An easy way to make some hot and spicy tomato juice to can!
So as the garden season nears the end – are you are left with still more tomatoes and peppers? Here is a quick and easy recipe to turn those extras into a great tasting hot and spicy tomato juice.
Although regular canned tomato juice is fantastic to use throughout the year – how about turning a few of those canned jars into a hot and spicy tomato juice drink. Not only is it a great tasting and refreshing drink – but you can use it to liven up homemade chili, make a spicy spaghetti sauce, or use as a great base for a bloody mary.
Here’s How:
( This recipe will make enough to can about 6 quarts of juice )
Start with the following garden fresh ingredients:
Tomato juice is a great way to use up those ripening tomatoes on the vine
40 to 50 medium tomatoes (Use them all up here – Roma, Celebrity, Big Boy and any others you have)
2 onions (sweet yellow or vidalia work best)
2 red peppers
2 green peppers
4 jalapeno peppers
4 cayenne peppers
2 seranno peppers
4 Cajun Belles (optional)
4 cloves of garlic
If you have a food processor – chop up all the above ingredients (seeds and all) into a liquidy pulp and place on low to medium heat and cook down for an hour or so, stirring often to avoid scorching the bottom of the pan. If you don’t have a food processor – no worries – just chop up into small pieces and throw in a large pot and cook down..it may take a little longer – but it works just as well. The important thing is to get the tomato and vegetable mixture soft and cooked down to run it easily through a strainer or food mill.
When the mixture has heated and cooked down – strain it through a food mill into a clean pot to remove all of the skins and seeds.
Now add your spices (add to taste – some like a little more – some a little less)
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 teaspoon of celery salt
1/2 teaspoon of garlic salt
Heat on a low simmering boil for another 30 to 45 minutes.
Simply can up into quart jars, put on your lids and then water bath for 30 minutes. (You can also pressure can it for 12 minutes instead of the water bath) You are left with some great tasting hot and spicy tomato juice around to enjoy through the winter months! – Jim and Mary
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This sounds great! I like to drink hot and spicy v-8. I think I will try to make my own. Thanks for the recipe.
being that it has peppers in it, doesn’t it need to be pressure canned? I’m a novice canner so I really don’t know, just curious. Love your site. You are living my dream. I’m in Ohio also, near Cleveland. Thanks for all the inspiration you’ve provided!
Hi Vicky – thanks for stopping by our blog – and good to hear from a fellow Ohioan
As for the water bath of the juice – it is highly acidic due to the tomatoes. It mainly only retains the heat and flavor of all of the peppers during the cook down process. Most of the pepper flesh and all of the seeds are removed with the colander. There are also many salsa recipes that include peppers and onions, etc in them that can still be safely water bathed as well following the recipes. With our spicy tomato juice – we do pressure can it simply because we think it’s easier to do than water bathing. Hope that helps 
– and good luck with the canning!!!!
Jim
Everything I’m finding indicates that it is NOT SAFE to water bath can onions and peppers, so, I would pressure can these at 240 deg. F (10 lbs. pressure), 15 minutes for quarts and 10 minutes for pints if you are at 2,000 altitude or lower; over that, add 2-3 minutes, depending on how high up you are. Other than that, this looks like an awarding-winning recipe, and can’t wait to try it!
We pressure can ours just because I like to do that whenever I work with anything that is not strictly tomato based. However, in our pressure canner guide, and even the Ball canning recipe guides for some pepper and onion recipes for salsa – they have numerous safe water bathing methods. It is a great point you make – pressure canning is the absolute safest way to go- but there are approved recipes for water bathing.
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I too just made my own V8 juice! It taste so much better and I am am glad I never have to buy it again.
That sounds really good. I’d be tempted to add whatever other veggies I had at the time – celery, carrot, etc. What do you do with the leftover pulp, skins, etc.? Compost?
Janet – That would be good as well! And yes – we compost the the pulp and skins in our pile. Thanks for stopping by our blog! – Jim and Mary
Hello from scotland I am going to try it love it.
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Graham – We are so glad to have you visit our blog from Scotland!! You will have to let us know how it turns out! Jim and Mary