Green Tomato Jam: An Unusual Recipe!

This green Tomato Jam recipe is for anyone that wonders what to make with those end-of-season green tomatoes. Make this preserve today and enjoy it throughout the winter.  Such a great addition to cheese boards!

Have you ever wondered what to do with green tomatoes?

If you think tomatoes and jam do not belong in the same sentence, I understand. I felt the same way until I tried this unusual jam recipe.

If you’ve followed my blog over the years, you know that I love to make fruit jams, jellies, and jars of fruit butter. In the past, I’ve shared this wonderful recipe for strawberry jam and this easy recipe for concord grape jelly. 

To be honest, the first time I saw this recipe, I was more than a little intrigued. 

I’ve never thought about preserving green tomatoes.

I decided to try it out and share my results with all of you.

Green tomato jam ingredients

• Green tomatoes! No surprise here. Specifically, we are using tomatoes that did not have a chance to ripen. In other words, unripe red tomatoes.
• Sugar. An essential ingredient in most jam recipes. You can read all about it here.
• Lemon. By using the whole lemon, we are maximizing taste.
• Honey. A little goes a long way in contributing a very distinct kind of sweetness.
• Water. Required to get the whole process started.

As far as accessories are concerned, we need a cutting board and a sharp knife to cut the tomatoes and the lemon. We also need a large, heavy-bottomed pot, a wooden spoon and a few jam jars to store our jam.

A kitchen scale also comes in handy to weigh the exact amount of tomatoes we need to make these tomato preserves. 

Are you ready to start slicing some green tomatoes?

Instructions

Let’s begin by preparing the tomatoes. We need about two pounds. Rinse and pat them dry with a tea towel. Remove the core and slice about a half-inch thick. Place the tomato slices in a large pot. 

Next, we are going to use just half an organic lemon for our two pounds of tomatoes. Remove the zest and cut it into thin julienne strips. Then, slice the same half lemon into one-quarter-inch thick slices. 

Add the lemon slices and zest to the pot along with the 2 cups of granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons of honey and 1 cup of water. 

Bring this mixture to a boil and then lower the heat and let it simmer for about 1½ hours. Make sure to stir it every few minutes or so. Notice how the jam deepens in color and the texture begins to thicken.

While the tomato jam is doing what it is supposed to do, wash and sterilize the jam jars and lids. The total yield for this recipe is 2½ cups.

When the jam has thickened, simply spoon into the prepared jam jars. Once the jars have cooled down completely, cover and refrigerate or freeze. 

Tips 

• Make sure to use unripe red tomatoes and not tomatoes that remain green even when they are ripe (ex. tomatillos).
• The total yield for this recipe is 2½ cups. 
• Can be refrigerated for up to one month or frozen for up to three.
• If desired, enhance the overall flavor by adding 1 tablespoon of grated ginger and a few pinches of cinnamon. 

How to use green tomato jam

• makes a great addition to cheese boards
• use as a spread for sandwiches, biscuits and cornbread. 

Recipe origins

I find it almost impossible to walk out of any bookstore without a book. As you can probably imagine, the cookbook section is my favorite.

The links on this blog are affiliate links, which means I’ll earn a commission if you use those links (there’s no extra charge to you).

A few years ago, I purchased a book called Trattoria by Ursula Ferrigno, in a second-hand book store. Needless to say, I was intrigued by one of her recipes which she entitled “Green Tomato Preserve“.  

Growing up Italian in Montreal meant I was extremely familiar with food preservation. My parents’ home, like so many in our neighborhood, had a cantina. This room was dedicated to all foods that were preserved, or in the process of being preserved.

The cantina was always located in the basement. You could usually find at least one reach-in freezer and a refrigerator in this area. 

Depending on what time of the year it was, you could find prosciutto, a string of Italian sausage or capicollo, in different stages of being cured. This area usually had shelves upon which you would most certainly find canned tomatoes, Italian Giardiniera, home-cured olives and lupini. 

I could go on, but I think you get the picture. 

This jam made with green tomatoes was not part of my upbringing, but I was hooked from the moment I tried it.

I now have a few jars in the refrigerator, located in my cantina. Yes, I have one in my house 😉

So if you ask yourself, “What can I do with unripe green tomatoes?”

You can make this recipe!

Hope you get a chance to try it!

THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.

If you haven’t already joined, here is the link where you can sign up for my weekly e-mail newsletter. This way, you won’t miss any of my new recipes and it’s absolutely free! 

Ciao for now,

Maria 

★★★★★ If you have made this green jam recipe, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!

Recipe

Green Tomato Jam

If you have ever wondered what to do with those end of season green tomatoes, make this Tomato Jam Recipe and enjoy it throughout the year. 

4.84 from 6 votes

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Course: Condiments

Cuisine: Italian

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 40 tablespoons

Calories: 46kcal

Author: Maria Vannelli RD

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Ingredients

• 2 pounds tomatoes unripe red tomatoes
• ½ lemon organic
• 2 cups sugar granulated,
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 cup water

Instructions

• Rinse and pat dry the green tomatoes.
• Remove the core and cut into slices that are ½-inch thick.
• Place the tomato slices in a large, heavy bottomed pot.
• Peel the lemon zest from the lemon and slice as thinly as possible.
• Slice the lemon half into ¼-inch slices.
• Add the lemon slices, lemon zest, sugar, honey and water to the pot.
• Over medium-high heat, bring the mixture to a boil and then lower the heat and simmer for about 1½ hours. Stir the mixture every few minutes.
• Once the jam has thickened, spoon into sterilized jam jars and allow to cool down completely.
• Once the jam filled jars have cooled down, cover and refrigerate if using right away or freeze for longer storage period.

Scroll UP for the STEP by STEP PhotosDon't miss the process shots and videos included in most posts. Simply scroll up the post to find them. Those were created especially for you so that you can make the recipe perfectly every single time you try it.

Notes

Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided below is just a rough estimate and variations can occur depending on the specific ingredients used. 

• Make sure to use unripe red tomatoes and not tomatoes that remain green even when they are ripe (ex. tomatillos).
• The total yield for this recipe is 2½ cups. 
• Can be refrigerated for up to one month or frozen for up to three.
• This tomato jam makes a great addition to cheese boards.
• If desired, enhance the overall flavor by adding 1 tablespoon of grated ginger and a few pinches of cinnamon. 

*recipe from Ursula Ferrigno

Nutrition

Serving: 1tablespoon | Calories: 46kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 55mg | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 190IU | Vitamin C: 3.8mg | Calcium: 3mg | Iron: 0.1mg

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This post was originally published on November 7, 2018 and republished on September 30, 2019 with updated content.