As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
My easy tutorial for dehydrating tomatoes teaches you the simple way(s) to preserve this tasty summer crop! This dried tomato recipe can be made in a food dehydrator or in the oven and will help you stock your pantry with these flavor-packed staples.
The end of the summer brings a delicious abundance of tomatoes.
When you don’t want to can one more tomato, your freezer is already full of frozen tomatoes, and you’ve already made endless batches of crockpot spaghetti sauce, it’s time to bring out the dehydrator!
Reader Review
“Great idea for using up those extra tomatoes!! I dehydrated mine with some, chopped fresh basil and they turned out perfectly dried at the 9 hour mark.
I pulverized half of these into a fine powder with my spice grinder for later use in soups or sauces.
The dried tomatoes make for an awesome snack. Thx for sharing your methodhere!!”
Bea
I have owned this dehydrator for at least a dozen years, and it has held up beautifully.
Sarah’s Cheat Codes
- I only use a serrated/bread knife or a cheese knife when prepping my tomatoes for dehydrating. These knives work best for cutting through the soft skin of tomatoes without crushing them.
- If I’m planning to use tomatoes for sauces, I make an effort to remove the seeds before drying, because it can help reduce the bitter aftertaste.
- Depending on the type of tomato I’m drying, I don’t always remove the skins. But when I do want the skins off, I place the tomatoes in boiling water for 30-60 seconds, and then scoop them out with a slotted spoon and blanch in ice water. The skins will slip right off! I love to dry the skins alongside the tomatoes for making tomato powder.
- For a delicious treat, sometimes I season the tomatoes while they dry. I sprinkle the tomatoes with fresh herbs (basil, rosemary, oregano, and parsley) and dry everything together.
Dehydrated Tomatoes Recipe {Dehydrator or Oven}
Equipment
Ingredients
- tomatoes
Instructions
Prepping the Tomatoes
- Cut Roma, cherry or plum tomatoes in half.tomatoes
- For larger slicing tomatoes, cut into slices about 3/4 inch thick. Do your best to make the slices consistent in size.
Dehydrating the Tomatoes
- Lay your tomatoes on the dehydrator trays. Don't let them touch and try not to overcrowd.
- Set the dehydrator to 135˚F.
- Allow tomatoes to dehydrate for 4 hours and then check on progress. If your trays are moveable, rotate them so that the trays on the bottom are now on top.
- Dry another 4-6 hours, or until the tomatoes are dry and chewy without any moisture when you touch them.
- Store in a jar or zipper bag at room temperature for 3-4 months (dry climates) or in the fridge/freezer for up to 6 months (humid climates).
Notes
- It’s optional to remove the skins, but it’s very easy if you choose to do so. Simply place tomatoes in boiling water for 30-60 seconds, and then scoop them out with a slotted spoon and blanch in ice water. The skins will slip right off! Dry the skins alongside the tomatoes for making tomato powder.
- Place tomatoes on baking drying racks set inside baking sheets.
- Place in the oven at the lowest temperature possible (usually 140-170˚F) and prop open the door with the handle of a wooden spoon. This allows condensation to escape instead of just settling back onto the tomatoes.
- Bake for 5-8 hours.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Get my Canning e-book!
It’s 51 pages of every helpful tip and trick you could want as a brand new canner, AND it includes 13 ad-free canning recipes that are designed to take you from novice to pro.
Bea’s review sounded so good that I made them, too. Mine were still flexible at 9 hours, so I let them go overnight. Still somewhat flexible, but they sure taste good!
Great idea for using up those extra tomatoes!! I dehydrated mine with some, chopped fresh basil and they turned out perfectly dried at the 9 hour mark.
I pulverized half of these into a fine powder with my spice grinder for later use in soups or sauces.
The dried tomatoes make for an awesome snack. Thx for sharing your method
here!!
The basil sounds absolutely delicious!
And I can’t say enough wonderful things about tomato powder. It’s so good in rice and soups!
Can these be rehydrated and used on sandwiches? If so, how would I go about that please?
To rehydrate dried foods, you can soak in warm water for 15-30 minutes.
That being said, I think you’d be disappointed with the texture of these on sandwiches. They’re much better on top of a saucy warm dish like pizza.
I just ordered the dehydrator through your page! Excited to start using it. Thanks for the recommendation!
I just got done dehydrating a batch of tomatoes that were going to go bad before we could eat them.. I do the same with zucchini and yellow squash. My problems are with the tomatoes.. they are gone within a day or two of dehydrating because I have a hoard of locust in my house.
They are pretty snackable aren’t they? 🙂