25+ Ways to Use Tomato Powder
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Need ideas on ways to use tomato powder? Check out all of the incredible ways to use tomato powder in day to meals, snacks, and even desserts!
Dehydrated tomatoes (and yes, you can use freeze-dried) are a wonder vegetable in the food preservation world. Meek and beautiful on their own, they can transform themselves into a powder that gives a wonderfully rich tomato flavor to so many things while not overpowering a dish.
Two Ways to Make Tomato Powder
- From Tomato Paste: Start simply with tomato paste any time of the year if you can’t grow your own.
- From Fresh Tomatoes: dehydrate tomatoes (slices, dices, or puree), including the flesh AND skins. Alternatively, use the leftover skins from canning tomatoes for a rich tomato flavor. Dry tomatoes in a dehydrator at 125°F/52°C until fully dry. You can dry tomatoes in the oven on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet at 170F/76C or lower, with the door propped open with an oven-safe spoon. Keep a sharp eye not to burn the tomatoes, but dry them.
Types of Tomatoes to Use
You can use any type of ripe tomato to create tomato powder. Most work best to puree first to create a leather and then dry. Meatier tomatoes can be sliced thin or diced and dried.
If making tomato powder isn’t an option for you, you can purchase commercially dried tomato powder from a variety of companies, including Augason Farms or Thrive Life.
Ways to Use Tomato Powder
Breakfast Dishes
- Sprinkle in an egg dish – yummy as a garnish on fried eggs and makes scrambled eggs elevated!
- Sprinkle into your gravy for biscuits and gravy (I remember my grandmother doing tomato slice and loving the change of taste)
- Try that tomato gravy with these savory tomato biscuits and your DIY version of the tomato juice cocktail from below.
Savory Dishes
- Add to meatballs or meatloaf to increase the tomato intensity.
- Make pizza sauce with 4 TB tomato paste powder, 4 TB water, pepper, 1/2 TB dried oregano, basil, and rosemary, 1 tsp garlic powder, and salt to taste. Mix with a little olive oil and 1.5 C water.
- Add to curry sauces.
- Add to beef stew to increase the depth of flavor.
- Use as a base in a creamy rice dish.
- Use to flavor or color pasta.
- Sprinkle on a grilled cheese sandwich.
- Mix into chicken or tuna salad for a change of flavor.
- Tomato soup – 1 cup powder + 3 cups water + 1 tablespoon bouillon + 1/2 cup rehydrated caramelized onions, with Italian seasonings and salt to taste.
Sauces
- Mix with water to create a tomato paste or more water and create a tomato sauce.
- Create a spaghetti sauce from a mix (see the recipe below).
- Add to store-bought tomato-centered sauce to boost the flavor and cover the ‘tinned or commercial’ flavor.
- Mix with a jar of diced tomatoes (or a large tin of diced tomatoes) and some garlic/onion powder to taste a delish meatball sauce.
- Sprinkle on buttered noodles with a little garlic powder and salt.
- Add to shepherd’s or cottage pie to increase the intensity of the sauce.
- Make Ketchup – recipe below.
Snacks & Spreads
- Garlicky Tomato & Herb Sandwich Spread.
- Sprinkle on tomatoes with a little ranch dressing before dehydrating them for tomato chips.
- Mix into cream cheese, sour cream, or yogurt with vegetable bit powder (dehydrated vegetables not quite powdered fully) and a little garlic for bagel spreads or dips for veggies or crackers.
- Mix into hummus to change up the flavor.
- Mix with some Italian seasonings, garlic, and onion powder, and sprinkle on pineapple before dehydrating.
- Mix with whipped cream cheese and a little salt, garlic, and onion powder (and dried veggie bits) to use as a sandwich spread.
- Sprinkle tomato powder onto a mini bagel, top with cheese, and have a ‘cleaner’ mini pizza bagel.
Seasonings
- Add to BBQ rubs.
- Add to Jerky rubs.
- Mix with granulated garlic and sprinkle on potatoes or other vegetables before roasting.
- See the recipe below for the Cheesy Tomato sprinkle.
- Mix with granulated garlic and “bagel seasoning,” and sprinkle on top of tomato slices for dehydrating, on homemade bagels, on celery stuffed with cottage cheese, or on toothpaste…YUM!
Drinks
Tomato juice:
- 8 cups water
- 1 cup tomato powder
- salt to taste
TIP: Add a little celery powder and vegetable powder to kick it up a notch. You may want to put the veg powder in a reusable tea bag and use it to flavor if you don’t like the grit left at the bottom since it may not dissolve fully.
Bloody Mary Mocktail – see full recipe below.
Desserts
- Add tomato powder to your favorite spice cake.
- Tomato Soup Cupcakes – just substitute the soup with the equivalent of tomato powder + water
Recipes Using Tomato Powder
Spaghetti Sauce in a Jar
Ingredients
- ½ TB dehydrated diced carrot
- ½ TB dehydrated celery
- 1/2 TB dehydrated bell pepper
- 1 TB dehydrated diced onion
- 1 TB dehydrated diced tomatoes
- 1 TB dehydrated vegetable powder
- 1 TB dehydrated green powder
- 2 TBS dehydrated mushroom pieces (or use powder to taste)
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano (to taste)
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 4-5 TBS tomato powder
- 2 cups water or vegetable broth
- 1/2 TB oil
Instructions:
- Bring water to a boil
- Add above ingredients
- Simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- Use an immersion blender if you prefer a smooth spaghetti sauce.
Cheesy Tomato Snack topping
Ingredients:
- 1/2 tsp tomato powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 TB grated parmesan cheese. You can use fresh if you’re snacking, but use the commercially canned version for storage or if making the topping in bulk.
Instructions
- Sprinkle on top of popcorn, and warm french fries
- Double or triple it for pizza crust or garlic bread, etc.
Bloody Mary Mocktail
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 1/4 cup tomato powder
- 1/8 cup vegetable powder
- 1/2 TB powder horseradish or 1 tsp prepared horseradish
- 1 good shake of hot pepper sauce (or some pepper powder)
- 1 tsp Worchestershire sauce
- 2 dehydrated lemon slices
Directions:
- Stir into a pitcher
- Allow it to rest for 30 minutes for flavors to meld
- Serve over ice and garnish with lemon slices
Homemade Chili
Use your regular chili recipe and replace the canned tomato paste with reconstituted tomato powder.
To replace one 6-ounce can of tomato paste mix
- 6 tablespoons tomato powder
- ½ cup water or broth
- ½ tsp salt (optional)
Allow to rest and adjust as needed for preferred consistency
Spaghetti Sauce
Like the suggestion above, you can make your family’s favorite spaghetti recipe and replace the tomato sauce with reconstituted tomato powder.
To replace one 15-ounce can of tomato sauce mix:
- 2/3 cup tomato powder
- 1 3/4 cup water
- 3/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
Homemade Ketchup
Ingredients:
- 6 Tablespoons tomato powder
- 1 cup water
- 1 ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- ⅛ tsp garlic powder
- 1/8 tsp ground clove (optional)
- 1/8 tsp ground allspice (optional)
- ¼ cup honey
- ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
Directions:
- Simmer for 20 minutes.
- Cool and serve
- Store in the refrigerator for up to three weeks.
Homemade BBQ Sauce
Use the homemade ketchup recipe above and make 8 ounces of tomato paste – then use them to make this tasty Homemade BBQ Sauce from Tastes Better From Scratch.
We’d love to hear your ideas!
Please comment below with your favorite ways to use tomato powder!
More Tomato Ideas
Frequently Asked Questions
Optimally, tomato powder lasts for 6-9 months. But you may find you get longer on the shelf. If you can still identify it by smell and taste, it’s still good.
No. Paprika is made from peppers as opposed to tomatoes.
No. It will incorporate itself into a dish but mixed just with liquid, it does not completely dissolve, and you may have some ‘grit’ left at the bottom of a glass.
Bulk DIY Spaghetti Sauce in a Jar
Equipment
- Storage jar
- Sauce Pan
Ingredients
- ½ TB dehydrated diced carrot
- ½ TB dehydrated celery
- 1/2 TB dehydrated bell pepper
- 1 TB dehydrated diced onion
- 1 TB dehydrated diced tomatoes
- 1 TB dehydrated vegetable powder
- 1 TB dehydrated green powder
- 2 TBS dehydrated mushroom pieces (or use powder to taste)
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano (to taste)
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 4-5 TBS Tomato Powder
- 2 cups water or broth
- 1/2 TB oil
Instructions
- Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan
- Add above ingredients
- Simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- Use an immersion blender if you prefer a smooth spaghetti sauce.
Darcy’s Tips
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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if I wanted to make the ketchup but keep it as powder for storage. how much honey dried and vinegar powder? would it be the same?
Yep – just don’t add the liquid. But test the recipe first to make sure you like it, make any adjustments and take notes, THEN make your final.
thank you! this is going in the pantry!
Have you tried making powder from freeze dried tomatoes?
Yes – it’s not the same as from cooked tomatoes, but yes.
Thank you! These are just what I needed. I made tomato powder last year with skins but had no idea what to use them for. I just stored in mason jars- hopefully they are still good!
I would like more receipts. How to use it to make tomato soup. Mary B Johnston
It’s already in there 😉
Thank you for this! I dehydrated tomato skins a few years ago but wasn’t really sure how to use the powder. This year I plan to make more and now, thanks to you, I have some good ideas on how to use it. Thank you!
This is brilliant! Can’t wait to try, totally my next project.
Another way to use the tomato powder is to mix it with the water or broth you are cooking rice with to make the rice you get at Mexican Restaurants.
I just made 1 pint of powder from 1 quart of dehydrated cherry tomatoes. Can’t wait to try it. I put into mason jars with an oxygen absorber in it. Thans for all the help.
Robin G, California
Great! May I suggest a moisture absorber instead of oxygen absorber for powders. It will help reduce clumping and is more in line of what they need for storage.
One of the best ways to use tomato powder reconstituted as paste is in crab or lobster bisque. This is a typical cream recipe, but adding 1-2 tablespoons of paste (depending on how much you are making – I make a stock pot full and use 2 T). It will give a very faint pinkish tint to your bisque, but the real addition is the depth of flavor. You won’t notice a distinct tomato taste, it just gives the bisque that added dimension you will find in fine restaurants. Try it! I guarantee you will love it.
Ohh my goodness Barbara! That sounds amazing! Would you please share your recipe? I love crockpot recipes and crab is my favorite ❤️
Hey Darcy,
You are such an inspiration to so many of us. I really do like the content of what you share, so practical and useful. Any way to make your recipes printer friendly??
For most recipes – there is a large jump to recipe button to take you to a recipe card that you can print off easily 😉
It’s amazing your 25 ways with tomato powder, I’m so glad I found your sight. It’s endless but most of all it’s PRICELESS. I’m going to make all of these. Darcy your so inspiring, I keep having people ask me about all these wonderful products you make, I tell them to look you up on YouTube.
I just finished dehydrating over 100 plum tomatoes, but I’m only going to powder a little at a time. Can I store the powder for long term storage in Mylar bags? Thanks again for all your wonderful hard work.
I don’t recommend storing it long-term in powder form. Remember, powders don’t have as long of a shelf-life as their whole counterparts. But if it’s your only option for storage space, etc., I’d keep an eye out and rotate.
I did this both ways, from canned sauce and fresh dried tomatoes. A lot of concentrated flavor! I used pieces of parchment paper and spread the tomato sauce like I was thickly buttering bread. Placed the sheets in my dehydrator and less than 24 hours later it was dried. Excellent idea since it takes a lot less space and weighs much less!