> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://thatpaleochick.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Tomato Paste Substitutes That Actually Work (No Special Trip to the Store) - URL: https://thatpaleochick.com/tomato-paste-substitutes/ - Published: 2026-10-05T06:27:45.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-05T06:27:45.000Z - Description: Ran out of tomato paste mid-recipe? Here are the real-food swaps that hold up in soups, braises, and sauces, plus the one that beats the tube on nutrition. - Author: Krista Wade - Tags: Nutrition, This for That, Paleo Swaps, Real Food Cooking, Tomato Paste Substitute, Pantry Staples, Paleo Kitchen, Ingredient Swaps, Cooking Tips, #toc You are halfway through a beef liver ragù, the kind that smells so good your whole house turns into an Italian grandmother's kitchen, and you reach for the tomato paste. Empty tube. Of course it is. ## What Tomato Paste Even Is Tomato paste is just tomatoes, cooked down and cooked down again until most of the water is gone and what's left is thick, concentrated, and deeply savory. That's it. No magic, no mystery. A [standard 6-ounce can](https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html?ref=thatpaleochick.com#/food-details/170467/nutrients) is roughly 30 to 35 tomatoes reduced to a few tablespoons of paste. What it adds to a dish is body, umami depth, and a slight natural sweetness that rounds out acidic or fatty ingredients. It's a builder, not a topping. Most commercial cans are fine on ingredients, tomatoes and maybe citric acid. But some tubes sneak in added salt, sugar, or "natural flavors" that nobody asked for. Worth a two-second label check. This article is for general informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet or health routine. ## The Swap: Reduced Tomato Puree The closest real-food replacement is plain tomato puree, reduced on your stovetop. Pour it into a wide saucepan, bring it to a medium simmer, and let it cook uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it thickens and darkens. Three tablespoons of tomato puree reduces down to roughly one tablespoon of paste-equivalent. That ratio is your working guide. Yes, it takes an extra 20 minutes. That is the honest trade-off. If you have the time, especially if you already have the burner on for a braise, you barely notice it. The flavor is actually a little fresher and less caramelized than paste from a tube, which some people prefer. For the beef liver ragù specifically, this swap is almost seamless. Liver already brings a mineral depth that pairs beautifully with tomato's brightness, and the reduced puree keeps that balance without tipping the dish sour or sweet. ## Faster Pantry Backups (And Their Real Trade-Offs) If you're mid-recipe and don't have 20 minutes, here's what actually works: **Canned crushed tomatoes:** Use three times the amount called for and just let the dish cook a little longer uncovered. It works, but your sauce will be thinner until the liquid cooks off. For a long braise, this is almost a non-issue. **Sun-dried tomatoes:** Soak a small handful in warm water, then blend them smooth. Concentrated flavor, slightly different profile (more sweet-tart, less fresh). Two tablespoons of blended sun-dried tomato is a reasonable stand-in for one tablespoon of paste. [Research on sun-dried tomatoes](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0308814612008151?ref=thatpaleochick.com) shows they retain significant lycopene, the antioxidant tomatoes are best known for, even after drying, so you're not losing nutrition here. **Tomato sauce from a jar:** Use twice the amount called for. Thinner and usually pre-seasoned, which means you need to back off the salt in your recipe. Read the label first. Many jarred sauces carry added sugar or seed oils you don't want. **What doesn't work:** Ketchup. I know someone is going to try it. The sugar content throws off savory dishes in a way that's hard to fix. Skip it. ## When the Swap Is Not Worth Bothering If the recipe is asking for more than three or four tablespoons of paste, a big batch of chili, a sheet-pan shakshuka, a pot of bolognese, the reduced puree method is your best move and the flavor will be worth the time. But if you're making something where tomato paste is a background note (a marinade, a quick pan sauce, or a soup where it's one tablespoon among a dozen other things), just leave it out or add a small splash of crushed tomatoes and move on. A missing tablespoon of paste in a 12-ingredient braise is not going to ruin dinner. Relax. The body God gave us is designed to run on real, whole food, not perfect execution every time. Cooking from scratch, even with an imperfect pantry, already puts you so far ahead of the drive-through. ## Making the Switch Stick The long-term move is keeping a carton of plain tomato puree in your pantry instead of, or alongside, commercial paste. A 26-ounce carton is cheap, flexible, and gets you tomato paste, tomato sauce, or a quick soup base depending on how long you let it cook. It's one ingredient doing three jobs. If you love the convenience of squeeze-tube paste (fair, I get it), look for brands with two ingredients: tomatoes and salt. Nothing else needed. Store the tube upside down in the fridge after opening and it keeps for weeks. And next time you make a slow-cooked dish, the beef liver ragù, a lamb shoulder braise, a big batch of chicken thighs with vegetables, do the reduction while everything else comes to temp. It costs you nothing but a dirty pan, and the depth of flavor you get is genuinely different from straight paste out of a tube. ## Key Takeaways - Tomato paste is just deeply reduced tomatoes, you can make a close equivalent by simmering tomato puree for 15 to 20 minutes (3 tablespoons puree equals roughly 1 tablespoon paste). - Crushed tomatoes and sun-dried tomatoes are the most reliable pantry backups; jarred tomato sauce works if you check for added sugar and back off the salt. - Ketchup is not a substitute for savory dishes, the added sugar throws the whole flavor profile. - If tomato paste is a minor background note in a big recipe, leaving it out is a perfectly valid call. - A carton of plain tomato puree is the most flexible pantry upgrade, one ingredient, three uses. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Can I substitute tomato sauce for tomato paste? Yes, with adjustments. Use twice the amount of tomato sauce as the paste called for, and let your dish simmer uncovered a little longer to cook off the extra liquid. Because most jarred tomato sauces are pre-seasoned, taste before adding salt, you may need a lot less than your recipe suggests. ### How much tomato puree equals one tablespoon of tomato paste? About three tablespoons of tomato puree, reduced over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes in a wide pan, will cook down to roughly one tablespoon of paste-equivalent. The wider the pan, the faster it reduces. ### Is tomato paste paleo? Plain tomato paste with no added sugar, seed oils, or artificial ingredients is generally considered paleo-friendly. Check the label, a clean paste lists tomatoes and sometimes salt, nothing else. Many commercial tubes and cans pass that test easily. ### Can I freeze tomato paste so it doesn't go to waste? Absolutely. Spoon leftover paste by the tablespoon onto a parchment-lined sheet, freeze until solid, then transfer to a zip bag. Pull out exactly what you need, straight from frozen, without opening a new can every time. ## Sources - [USDA FoodData Central: Tomato Products, Canned, Paste, Without Salt Added](https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html?ref=thatpaleochick.com#/food-details/170467/nutrients) - [Food Chemistry (ScienceDirect): Lycopene and antioxidant capacity of sun-dried tomatoes](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0308814612008151?ref=thatpaleochick.com) --- *This article is for general informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet or health routine.*