How to Make Dehydrated Tomato Chips
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Dehydrated Tomato Chips are a nutritious snack that is so easy to make in your dehydrator. Use the best of the season tomatoes, a little seasoning, and have chips that will make your mouth water!
Whether you use garden-fresh or store-bought tomatoes, dehydrating tomato chips is an effective way to preserve tomatoes throughout the year and enjoy a tasty snack anytime.
These crunchy, tart, intense chips can be seasoned with various spices, but an Italian blend is my favorite! There are so many ways to season vegetable chips – explore your spice cabinet!
How to Make Dehydrated Tomato Chips
Ingredients:
- Tomatoes (any variety that you’d like), though tomatoes with a meaty interior tend to work best such as Romas or Beefsteak.
- Seasonings – any blend of seasonings that you love on vegetable chips. Need more inspiration on how to season vegetable chips?
Instructions for drying
- Slice tomatoes 1/4″ to 1/2″ (6mm to 12mm)
- A thinner slice gets you a crispier chip, but also lends itself to sticking.
- A thicker slice has a more intense flavor and a more pronounced fruit leather texture.
- Dry in dehydrator at 125°F/52°C for 8-12 hours
- Tomatoes are a fruit, botanically, so you can increase the temperature to 135-140°F to get a faster dry.
- Be aware of over-ripe tomatoes in a dehydrator – too high of a temperature can cause the tomatoes to turn dark, so choose a lower temperature for them.
- Flip after 5 hours
- Flipping the tomato slices after five hours will help reduce the risk of the tomato slices sticking to your trays.
- Test for Dryness
- Allow your samples to cool for five minutes
- They should snap easily when completely dry.
- Condition
- Store in an airtight container
Using mesh or fruit leather sheets is helpful if you use stainless steel trays, as sticking is very problematic there. These are my favorite Cosori mesh sheets, and these are my favorite mesh sheets Excalibur (affiliate links).
Oven Directions:
Follow the steps for preparation.
- Set oven to lowest temperature (preferably 170°F or below if possible) – crack open the door to allow moisture and heat to escape. This is not recommended for overly ripe tomatoes.
- Use parchment paper on a cooling rack
- Place onto a cookie sheet
- Dry for 3-5 hours until crisp – keep a sharp eye as they can burn
Follow the instructions for dryness and storage above.
How to Use Dried Tomato Chips
- As a Snack – just snack on them – they are a
- Add to Pizza or Quiche – These make a beautiful addition to the top of a pizza or quiche – and are pretty tasty, too!
- In sandwiches or burgers – If you’ve never had a tomato and grilled cheese sandwich, it’s time to try one! But instead of a big juicy slice of tomato, layer a few of these chips in for a super-intense flavor!
- As a garnish – a few on top of a bowl of tomato soup, in a salad, or a fancy display of a pasta dish with tomato sauce, these beautiful slices will elevate a usually ordinary meal.
- Create an amazing sandwich spread with this recipe for Garlicky Tomato & Herb Spread
Storage
Store dried tomato chips in an airtight container for 12-18 months. It’s best to use a moisture absorber, especially if getting in and out of the jar to use.
Tomato powder is best stored in an airtight container with a moisture absorber for up to six months.
Making Tomato Powder from Chips
Whether you season the tomato chips or not, you can make tomato powder from dehydrated tomato chips.
The only thing keeping you from it is if you used oil on your slices.
Directions:
- Break up fully dried tomato chips into the grinder of your choice. I really love the Cosori Coffee Grinder from Amazon, but any will do.
- Pulse 5 or 6 times before moving to a constant grind for up to 30 seconds at a time (or per your grinder’s directions)
- Place powder on a lined cookie sheet. Put into a warmed but turned-off oven for 15-20 minutes to condition the tomato powder
- Cool and store in an airtight container.
Dehydrating Tomato Chip FAQs
Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. Stone bakeware takes longer to heat up than metal pans, and also retains heat for longer, which could make the recipe more watery, or burnt on the outsides.
The one that you’ll use! I use a Cosiri Dehydrator, an Excalibur Dehydrator, and a Nesco dehydrator. But any dehydrator you have available to you will work!
Any tomato will work. The larger, meatier tomatoes will work better than those that tend to be more watery.
Yes – whether you
Dehydrated Tomato Chips
Equipment
Ingredients
- Tomatoes Any variety will do
Instructions
- Wash and remove blossom end
- Slice in 1/4 to 1/2" slices (6mm to 12mm)
- Season with favorite seasoning
- Dry at 125°F/52°C for 10-14 hours, flipping after 4-5 hrs
- Test for dryness (snaps when cooled)
- Condition
- Store in an airtight container for up to a year
Video
Darcy’s Tips
- Set oven to lowest temperature (preferably 170F or below if possible)
- use parchment paper on a cooling rack
- Place onto a cookie sheet
- Dry for 3-5 hours until crips – keep a sharp eye as they can burn
- Add to ranch dressing for a fun kick
- Add to sour cream for a veggie dip or topping on tomato soup or chili
- Add to cream cheese for bagels
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only. Nutrient information for dehydrated foods is based on fresh. Use 1/4 of the servicing size for the same nutrient information. Thus 1 Cup of fresh fruit has the same sugars as 1/4 dried.
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HELP!!! Why did my tomatoes turn black? I went by your recipe/instructions and about 75% turned black. What did I do wrong?
Too high of a temperature for the sugar content of your tomatoes. I don’t know what temp you used. But if they are over ripe, and you had a higher temp, that’s usually what causes it.
I used 125 degrees F. and only some of them turned black.
Once the tomatoes have been dehydrated, can they be stored in a jar with dried basil and covered with olive oil and seal tightly?
Not to store on the shelf, and not to store longer than about 5 days in the fridge.