Blanching tomatoes, or boiling them in water quickly, is the best way to prepare tomatoes for preserving, according to Yiu H. Hui, author of "Handbook of Food Science, Technology, and Engineering, Volume 2." Blanching preserves the tomato and its nutrients and keeps it from falling apart after you thaw it. If you wish to save the seeds of the tomatoes for planting, you must remove them before you blanch the tomatoes or the seeds will not grow.
Removing the Seeds
Remove the seeds before you blanch the tomatoes. Remove the seeds and place them in a container filled with water. Allow the seeds to sit in the water for four days, taking care to keep the water below 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Stir the seeds a few times a day. The seeds will begin to ferment, which kills the bacterial canker that can destroy growing tomatoes. The good seeds will sink to the bottom. Discard any seeds that float. Spread the seeds out to dry for one week, then store them for planting.
Blanching
To blanch tomatoes for freezing, bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil over high heat. Then, drop the tomatoes into the boiling water a few at a time. Boil the tomatoes for 15 seconds, or until the skin bursts open. Then, place the tomato into a bowl filled with ice water. The ice stops the cooking process. After the tomatoes have been in the ice bath for five minutes, remove them and slip the skins off. Discard the skins. Freeze the tomatoes in plastic freezer bags.
Seeding after Blanching
Some cooks prefer to remove the seeds before they freeze the tomatoes. Tomato seeds can make tomato sauce bitter, and removing them before freezing allows you to use them right after thawing them. To remove the seeds, cut a slit in the side of the tomato and squeeze out the pulp. Discard the seeds. They will not be useful for planting. This will make the tomatoes more firm as well, because the pulp tends to liquefy after freezing. The tomatoes will still have plenty of moisture for making sauce, even after removing the pulp.
Freezing
Place the blanched tomatoes into freezer bags and seal them. The tomatoes will stay fresh in the conventional freezer for up to six months, or for up to 12 months in a deep freezer. To use the tomatoes, remove them from the freezer and thaw them in the refrigerator or on the counter-top. Then, use them in your recipe as directed. The tomatoes will be mushy and watery but still solid, which makes them only appropriate for making tomato sauce or a tomato base for soup or chili.
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