It’s easy to make your own oven-dried tomatoes! These tomatoes are tangy and delicious, and will bring a ton of flavor to your recipes.
Do you plant a summer garden? We love to plant zucchini, cucumbers, squash, and tomatoes.
We usually do quite a few varieties of tomatoes, and inevitably the ones that do the best are the little cherry tomatoes.
One summer, we had lots of cherry tomatoes, and I decided that I wanted to try drying them in the oven. I had heard that the flavor was the same as if you were to dry the tomatoes in the sun, and since I don’t have a safe way to do that, into the oven they went!
These oven-dried tomatoes were so tangy and delicious, this has become a summer tradition. We love to dry our excess cherry tomatoes in the oven. They are a delicious addition to salads, soups, and pasta.
What are the health benefits of sun-dried tomatoes?
Sun-dried or oven-dried tomatoes are a great source of the antioxidant lycopene, vitamins C and K, and iron. Their flavor and the nutrients are very concentrated, so they pack a lot of nutritional value into a small package!
How do you make sun-dried tomatoes in the oven?
Making oven-dried tomatoes is SO easy to do, and I highly recommend it. It just takes a few simple steps.
- Slice the tomatoes, pat them dry, and give them a generous sprinkling of salt.
- Once that’s done, place on a rimmed baking sheet and leave them in a 225 degree Fahrenheit oven for 5-6 hours.
- When they’re wrinkly and dried, you just store them in the fridge – either dry in a plastic bag, or with some olive oil in a sealed container.
You do want to make sure that you slice the tomatoes evenly, if some are thicker than others, they won’t dry out evenly. I like this tool (affiliate link) for making sure the tomatoes are even, and for cutting down on the time it takes to slice a lot of cherry tomatoes.
How long can you store oven-dried tomatoes?
- If you store them in the refrigerator or freezer in a sealed plastic bag, these should keep for about six months.
- If you store them in a jar with oil, these should be consumed within two weeks.
- For safety reasons, my recommendation is to store them dry in plastic bags, and then just add them to oil right before you want to use them.
- You can read more about storing these sun-dried tomatoes here.
These oven-dried tomatoes do have a nice long shelf life, although I can’t vouch for that because we ate ours up pretty quickly!
These are like little bites of summer sunshine. The tomato flavor is really concentrated, and they are a little bit sweet. They’re kind of addictive, actually, and I think they’re more flavorful than the store-bought variety.
Can you dry any type of tomato in the oven?
Yes, I think so! Just make sure to slice the tomatoes very thin, and pat them dry. I think this recipe will work with Roma tomatoes, heirloom tomatoes, and other varieties as well.
These oven-dried tomatoes are:
- perfect for putting in salads or on pizza
- a great way to use up extra tomatoes from your garden
- a flavorful addition to pasta
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
Oven-Dried Tomatoes.
Ingredients
- 4 cups cherry tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- olive oil for storing if desired optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Rinse the tomatoes and pat dry. Slice lengthwise and place on the cookie sheets, seed side up.
- Pat the tomatoes with a paper towel to absorb some of the juice. Sprinkle with sea salt.
- Bake at 225 degrees until dried and deep red - about 5-6 hours.
- Check the tomatoes regularly after the 4 hour point. They will look wrinkled, dried, and rich red. Some of them may dry faster than others, so you can remove those so they don't get burnt. Once they are all dried, dark red, and wrinkled, remove the pan from the oven.
- Let cool completely. Store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator, or in a glass jar with some olive oil, about 3-4 tablespoons. They can be stored safely for about a month in the refrigerator. Makes about 1 cup of dried tomatoes.
Recipe Notes
Check the tomatoes regularly after they have been baking for four hours. Depending on how thick they are, some may be done before others. Feel free to remove any that are done before the baking time is completed.
Store these in a ziploc bag in the refrigerator or freezer. If you store them in olive oil, they must be consumed within two weeks.
This post was originally published in September 2014. It has been updated with more tips and information.
Have you been preserving any summer produce? Have you ever made oven-dried tomatoes?
I usually make these for a cheese table. I prefer using Roma’s because they are meatier. I dry them at 175 degrees overnight. Put them in at bedtime and the whole house smells great by morning. I usually use some immediately for a frittata ior quiche.
I tried your recipe over the weekend and it worked perfectly. Did two cookie sheet of grape tomatoes from the garden as it produced hundreds of tomatoes this year. Five hours later I had beautifully dried tomatoes and the house smelled great too. I tossed them with some oregano and garlic, put them in mason jars and filled with olive oil. Will let them sit for a few weeks and then enjoy in our favourite recipes. Thanks Pretty Bee.
Can we use a toaster oven ?
I have never tried that, but it seems like it may be really hard to control the temperature for a long time.
I did this, and they will not make it the storage part, I immediately put olive oil garlic salt and Italian seasoning wrapped with slice of Swiss cheese, so good,darc
So glad you loved them! Thank you for telling me!
Hey, thanks for this recipe.
But how long do they last if stored in a jar with olive oil?
This link has more info on storing them for longer periods: http://www.tomatodirt.com/storing-dried-tomatoes.html
Tried this for the 1st time yesterday and they were delicious. Looking forward to more of your recipes. Thanks
So glad you liked them!
Sometimes tomato skins can be tough or thick. Has anyone had any trouble with the dried tomato skins being tough? Or has anyone tried taking the seeds out before drying?
I took the seeds out of my one. Still tasted great to me!! Skins were not tough at all for me. Just super addicting!! Lol :)
Throw them in a Salad, a Sandwich or toss them in Pasta, anything really, yummy and Tangy!
All great ideas! :)
New to the whole drying thing, how are you using the tomato’s
After dried?
We love them with pasta, and we also just eat them as a snack!
OmG 2 years after you posted this & we are Still going Crazy for this tip. Thank You for Sharing it!! I tried it this morning using some grape tomatoes & I wanted to try some larger tomatoes that had some spots on them as well. I sliced the larger ones a little too thin and of course the ends came out better but I am Hooked!! I also used the convection option in my oven & they were done in 2 to 3 hours (thicker grape tomatoes took longer). Thank you again for sharing you get ???? for this ?Idea!
P.S. It won’t allow me to tate it with 5 stars or I would!!
Yay, so glad it worked for you! Thanks for letting me know!
What a great way to use all my cherry tomatoes that split because of the rain. In the oven……..
Hope it works for you! We love them!
This is probably a silly question but does it have to be sea salt? Could I use kosher salt or table salt instead?
Any salt should work!
Making them now – they have about 10 minutes left can’t wait!!!
Do you think this would be good with rainbow tomatoes?
Yes, I think so, although I haven’t tried it!
I also alternate sprinkling on either Rosemary or Garlic or Basil or different flavors. I also use the large tomatoes, don’t slice too thin.
That soundes delicious!
I tried this but after an hour they were completely burnt
Wonder if that’s Farenheit or Celsius?
Farenheit!
Can they be frozen?
I think so, though I have not tried it.
Can’t wait to try these. Sharing on my Blog page because I know they will be a hit!
Thank you for sharing! :)
Thank for reminding me this little secret. I tried this last year, but with larger size tomatoes. I had to keep them in the oven overnight, and I also had to put a wooden spoon in the oven door to leave a little opening for the moisture to get out. If not I noticed that the tomatoes were just steaming and showed no signs of actually drying.
That’s interesting about keeping the oven door open! I’m going to remember that if I have trouble this year.
Heirloom tomatoes are back in full force here and I will definitely be drying some of them out! Love how easy it is to dry tomatoes. Pinned!
Thanks so much for pinning!
HI Kelly. Do you think I can freeze this if I don’t consume them too often?
I think you could, I don’t see why not. Let me know if you try it!
Yes, you can freeze them! We do that every year and just love how easy they are to use, right out of the bag.
Definitely going to have to try doing this! We have buckets of cherry tomatoes waiting for a use – and just from a small backyard garden!
I’ve been making oven dried tomatoes for many years. I use grape tomatoes and dry at 170 for about 10-11 hours. i dip them in white vinegar before putting them in jars with a clove of garlic, a bit of fresh herbs and covering with olive oil. I keep mine in the frig for many months and use them through out the fall, winter and following spring with no problems.
How delicious! Love dried tomatoes and will be saving this recipe. Thanks!
Although I had my sights set on accomplishing all sorts of tasks on my to-do list over the weekend, I pretty much just relaxed and spent time with friends. I love the idea of making oven-dried tomatoes! So useful for those who were blessed with a bounty of tomatoes this year! :D
Ooh, these look so yummy! Now I won’t have to constantly buy sun-dried tomatoes in a jar. :)
Yes! Finally I have something to do with my boat-load of cherry tomatoes that have still shown no sign of slowing down! LOL.
Yum! What a great idea. I’ll have to give this recipe a try :)
These oven dried tomatoes look as if they could have been sun dried, absolutely gorgeous! Will try to make this before tomato season ends :)
I will have to try this.we have so many tomatoes we have run out of ideas.thanks for sharing : )
Yum! I make oven-roasted tomatoes a lot, but never dried them!! have to give this a try!
If only I had enough cherry tomatoes from my garden to try this! Our plants did pretty well, but my kids eat them up so fast they are gone before I know it! These do look so easy and delicious, though!
What a great idea, Kelly! I’ve never even though about drying tomatoes, but that would definitely help me out! I seem to always have more tomatoes than I can eat, so I will have to give this a try!