Your Cart is Empty
To can tomato sauce for shelf-stable storage, follow a tested recipe with the specified tomato preparation, added acid, headspace and processing method. Tomatoes’ natural acidity alone is not enough to rely on.
A VitaClay community member recently shared her homemade spaghetti sauce routine, inspiring us to explore both fresh sauce and pantry preservation.
Inspired by a recipe shared by nellers10, it brings homemade cooking into an everyday routine—with unglazed clay and pressure-free cooking.
Watch her original Instagram post. Cooking directions below are adapted for VitaClay
The preservation guidance below follows the National Center for Home Food Preservation rather than the post’s canning directions.
VitaClay cooks food using unglazed clay and pressure-free cooking. It does not replace a boiling-water canner or pressure canner.
Our skin-on VitaClay tomato sauce adaptation is intended for fresh use or freezing. It has not been validated for shelf-stable canning. For jars stored in the pantry, follow a tested preservation recipe from beginning to end.
The National Center for Home Food Preservation’s Standard Tomato Sauce is a useful starting point for a plain sauce you can season after opening.
You will need:
Sound, ripe tomatoes
Bottled lemon juice made from concentrate or food-grade citric acid
Salt, optional
Canning jars and lids
The canning equipment specified in the tested recipe
Follow the recipe’s preparation and skin-and-seed removal instructions. Reduce the sauce only as directed. Do not substitute the creator’s drained, skin-on blender method.
Read the complete tested Standard Tomato Sauce recipe.
Yes—this tested standard sauce requires added acid, even when using its pressure-canning options. You may use the specified bottled lemon juice or citric acid.
| Jar size | Bottled lemon juice from concentrate | OR food-grade citric acid |
|---|---|---|
| Pint | 1 tablespoon | ¼ teaspoon |
| Quart | 2 tablespoons | ½ teaspoon |
Add the specified acid directly to each jar before filling. Use bottled lemon juice made from concentrate, rather than fresh-squeezed juice.
The tested Standard Tomato Sauce recipe specifies ¼-inch headspace. Use that measurement for this recipe rather than the 1-inch headspace mentioned in the original social post.
Headspace requirements vary by recipe, so always follow the instructions for the product you are making.
Processing depends on jar size, altitude and canning method. Pressure canning also requires the specified pressure and gauge type.
Use the complete NCHFP processing tables rather than a single processing time copied from a social post.
If you are new to canning, read the preparation, equipment and processing guidance linked from that recipe before beginning.
For this plain sauce, save your favorite seasonings for serving. If you want to preserve a seasoned spaghetti sauce, choose a tested recipe that includes those ingredients and follow its quantities and processing instructions.
Do not improvise additions of vegetables, meat, oil or thickeners to the standard sauce.
The creator’s freeze, thaw, cook and blend approach offers inspiration for homemade sauce to enjoy fresh or freeze.
For that option, follow our Homemade Tomato Sauce in VitaClay recipe. For pantry storage, use the tested canning method above.
Either way, a little preparation today can make tomorrow’s homemade meal easier.
Â
Cook • Nourish • Gather • Thrive
Comments will be approved before showing up.
Inspired by Sally Fallon Morell and Nourishing Traditions, this article explores how slow, intentional clay pot cooking supports traditional food preparation methods. Learn why gentle simmering, bone broth, and nutrient-dense meals are helping families rediscover the value of cooking with patience and purpose.
I never paid much attention to beans until recently. Now they're a weekly staple—and cooking them in a clay pot completely changed the flavor, texture, and experience.
Every time VitaClay founder Michelle Liu’s daughter comes home, she asks for Mom’s Chinese chicken soup with shiitake mushrooms. After more than 25 years of VitaClay, we’ve realized that many families have their own version of this story—real food, familiar recipes and cooking traditions passed from one generation to another.
