Five years ago, I wrote about the Roma by Weston Brands. It was the first electric tomato strainer I’d ever encountered and it totally changed how I preserved tomatoes. I went from someone who did mostly whole, peeled tomatoes to someone who did 30 or 40 quarts of puree each season.
As much as I loved it, that original model did have some issues. The body was so light that when you pushed the tomatoes through, it would tilt precariously (a problem I remedied by perching my elbow on the body to keep it level). It also splattered badly when you pushed the tomatoes through, because there was nothing covering the screen.
I am delighted to say that Weston Brands has thoroughly redesigned their electric tomato press and this new model (the Weston Deluxe Electric Tomato Strainer) is terrific. The body is heavier and less prone to tipping. There’s a screen cover to prevent splatter. It has a 250 watt motor which flies through food. It can go in reverse if something gets stuck. And it assembles so easily.
For my unit’s maiden voyage, I used it to quickly puree applesauce (it’s still a little early to be doing tomato sauce around here). I quartered every apple in the house, heaped them in a big pot (peels and cores included), and cooked them until soft. Once I started, it took all of five minutes to mill all those apples.
If you’re looking for something to make your tomato preservation easier, I definitely recommend it! This week, I’m giving away one Weston Deluxe Electric Tomato Strainer to a lucky Food in Jars reader. I hope it transforms your tomato process as much as it did mine. The giveaway is open to US residents only. Please use the widget below to enter.
Disclosure: Weston Brands provided the review unit you see pictured here at no cost to me and are also providing a second giveaway unit. All opinions are my own.
Tomato sauce for sure using your Food in Jars book recipe! This mill would make my life so much easier than hand cranking through the 50 lbs of Roma tomatoes I just bought!
Spaghetti sauce or salsa!
I simply preserve crushed tomatoes because we use so many jars throughout the year.
I had no idea such a gadget even exist! I am always up for a new adventure. Love everything tomatoes.
I am cautious about adding another appliance but this one does look like it might be worth it.
I like to cook them down for thick sauce, or dry for ‘paste powder’.
I can tomatoes every year. So nice to have during the winter months.
I’ve dried tomatoes and occasionally froze them but this tool is awesome and would be perfect for canning.
Seems like forever waiting for tomatoes this year, but as have faith! I’ll end up with lots and be dreaming of this machine.
Salsa and spaghetti sauce! Milling this way will be so much faster!
I love to can salsa — nothing better than opening a jar in the middle of the winter and knowing you grew the tomatoes!
Karen Kellner I like!
This looks amazing!
That looks like it is worth the space to store it.
Thanks for the giveaway
I’ve never canned tomato puree due to the work involved, but with this gadget, I’d be enticed to try it!
Too cool, I was just getting ready to purchase a food mill, this would be so much easier!
Still my favorite way to process an abundance of tomatoes is to grind up the raw, cored tomatoes, skins and all, in the Vitamix then water bath them. No cooking at all. Sure, they separate and do not look very pretty but are wonderful to use for anything for which a tomato base is appropriate. I do both quarts and pints like this, have for many years and do not miss the hassle of cooking the tomatoes into sauces prior to canning.
My favorite way to preserve tomatoes is by making sauce and freezing it. We also freeze whole tomatoes so we can enjoy them throughout the year in soups/stews/sauces.
Last time I made applesauce, I had way too much to contemplate peeling them so my applesauce just ended up having squares of peel (from dicing the apples) in them. It tasted good to me but was not very good for giving as gifts!
I love making salsa!
I’ve never used a strainer, I like my applesauce lumpy and bottle whole tomatoes, but this year we messed up and have 18 cherry tomato plants! I’ve been reading up on how to preserve them and everyone says I need a strainer, then I can easily put them up. I’m ready to put one through its paces, the cherry tomatoes have started ripening!
I just finished about a bushel using my hand-cranked Roma. What a delight it would be to have this!!! Jams and jellies would be super easy! My husband is my canning helper!!! Pick me, please!!!!
This would be a Game Changer for my tomato canning!
Crushed tomatoes are my favorite to can!
We have been using a manual Norpro Sauce Master to make applesauce for years. Grandchildren love turning the crank. An electric model would be a real improvement.
I can tomato juice, tomatoes and ketchup.
I make tomato sauce by cooking up tomatoes(that we grow) until they are reduced and delicious then use a stick blender to turn the whole thing into sauce. So good with skins and seeds included. I add lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, herbs or spices as the mood strikes me. So different from the past when I scalded and peeled tomatoes to can.
This would make everything so much easier!
I could do SO MANY awesome things with this high-end gadget! Tomatoes, apple sauce, salsa, berry puree, baby food! Would love to have one of these!
I never even imagined that there was a gadget that would make applesauce season easier! Wow! My trees are so heavy with apples this year and I’m almost dreading the harvest. Hoping I can enlist many kids to come help “drive” the food mill I usually use. I think I will also be making lots of apple butter and freezing pies. About two weeks away! Eek!
Must. Have. This. Tool! I make tons of applesauce and it is a bit of a pain, so this would be terrific. Thanks for the chance to win.
I mostly use whole tomatoes but I have a few recipes that call for sauce. I’d love to have homemade tomato sauce.
Probably chopped tomatoes and sauce. This electric strainer would be a great help!
What a great giveaway. I currently use an antique food mill. I crank the handle around and around, in both directions as skin and seeds get caught in the mechanism. It’s messy and a bit cumbersome to use, and takes a long time, but eventually it does the trick. This would definitely be an upgrade! Thanks for the giveaway and the info.
Love to have this for both apple and tomatoe seasone. I make tomatoe sauce for pasta. Yummy fresh is best
I’m very pregnant, and not sure how I’ll get to all my tomato projects this summer. This would help speed things up!
My grandmother first taught me to can dill pickles. I was hooked. I’ve canned so much jam, sauce, preserves, pickles over the years. After a recent move, I thought I’d given up on canning. Now my daughter is eager to learn. Peach jam is done; salsa is next for her. This would be a fantastic tool to make the process easy!
This week I’m making lots of pizza sauce and salsa! I like having those items pre-made in the pantry, makes dinner time easier. I am very interested in anyway to make tomato processing easier!
We water bath can tomatoes every year. LOVE tomatoes!
I have totally given up on the hassle of canning and now I just puree and freeze my tomatoes. I would love to use this instead of the hand-crank strainer!
I love canning whole tomatoes, I think they’re the most versatile when cooking in the winter!
Sauce and tomato jam
Simply crush and jar
I core them and freeze them right now. Hopefully the garden will be more proactive next year.
It’s a toss between salsa and pasta sauce.
The first year I tried canning tomato sauce was a disaster. Now I feel like a pro. I roast tomatoes cut side down in the oven and throw extra veggies on top (zucchini, onions, peppers, garlic – whatever I have on hand). When they’re blistery I peel off the skins. I have the food grinder accessory for a Kitchenaid mixer and use that. It’s been a total game changer. The sauce goes in the freezer and still has that fresh from the garden taste. It’s so incredibly delicious. The only downside is I always run out before the new season.
SALSA!!! with arthritis in hands this would be an amazing asset for my canning kitchen!
I usually just do whole tomatoes,but would love to make some puree!
I can 80-100 lbs. of tomatoes and this appliance looks like a dream come true! Pasta sauce !
Whole or crushed tomatoes – super easy and they are useful!