Rather than tossing the rest of the can, portion out leftover tomato paste and freeze it! It’s quick and easy, saves money, and reduces waste.
Tomato paste is a secret weapon in the kitchen. It’s highly concentrated and boosts the flavors of soups and stews. It’s also essential in many Mediterranean cuisines. Back when I started cooking on my own (eons ago!), my usual routine was to buy the little six-ounce can of tomato paste, measure out what I needed for a recipe, then put the rest of the can in the fridge.
Which is where it sat. And sat. Until… well, until I finally threw it out.
What a waste! (Though the six-ounce can costs only about 60 cents, I hate wasting things. I mentioned I’m frugal, didn’t I?)
But one day, a light bulb went off: Why couldn’t I freeze it?
So I tried it. And it freezes beautifully and defrosts enough to use in just a few minutes on the kitchen counter. Plus, it’s so handy to have it on hand, already measured out and ready to use. Now you may be thinking, “Well, I’ll just buy the little 4-ounce tube, right?” Those tubes run $2 or more, which is 50 cents per ounce, compared to around 10 cents per ounce for the store-brand tomato paste in a can. And be honest – if you buy the tube, how much of it spoils before you can use it? Hmmm? 🙂
Here’s my method: Rather than the six-ounce can, I buy the larger 12-ounce can of tomato paste. I lay out a square of cling wrap, then measure out tablespoons of tomato paste and space them about three inches in from the edge of the wrap, and two inches apart:
Most of my recipes call for just a tablespoon or two, so I find it easiest to portion by tablespoons. Here I’m using a disher that I got at a restaurant supply store. (I also use the same disher for portioning cookie dough and other things. It’s a handy and inexpensive tool!) A tablespoon works just fine too, but it’s a little messier.
Next, I bring the two-inch piece of cling wrap up over the measured tomato-paste portions and use my delicate hands (HAH!) to press the wrap between each portion, sealing them as tight as I can.
Next, I turn the cling wrap around and repeat the process on the other end of the cling wrap. While I’ve tried packaging more than about six portions per piece of wrap, I find that any more than that becomes difficult to seal and difficult to get apart when I’m ready to use them.
You can see the finished batch of pre-measured portions in the photo at the top of this post. When I need tomato paste for a recipe, I just grab the bag from the freezer and scissor off the number of tablespoons I need.
I’ve found they’ll thaw enough to easily release from the cling wrap after 5 or 10 minutes at room temperature. For most soups, stews, etc. it doesn’t seem to matter if the tomato paste is still a bit frozen when you add it; thaw it longer if you prefer.
I hope you find this little tip helpful!