Canned Tomatoes

Today I saw some San Marzano tomatoes that were canned about two years ago, in 2005. That seems like a long time for tomatoes to be in a can, especially an unlined tinned can. Would the acid in the tomatoes react with the inside of the can after being in contact with it for so long? There are some canned good that I get that come in lined cans, which makes me feel a little more comfortable. Any comments on this? Is two years in the can a acceptable, regardless if the can is lined or unlined? What about in glass?

Shel

I didn't buy the tomatoes, I only saw them on the shelf, so there's nothing to "throw out.". However, your clever (and correct) comment does nothing to answer my questions.

Shel

These cans are from Italy, and I know nothing of their regulations and safety standards. However, there are a couple of brands, Muir Glen and Bionaturae (from Italy), that specifically mention that their cans are lined, and the difference between the interior of their cans and the interior of cans from other brands is very obvious. Muir Glen and Bionaturae have a white, smooth interior while other brands appear to have an uncoated grey metal interior. I'm not saying that the other cans don't offer some protection from the acid - they must, I'm sure - but I just don't know the quality and durability of that protection.

I didn't notice a "use by" date, although it may have been on the can somewhere. Anyway, I have been trying to limit my tomato purchases to those in lined cans or in glass, at least until my comfort level about "unlined" cans has been raised. Still, I have been using a variety of San Marzano tomatoes to see which ones taste the best and provide the best value. It has been, overall, a wonderful experiment :lips: All the tomatoes, regardless of the can, have been far and away superior to any tomatoes canned or packed in the US.

Shel

One of the things I noticed is that US tomatoes generally are packed with calcium chloride and have a much higher salt content than the San Marzano and similar tomatoes. None of the Italian tomoatoes I've used show calcium chloride as an ingredient. Both US and Italian have citric acid on the ingredient list. The Italian tomatoes all have a salt content of about 1/10th that of the US tomatoes, maybe even less in some instances.

When I first tasted an Italian San Marzano tomato I had to get used to the lower salt content. In some way the tomatoes seemed "weaker" in flavor than the US tomatoes I'd been using (Muir Glen). But once I realized that I was tasting tomatoes rather than excessive salt, I got a better understanding of what a really good canned tomato should taste like.

And this leads to a somewhat off-topic annoyance I have with Cook's Illustrated. Some time back they did a taste test of canned tomatoes. In fact, they did the test twice. They only compared US grown and canned tomatoes, IIRC - in any case, there was no mention of San Marzano tomatoes. They ended up recommending Progresso tomatoes in both tests. Those tomatoes pale in comparison to any of the Italian tomatoes I've tried. You'd think that, as a venue for testing and recommending ingredients, CI would look further afield than the local supermarket or only US brand tomatoes. I'd think cooks, especially those that read and subscribe to the magazine, are willing to look for better quality ingredients, and while not every market in every area might carry San Marzano tomatoes, they can certainly be purchased on line for those who are interested in expanding their experience with tomatoes, which are such a staple in so many types of cooking and so many recipes.

OK, I'll get off my soap box now ;-))

Shel

I suppose you can, although I've not yet encountered real San Marzanos (DOP) that were anything but superb. I always have a few cans of the Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes on hand, but find them to be inferior to true San Marzanos, however, they are good and they have a place in my cooking. There are some "counterfeit" San Marzano tomatoes on the market - there's a brand called San Marzano in a white can with nice, bright, red San Marzano tomatoes on the label. They are domestic tomatoes grown in California. They are nowhere near the quality of real San Marzanos.

I don't know where you're located, but around here the Muir Glen tomatoes aren't that much more expensive than, say, Progresso.

Shel

Check out where those tomatoes come from. Many are shipped from the Netherlands, some come in from Mexico, some have been hydroponically farmed in the US ... all are insipid pretenders, IMO.

Shel