And that’s another Tomato Day done and dusted! It’s been two years since I posted about this holiest of culinary days, and I almost let this one slide. After all, it’s just the same thing every year. You’ve all got the recipe. But then I looked through the photos and videos, and I was reminded of why we really do it, which is not about the tomatoes at all.
We live in a very different world to when this tradition arrived in Australia with our nonni. It was a day born of necessity, not any sort of foodies’ indulgence. It would have been unthinkable that outsiders would want anything to do with it, when most of the family themselves didn’t. But then here we are, seventy years later, and an act that used to be conducted almost secretly, hidden away from non-Italian neighbours behind partially-closed garage doors, has developed a certain appeal for those who never had it, lost it, or who have been curious ever since Looking for Alibrandi.
Everyone does Tomato Day differently, for different reasons, but this is ours! We normally start a little before sunrise, sorting and washing the tomatoes, then move onto the most time-consuming part of the day, cutting and coring.
As the tomatoes are halved, we layer them in draining crates with a good handful of salt at each stage. Extra water is wrung out in good old (clean) bedsheets, and then it’s machine time. We usually put the resulting pulp back through another 1-2 times, squeezing out every last bit.
Once all of the bottles have been cleaned and sterilised, we drop a leaf or two of fresh basil into each, and then it’s time to fill them!
Giant pots on giant burners, an impromptu windbreak, and carefully layered towels (to prevent the bottles knocking together and smashing). And then it’s a few hours at a gentle boil, while we finally sit down for lunch! Once the heat’s off, the pots are left to cool overnight, before the bottles are unloaded and stored somewhere cool and dark to await collection.
Incidentally, it’s been more than 30 years since the book ‘Looking for Alibrandi’ came out, and more than 20 since the movie. Italian culture may have grown more familiar in Australia, but we haven’t come as far as we should have in the general representation of minorities (in some ways, we’ve gone backwards). There are so many stories out there that need to be told proudly, and so many traditions like Tomato Day that need to be treasured. So if you’re pulping tomatoes, keep doing it! And if you’ve got your own food thing going on, don’t underestimate how much it will mean to future generations, and how much you’ll miss it yourselves if you ever let it disappear.
Much love, and Happy Tomato Day 2025!
– Al, Al, and El.
Equipment
- Large tubs, solid
- Large tubs, perforated
- Large cheesecloths (alternatively, cotton bed sheets)
- Bottle washing and sterilising equipment (alternatively, dishwasher and/or oven)
- Tomato sauce purée machine
- Bottle filling tub or large funnel, with scooping jug
- Dark brown beer bottles (if using 750ml bottles, then approximately 1 bottle per kilogram of unprocessed tomatoes)
- Bottle caps, 26mm crown seals
- Bottle capping machine
- Large stockpots or metal drums, sufficient to hold all bottles (as an example, a 170 litre or 60cmx60cm pot will comfortably hold 40 x 750ml bottles)
- 4 ring gas burners with 9kg LPG bottles, 1 each per pot or drum (a full 9kg LPG bottle on a 4-ring burner should burn for around 9 hours)
- Hessian sacks or thick towels, for layering in between bottles
Ingredients
- Tomatoes approximately 1kg to make 500-750ml sauce
- Salt approximately 1 generous tbsp per 1kg of tomatoes
- Basil enough for 1 large leaf in every bottle
Instructions
- Wash the tomatoes, ideally letting them drain in perforated tubs. Wash the basil.
- Remove any bad bits from the tomatoes, and then cut open to remove the watery cores.
- Stretch cheesecloths across the tops of large perforated tubs, and then layer the tomatoes, sprinkling with salt as you go. Leave for 2-3 hours, before bundling up in the cheesecloths and wringing out firmly to remove any water that has not already drained.
- Process the tomatoes using the purée machine, passing them through 5-6 times. Give the resulting purée a stir to ensure consistency, and add more salt (generously) to taste.
- Wash the bottles with hot, soapy water, before drying them in a 140 degree Celsius oven for 15-20 minutes. Sterilise the caps by sitting them in boiled water while you do this. Alternatively, for wider necked bottles or jars, you can use a dishwasher on its hottest setting.
- Drop a large leaf of basil into each bottle, and then fill using a filling tub or funnel; be sure to leave 3-4cm empty in the bottle necks for the sauce to expand when cooked. Cap firmly.
- Set the pots on their burners (but do not turn on yet), and then layer the bottles in tightly using the hessian or towels to prevent bottles touching. This will stop them knocking together and shattering as they heat.
- Fill pots with water to submerge all bottles, and then ignite burners and bring the water to a gentle boil. This may take up to 2 hours. Allow to cook for a further 4 hours, checking regularly to ensure that the boil remains low.
- Allow pots to cool completely overnight before removing bottles. Store in a cool, dark location.
