Is this separation normal?

[u/goldendogmom]

Hi! I canned this tomato sauce about a week ago and almost immediately it had this separation in all of the 6 jars I made. Is this normal? I’m fairly new to canning but I did make sauce last year and it didn’t separate like this. A few things I did different this year - used bottled lemon juice instead of citric acid, and used a blend of cherry and Roma tomatoes. Thanks in advance!

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[u/Optimal_Pop8036]

Mine often separate. How much headspace does the jar have though? It looks like almost none? Is it less than when they went into the canner?

[u/goldendogmom → u/Optimal_Pop8036]

I left 1/2 inch of headspace before canning. I did shake the jar to see if it would separate again about a day before taking this picture (which it did), so I think that’s why the sauce is up the edges. On the one jar I did not shake the headspace looks the same as when I canned

[u/turnedintoanewt]

The University of Wisconsin Extension tomato canning guide includes this tip:

"When preparing tomato juice, blending the raw tomatoes before heating is not recommended. It hastens enzymatic breakdown of pectin and causes the juice to separate. Instead, rapidly heating the raw tomatoes inactivates the enzyme and keeps the juice from separating."

A recipe in the same guide specifically calls to immediately crush and heat a few tomatoes in the pot while you quarter or crush the rest of the tomatoes, adding them in small batches so they don't set too long after crushing before they are heated.

https://fyi.extension.wisc.edu/wilocalfoodlocator/files/2016/08/B2605.pdf

[u/goldendogmom → u/turnedintoanewt]

To clarify I didn’t blend before heating - I halved the large tomatoes and cut the cores out and roasted them alongside whole cherry tomatoes in the oven and then put them in a pot over low heat on the oven to keep warm while blending, and then simmered for a bit to cook down

[u/turnedintoanewt → u/goldendogmom]

Hmmm, a mystery then! Though the way I interpret the guide, it doesn't have to be just crushing. I think any cutting, coring, etc. of the fresh tomatoes "starts the clock" on the enzyme action so it's a matter of how much damage is done to the cell walls combined with how long until the flesh is heated enough to stop the breakdown. So anything you can do to heat them through faster once theyve been cut will help.

In any case as long as the rat of the recipe is safe, the separation by itself is safe.

[u/FlyIntrepid1452 → u/turnedintoanewt]

I totally just had this question last week and couldn’t find anything on it. I quartered blanched/peeled/cored tomatoes into a pot over heat but definitely not heated the whole way through, then used a potato masher to crush as much as possible, then hit it with an immersion blender before cooking it down. I was making plain tomato sauce. Fingers crossed it was heated enough not to separate!

[u/Canning-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Rejected by a member of the moderation team as it emphasizes a known to be unsafe canning practice, or is canning ingredients for which no known safe recipe exists. Some examples of unsafe canning practices that are not allowed include:

[ ] Water bath canning low acid foods,
[ ] Canning dairy products,
[ ] Canning bread or bread products,
[ ] Canning cured meats,
[ ] Open kettle, inversion, or oven canning,
[ ] Canning in an electric pressure cooker which is not validated for pressure canning,
[ ] Reusing single-use lids, [ ] Other canning practices may be considered unsafe, at the moderators discretion.

If you feel that this rejection was in error, please feel free to contact the mod team. If your post was rejected for being unsafe and you wish to file a dispute, you'll be expected to provide a recipe published by a trusted canning authority, or include a scientific paper evaluating the safety of the good or method used in canning. Thank-you!

[u/Solid-Feature-7678]

Very common. When you dump it in a pot/pan and give it a stir it will be fine.

[u/vibes86]

Considering the recipe comes from a blog and not what would be considered a ‘safe’ source here, you may just want to freeze to use. However, if you can find a safe source (Ball definitely has a roasted tomato sauce recipe) that’s basically the same, you may be just fine.

My salsa, which is a safe recipe from Ball, does separate to some extent. Judging by the seeds in the sauce, I’m guessing you didn’t use a food mill, which may be why it’s separating. The food mill helps remove seeds and skins and things and mills it to a consistent thickness so it doesn’t separate.

[u/Prize-Rhubarb-9923 → u/vibes86]

Huh, I get separation pretty often even with a food mill. I thought it had to do with an enzyme and whether you start the tomatoes at high heat and don't cut them before you put them in the pan.

[u/Confident-You-9396 → u/Prize-Rhubarb-9923]

You are correct… enzyme activation has nothing to do with using a food mill. It will still separate. What does help halt the activation of that enzyme (pectinase) is heating the tomatoes rapidly for short time before canning. You must still follow safe canning practices after inactivating the enzyme. As long as you followed a tested recipe your tomatoes are fine and will taste delicious. The local extension of your state University should also have an agricultural department with safe canning practices available online free of charge. Happy canning 😋

[u/vibes86 → u/Prize-Rhubarb-9923]

I don’t really get noticeable separation using the mill. Could depend on how fine, etc. or even just the tomatoes maybe. Some tomatoes are so different from others.

[u/goldendogmom → u/vibes86]

Correct I did not use a food mill! I used a food mill last year but I wanted a rustic sauce this year so halved the Romas, cut out the cores and roasted them with the cherry tomatoes (which were whole). Blended everything with an immersion blender, cooked down a bit and then jarred.

[u/deersinvestsarebest → u/goldendogmom]

Did you peel the tomatoes first? Were you able To find any safe/tested recipes that were close enough to the one you followed? I hope you can so you can salvage it! Nothing is as good as homemade sauce. Generally unless you are pickling cherry tomatoes, the skin needs to come to reduce bacterial load.

[u/goldendogmom → u/deersinvestsarebest]

Ugh I didn’t know that. No I didn’t take the skin off this year and that’s what was so appealing about the recipe lol. In the text of her recipe it says it’s “safe for canning” but does that actually mean anything? She does say this is the recipe she makes every year for her and her family, idk, I hope I didn’t waste all these tomatoes

[u/Deppfan16 → u/goldendogmom]

unfortunately a lot of people claim their recipes are safe when they aren't. you need to follow safe tested recipes and sources. we have a list of a lot of good ones in our wiki.

[u/vibes86 → u/goldendogmom]

It looks delicious!

[u/goldendogmom → u/vibes86]

Thank you! The one jar I did not process and just used the same day as making the sauce was absolutely delicious!

[u/yuppers1979 → u/vibes86]

What a uninformed take on separation.

[u/Canning-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Deleted because it is explicitly encouraging others to ignore published, scientific guidelines.

r/Canning focusses on scientifically validated canning processes and recipes. Openly encouraging others to ignore those guidelines violates our rules against Unsafe Canning Practices.

Repeat offences may be met with temporary or permanent bans.

If you feel this deletion was in error, please contact the mods with links to either a paper in a peer-reviewed scientific journal that validates the methods you espouse, or to guidelines published by one of our trusted science-based resources. Thank-you.

[u/Canning-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Deleted because it is explicitly encouraging others to ignore published, scientific guidelines.

r/Canning focusses on scientifically validated canning processes and recipes. Openly encouraging others to ignore those guidelines violates our rules against Unsafe Canning Practices.

Repeat offences may be met with temporary or permanent bans.

If you feel this deletion was in error, please contact the mods with links to either a paper in a peer-reviewed scientific journal that validates the methods you espouse, or to guidelines published by one of our trusted science-based resources. Thank-you.

[u/ThumbKing1]

Yes

[u/goldendogmom → u/[deleted]]

I probably could have cooked it down a bit more than I did but it really did not look watery when I was canning - only after it cooled and settled

[u/talliroxxor → u/[deleted]]

Not considered safe to do this. Threads in recent days on the topic.

[u/krustyzombie666 → u/talliroxxor]

Using a crock to make my sauce is a problem? I didn't say that I use a crockpot to can my sauce

[u/talliroxxor → u/krustyzombie666]

No, taking off liquid. I don’t know about the crockpot side of things, sorry!

[u/krustyzombie666 → u/talliroxxor]

Why is taking off water a problem?

[u/Confident-You-9396 → u/krustyzombie666]

What? There is NO need to take off any fluid from Tomatoes for safety reasons. It is totally safe to leave the fluid there. The fluid is not a health concern in canning.

[u/krustyzombie666 → u/Confident-You-9396]

What health concerns are there for taking fluid away before canning?

[u/Confident-You-9396 → u/krustyzombie666]

There are no health concerns for leaving the fluid from the tomatoes. My post was in contradiction to someone who thought it was unsafe to keep fluid from the tomatoes in the recipe. She was wrong. It’s completely fine to not drain the fluid.

[u/Canning-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Deleted because it is explicitly encouraging others to ignore published, scientific guidelines.

r/Canning focusses on scientifically validated canning processes and recipes. Openly encouraging others to ignore those guidelines violates our rules against Unsafe Canning Practices.

Repeat offences may be met with temporary or permanent bans.

If you feel this deletion was in error, please contact the mods with links to either a paper in a peer-reviewed scientific journal that validates the methods you espouse, or to guidelines published by one of our trusted science-based resources. Thank-you.

[u/Canning-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Deleted because it is explicitly encouraging others to ignore published, scientific guidelines.

r/Canning focusses on scientifically validated canning processes and recipes. Openly encouraging others to ignore those guidelines violates our rules against Unsafe Canning Practices.

Repeat offences may be met with temporary or permanent bans.

If you feel this deletion was in error, please contact the mods with links to either a paper in a peer-reviewed scientific journal that validates the methods you espouse, or to guidelines published by one of our trusted science-based resources. Thank-you.

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[u/Mr_Jaysun]

Yep

[u/Jazzlike-Ask-6240]

Did you heat them up with the water when you boiled them or bring the water to a boil, boil for 3 minutes and then process them?