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Tomato paste is a thick paste made by cooking tomatoes for several hours to reduce the water content, straining out the seeds and skins, and cooking the liquid again to reduce the base to a thick, rich concentrate. It is used to impart an intense tomato flavour to a variety of dishes, such as pasta, soups and
braised Braising (from the French word ''braiser'') is a combination-cooking method that uses both wet and dry heats: typically, the food is first browned at a high temperature, then simmered in a covered pot in cooking liquid (such as wine, broth, coc ...
meat. It is used heavily in Italian cultured food. By contrast,
tomato purée Tomato purée is a thick liquid made by cooking and straining tomatoes. The difference between tomato paste, tomato purée, and tomato sauce is consistency; tomato puree has a thicker consistency and a deeper flavour than sauce. Differences Th ...
is a liquid with a thinner consistency than tomato paste, while
tomato sauce Tomato sauce (also known as ''salsa roja'' in Spanish or ''salsa di pomodoro'' in Italian) can refer to many different sauces made primarily from tomatoes, usually to be served as part of a dish, rather than as a condiment. Tomato sauces are ...
is even thinner in consistency.


History and traditions

Tomato paste is traditionally made in parts of
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
,
southern Italy Southern Italy ( it, Sud Italia or ) also known as ''Meridione'' or ''Mezzogiorno'' (), is a macroregion of the Italian Republic consisting of its southern half. The term ''Mezzogiorno'' today refers to regions that are associated with the pe ...
and
Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
by spreading out a much- reduced tomato sauce on wooden boards that are set outdoors under the hot August sun to dry the paste until it is thick enough, when it is scraped up and held together in a richly colored, dark ball. Today, this artisan product is harder to find than the industrial version (which is much thinner). Commercial production uses tomatoes with thick pericarp walls and lower overall moisture; these are very different from tomatoes typically found in a supermarket. Tomato paste became commercially available in the early 20th century.


Regional differences

In the UK, ''tomato paste'' is also referred to as ''concentrate''. In the US, ''tomato paste'' is simply concentrated tomato solids (no seeds or skin), sometimes with added sweetener (
high fructose corn syrup High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), also known as glucose–fructose, isoglucose and glucose–fructose syrup, is a sweetener made from corn starch. As in the production of conventional corn syrup, the starch is broken down into glucose by enzy ...
), and with a standard of identity (in the
Code of Federal Regulations In the law of the United States, the ''Code of Federal Regulations'' (''CFR'') is the codification of the general and permanent regulations promulgated by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States. ...
, se
21 CFR 155.191
. ''Tomato purée'' has a lower tomato soluble solids requirement, the cutoff being 24%. For comparison, typical fresh round tomatoes have a soluble solid content of 3.5–5.5% (refractometric Brix), while cherry tomatoes have double the amount. European markets have a preference to tomato paste with salt, while some Middle Eastern countries such as Israel prefer tomato paste with sugar. In
Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constit ...
it is eaten in sandwiches, known locally as "Bread 'n Dance" because it was traditionally served at dances. In
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
, '' domates salçası'' (tomato paste) is a type of ''
salça Salça is a category of thick, deep red paste made from peppers or tomato and salt, originating in Turkey. Varieties Biber salçası ''Biber salçası'' (literally "pepper paste"; also called ''kırmızı biber salçası'', literally "red pepp ...
''.


Uses

Tomato paste is added to dishes to impart an intense flavour, particularly the natural umami flavour found in tomatoes. Examples of dishes in which tomato paste may be commonly used include pasta sauces, soups, and braised meat. The paste is typically added early in the cooking process and sautéed to achieve caramelization. Based on the manufacturing conditions, the paste can be the basis for making
ketchup Ketchup or catsup is a table condiment with a sweet and tangy flavor. The unmodified term ("ketchup") now typically refers to tomato ketchup, although early recipes used egg whites, mushrooms, oysters, grapes, mussels, or walnuts, among o ...
or reconstituted tomato juice: * Hot break: heated to about ,
pectin Pectin ( grc, πηκτικός ': "congealed" and "curdled") is a heteropolysaccharide, a structural acid contained in the primary lamella, in the middle lamella, and in the cell walls of terrestrial plants. The principal, chemical component o ...
is preserved, paste is thicker and can be used for ketchup * Warm break: heated to about , colour is not preserved, but flavour is preserved * Cold break: heated to about , colour and flavour are preserved, so it can be reconstituted into juice


See also

*
Chili sauce and paste Chili sauce and chili paste are condiments prepared with chili peppers. Chili sauce may be hot, sweet or a combination thereof, and may differ from hot sauce in that many sweet or mild varieties exist, which is typically lacking in hot sauces ...
* List of tomato dishes


References

{{Authority control Food ingredients Tomato products Food paste