Dried tomato powder is an underrated pantry staple. It is easy to make, either from whole tomatoes or parts of tomatoes that would otherwise become compost or waste.
You can even make it from dried tomatoes you made before or from sundried tomatoes you purchased elsewhere.
This is great news for tomato growers, who frequently find themselves with an abundance of tomatoes to use up (especially at the end of a summer garden growing season).
It’s also good news for people who frequent farmers’ markets or for home cooks. Any time you have extra tomatoes to use up before they go bad. A little or a lot, it’s worth drying those tomatoes to make into tomato powder and stop them from becoming food waste!
There are many ways to use tomato powder, too. Once you start using it, you won’t want to be without it.
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What Parts of Tomatoes to Use for Making Tomato Powder
There are a few different options when it comes to what parts of the tomato you should use for making tomato powder.
- Use the skins peeled from saucing or canning tomatoes
- Use sliced whole dried tomatoes
- Use chopped or sliced dried tomatoes that have had the seeds removed
There are advantages to each of these options.
- Using the skins and byproducts left over from canning projects is an excellent way to reduce tomato waste and use all or most of the tomato
- Using sliced and dried tomatoes is just one step further than making “sun dried” tomatoes, so you can just take some of what you’ve dried and then pulverize it into a powder; these often will have seeds in the powder, though, which is fine but is also a personal choice and preference
- Removing just the seeds and then drying the tomatoes, then pulverizing them gives you a larger amount of powder with no (or very few) seeds; you don’t have to peel the tomatoes -- use the peels, too; just cut in half, scoop out the seeds, then slice, dry, and powder
How to Make Tomato Powder
Making tomato powder starts with drying or dehydrating your tomatoes.
If you have dried tomatoes on your pantry shelf, skip the drying step and go straight to making the powder.
If you are using the leftover peels and byproducts, simply spread those out in a single layer on a mesh tray or parchment sheet and dehydrate them as you would for whole tomato slices or diced pieces.
If you are drying whole tomatoes, slice them into slices that are about ¼ to ½ inch thick.
- Slice round slicing-type tomatoes crosswise, as you would for sandwiches or fresh eating
- Slice plum and Roma or sauce types lengthwise, from the stem end to the blossom end
- Do not peel the tomatoes first -- that’s just more fiber, bulk, and goodness for your tomatoes!
- Cherry and grape tomatoes are good to use, too -- just cut them in half
- If you want to get rid of extra seeds, cut the tomatoes in half first, scrape out the seed cavities, then finish slicing the tomato
To dehydrate,
- Dry in a dehydrator set to 135 to 145℉ (57 to 62℃)
- You can also use your home oven if its temperature goes low enough to dry without cooking the tomatoes
- Spread out in single layers
- Dehydrate for 8 to 12 hours or until done
Peelings will not usually take as long to dehydrate as whole tomato slices, so check them more frequently (plant for about half the time, but let the product guide you and make sure it is dried completely before proceeding).
Turning Dried Tomatoes into Powder
After your tomatoes are completely dried, let them sit until they are cooled completely (cool at room temperature, not in a refrigerator).
- Place the dried tomatoes in a blender*, food processor, or coffee** or herb grinder
- Pulse to grind and powder the tomatoes
- Continue to pulse and grind until the tomatoes are the consistency you want
- You can make the powder as fine or as rough as you like, but most people prefer a fairly fine powder for tomato powder
*What online dehydrating groups highly recommend for this is a personal-sized blender (such as what you’d use for personal smoothies). Fit this with the flat blade accessory, and it does an excellent job with all sorts of tomato, herb, and vegetable grinding.
Find them here:
**If you are using a coffee grinder, it should be dedicated to grinding dried herbs, fruits, and vegetables and should not be used for grinding coffee. The coffee beans leave oils behind that are a problem for your dried powders.
How to Use Tomato Powder in Cooking
There are many ways to use tomato powder.
- Sprinkle it on any cooked dish to add flavor
- Use it in place of commercial tomato paste (this is one of the best uses for tomato powder)
- Use it to flavor and boost broths
- Use in soups
- Add flavor and bulk to tomato sauces and more
- Use as a base for tomato sauce or soup
- Sprinkle over steamed or roasted vegetables
- Add flavor to ramen soups and noodle bowls
- Add to rice for flavoring
- Use in all sorts of casseroles
- Toss with olive oil on pasta (lighter than a full tomato sauce) -- can also add seasonings like garlic and basil
- Mix into the water for tomato juice
- Flavor or garnish cocktails like Bloody Marys and more
- Use your imagination and use it anywhere you think the powder might do well!
