut in half and slow roasted using oven heat from another dish...and a handfull of grapes cut in half...lots of flavor and you know what it is. fridge or freeze.

Use whole foods and wash and processes yourself.

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