Ayshim’s Pantry: Turkish Tomato Paste

One of the staples of my kitchen is this concentrated tomato paste, domates salçası, as we say it in Turkish.

You might think tomato paste is used to flavour dishes and add a sauce-like consistency, but in Türkiye (and other countries in the region), it’s also a way to preserve tomatoes. In this way, you save Autumn’s bounty and add Autumn’s bounty, or summery brightness, to dishes throughout winter. In other words, you have tomatoes all year round!

Turkish tomato paste has a texture identical to the Italian-style tomato paste you’re probably used to buying in small cans or tubes, and they taste, as you might expect, intense and super-concentrated.  

I just want to warn you, though, that Turkish tomato—and pepper paste—contain no seasonings other than salt, and some can be quite salty, so taste before adding to a dish.

I also would like to warn you about cheeky tomato paste, which can give you the finger when you meet for the first time, like this one below:

Tomato paste shows up in pretty much every Turkish dish across the country. They flavour güveç, soups, are added to sautés and sometimes kneaded into kofte, and lend extra flavour to dolma and sarma fillings. They’re even spread on Turkish grilled cheese and other sandwiches!

Storing Turkish Tomato Paste
I tend to buy a large jar of tomato paste, and it lasts a long time. However, there’s a problem with that scenario: I’ve found that tomato paste develops mould if you don’t finish it quickly. That may not be a problem if you’re cooking for a dozen gorillas every day, but that’s so not my situation. I believe it’s no one’s situation. So, once you’ve opened a jar, pour a thin layer of oil over—or stick a piece of cling wrap to—its surface before storing it in the fridge.

I tend to divide a large jar into two small jars. Use one as is and store the other one with a layer of oil as I described above. This is my doing ‘that’ in the photo below:

You could also freeze tomato paste. I have learned this method recently, and this is me freezing tomato paste for the first time:

In this video below, Miss Sibel shows you how to portionise and freeze tomato paste. I think it’s a brilliant idea!

Where to Buy
In Sydney, we can buy Turkish tomato paste from shops in Auburn, and these days there are many online shops, including Woolworths Online.

This is my favourite brand:

I love the texture and flavour of this particular brand, and, of course, the convenience.