Homemade ketchup is something for your kids to dip their food into that actually counts as a veggie. With no added sugar! Plus you can tweak the recipe to suit your taste buds!
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Spectrum Naturals®.
Originally published in 2013. Republished on May 24, 2016 with the addition of a video.
I have nothing to tell you about. I guess that’s what happens when you spend a week and half indoors with your kid recovering from his tonsillectomy, and then another week just trying to catch up on life, laundry, and the pursuit of blogging.
But I guess that’s OK, because today I am bringing you a recipe for homemade ketchup. Yes, plain old ketchup. No fancy flavors, without any unique twists. Just ketchup. Is there really a story I could tell you that would actually make this exciting? Doubtful, because it’s just ketchup.
On a serious note, what I said about it counting as a veggie is totally true. I mean, it’s tomato paste with spices and some vinegar. Pure, concentrated tomato. And plenty of zing, which is totally essential for ketchup, from Spectrum® Brand Organic Filtered Apple Cider Vinegar. Made from organic apples, it brings so much flavor to this simple recipe.
So while I don’t have a story, I can give you lots of pictures of homemade ketchup. And even a video to show you how to make it!!
With fries…
With Cauli-tots…
Because that is what I have been doing. Making food and taking 349,847,658,934,659 pictures of it. Sorry. Except I’m not, really. Especially now that I have this really cool video for you. Make sure you watch till the end, when I had a little fun!
Tell me your life is more exciting than mine. Please. So I can live vicariously through you.
Enjoy this Homemade Ketchup recipe!
Adapted from Fix Me a Snack
Homemade Ketchup
Homemade Ketchup is the perfect dip for your kids (or you) - no added sugar or funky ingredients, can be tweaked to your tastes, and it counts as a veggie!
Ingredients
- one 6 oz can tomato paste
- 1/4-1/2 cup apple cider vinegar (see Note)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon mustard powder
Instructions
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.
Recipe Notes
If you use less than 1/2 c cider vinegar, add water to a total of 1/2 c liquid. We like the full 1/2 c, but you may prefer it less vinegary. Recipe keeps well in the fridge, so it can easily be doubled and stored for a few weeks.
Plain ketchup just doesn’t do it for you? How about some fancy-pants homemade ketchup…
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Devour some dipping sauces from my friends too, seeing as their recipes are so delicious looking and all!
- Three 5-Minute Sauces from The Tasty Fork
- Homemade Peach Barbecue Sauce from Kiss My Smoke
Want to see lots more yummy food from me and my friends, and cute pictures of my kids?
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Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I earn a small percentage from any purchases you may make if you click on them. These companies have not contacted me. I use the stuff because I love it.
Love this! I’ve always wanted to make my own ketchup.
Thanks Renee. I’ve seen versions that you need to cook, but I like that I can mix this up right before dinner and be good to go.
Wonderful solution to never being able to find it without sugar added. Thank you
I hope you enjoy the homemade ketchup recipe, Carmela!
I love these pics Brianne! Awesome, such pretty ketchup! This has been on my to-try list for awhile and it needs to happen soon!!
Thanks Kayle! I know there are other recipes that are more involved, but I like the simplicity of this.
This looks amazing Brianne!! Love it!
Thanks Lauren!
I love your ketchup pictures. & I never understood who would want purple or green ketchup either. Or peanut butter & jelly in the same jar. Or yogurt from a tube. Ha, random things that gross me out.
LOL, yeah, I never got into that PB&J either. Maybe because I like more peanut butter than jelly 🙂
This looks great! I love that there is no adde sugar since ketchup from the store has so much sugar and salt in it! I’ll be adding this to my “must make” list 🙂
Give it a try! So easy, and you can tweak it just how you like it.
I love that graphic–so cute! Homemade ketchup is totally my thing. I make big batches and keep them in the freezer. 🙂 And you’re right, it is way healthier than the store-bought version!
That is a great idea to freeze it! I usually make one batch at a time, since it just takes minutes.
Ketchup….without sugar. Not just without HFCS, but actually without any sweeteners at all. This is amazing! I actually featured this post on my blog’s Weekend Wrap-Up today, and wanted to let you know in case you wanted to stop by and check it out (link below). Thanks for this fantastic recipe, and enjoy your weekend!
http://www.floptimism.com/2013/10/weekend-wrap-up-self-love.html
Thanks so much! I actually find that the tomato paste brings enough sweetness naturally!
Love it! I’ve been wanting to make my own ketchup for a while now. Thanks!
Thanks!!
Wow! I am so excited to find this. With all the high fructose corn syrup issues in ketchup these days I’ve been on the lookout for a possible homemade version to try. This looks perfect and so easy! I’d love to have you link this to Titus 2 Tuesday this week on Cornerstone Confessions.. I hope to see you there.
Well, thank you so much for providing a recipe like this! I’m thinking this could jazz up a low carb or Keto meatloaf. I would love to use this in an upcoming post, giving you credit and linking back?
Yes, feel free to link back to my recipe! My friend’s daughter is on the keto diet.
What about the ingredients in the tomato paste?
Most tomato pastes are just tomatoes,sometimes a little citric acid.
Yep, just went and looked at the can of tomato paste with the same question. Tomato puree and citric acid.
I thought it interesting you take the time to make your own healthier ketchup, but yet showed a picture of it with processed tater tots.
Oh, now I see you did make your own tots…which look fabulous. Good job!
Yep, we love our cauli-tots!
I make nightshade free ketchup using pumpkin puree (tomato is a nightshade vegetable). A very similar recipe.
Interesting! I’ll have to try that!
I’m looking forward to trying this. I thought I had to give up ketchup due to the HFCS in it and I was bummed. Do you have a recipe for barbecue sauce using this ketchup?
No, but that is an awesome idea!
So now how do we make homemade tomato paste 🙂
Now that I don’t know – probably have to cook down tons of tomatoes!
Hi Kamay,
It is very easy to make your tomato paste. you don’t need tons, but you really have to cook it and let the water boil out of it. if you start with a few garlic on olive oil, it adds a special favour that the kids around me love.
If you have an other few minutes, you can easily peel the tomato after putting it in boiling water for a few seconds.
it takes 15 minutes.
you can also leave the tomatoes in your oven drying. of course not too dry. it is longer, but it also makes a delicious paste without adding anything.
to be honest i was very surprised seeing canned tomato in a diy recipe. If it comes to home made I am not joking 🙂
I am impressed! I DIY to a certain extent, but haven’t tried tomato paste 🙂
Sorry probably a silly question… but what kind of vinegar do I use, apple cider or just the normal vinegar.
Thanks
Apple cider vinegar. Sorry, I wrote just cider vinegar.
I actually took this recipe a little further——I added shredded celery, onions, garlic, bell peppers and a little maple syrup to the apple cider vinegar and other spices. Then, I cooked it for about 15 minutes. Cooled it. Put it in the blender, processed further, then poured into a jar. Everyone loves this! Thanks for posting it.
are the measurements table spoons or tea spoons ? 🙂
Teaspoons! Sorry, I went back in and edited that. I posted that recipe before I knew that t vs T wasn’t as clear to everyone around the world 🙂
there is no ½ t dried oregano, ½ t cumin, ⅛ t pepper, or 1 t mustard powder in the ingredients in heinz ketchup. the flavor they put in it is alot of sugar and the salt. on the back of the ketchup bottle you can figure out exactly what they use in it by going by how much sugar they put in and other ingredients by the weight and “reverse engineer” it.
I wasn’t trying to “reverse engineer” Heinz. I was trying to make a yummy tomato-based dip, WITHOUT a lot of sugar or salt to make it healthier for my kids, and I am pretty their “spice” and “natural flavors” might include some of these seasonings. I think I succeeded, but feel free to make your own version. Or just buy a bottle.
Thanks for this, I remember doing something similar years ago when we’d ran out of ketchup, so I scanned the ingredients and made my own healthier ketchup! Just wondering why I didn’t continue making it fresh. Now I make everything I can myself. Actually, the only processed foods I buy, are bread and pain au chocolat for the kids, must attempt to make those myself! Great site Brianne.
Thanks so much, Petra! Oooh, pain au chococlat. Not sure if making that at home would be a good thing or a bad thing 😉
I love your recipes. Tomato ketchup is something that I have been making a couple years. I am concerned with “tomato paste from a can”. I have never found tomato sauce in a can that is BPA free. Due to the acidity of tomato products, I choose not to buy tomato products in cans. I choose to cook my own tomatoes. If you have a better solution, I would live to hear it. Thanks.
You make a good point. I suppose moderation is key for me – we don’t eat tons of it. I am sure you could make your own tomato paste, but you’d need a lot of tomatoes. I haven’t tried it myself.
See if you can find Bionaturae Organic Tomato Paste — it comes in glass jars. My local healthy food store sells it and I sometimes get it online from vitacost.com if I catch it on sale. See the bottom of the page at http://www.bionaturae.com/tomatoes.html
Great tip! Thanks!
Definitely a better option than what can be readily found on the shelves in supermarket.
I agree!
I saw this recipe and being the DIY cook that I am came over to check it out. When I looked at the ingredients I thought “well, except for no sugar that is exactly the ingredients in my ketchup” I do not mind sugar, as long as it is sugar and not a fake excuse for sugar and I eat a healthy enough diet that I am not going to be concerned about the nutritional value of a T of ketchup.
And then I checked out the ingredients in my bottle of ketchup (which is now in the bin)! I am horrified. There are flavours and HFCS!!!! In England, Heinz ketchup is exactly your recipe with some (proper) sugar!
You Americans are being poisoned!
Going to make this tomorrow- to replace the bottle I just trashed! Thank you
Yeah, there is some funky stuff in ketchup! There are some good brands, but I prefer to make it. I hope you like it!
I just saw this recipe for homemade tomato paste. Passing it along in case someone would like it for making ketchup. 🙂 http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-tomato-paste-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-206853
Thanks!
Have you ever tried freezing it? If so, did it freeze well?
I have not tried that. It lasts quite a while in the fridge, so we always use it up.
My fiance is a HUGE ketchup fan. I mean, this guy cannot eat any meat whatsoever without ketchup. I’d like to try making homemade ketchup sometime! I use apple cider vinegar often in the morning for my morning “cocktail”. With 1 cup of water, half a squeezed lemon, and 1-2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar.
I just started trying the morning cider vinegar thing, but I think I have to add some lemon or orange essential oil to make it taste better! Making ketchup is sooo easy!!
I am so disapointed! This is not homemade ketchup. Use fresh tomatoes ween you make ketchup.
I’m sorry. Tomato paste is just cooked down tomatoes, so I saved myself that step. I figure that being able to make this in 5 minutes is better than the sugar-laden stuff in a bottle.
Canned tomatoes are often a better choice for cooking. They are picked at their best and immediately preserved. Whereas “farm fresh” tomatoes are picked slightly less fresh so they have time to ripen on your grocery store shelf, off the vine. Unless in a salad I mush prefer canned tomatoes. And as has been mentioned before unless you are buying the flavoured versions, canned tomatoes are just tomatoes.
I just read about 30 comments, did any of you chicken heads actually make this disgusting recipe before you jumped on the band wagon? Honestly if you did , you wouldn’t be happy with it. 1/2 cup of cider vinegar…..Jesus were not pickling anything here.
As I mentioned in the note, we like how tangy it is with that amount of vinegar, but if you don’t you can use less and just adjust the thickness and texture with water.
I made this ketchup tonight–it tastes subtly sweet and I was amazed at the depth of flavor I could taste! I was pleasantly surprised as I thought I would miss the sugar present in ordinary ketchup. I used organic unfiltered apple cider vinegar (Bragg’s) and Kirkland organic tomato paste. Thanks for the recipe!
I usually use the Kirkland tomato paste too. So glad you liked it!
Do you know how long it will keep when refrigerated?
I’ve kept it for a couple weeks!
This ketchup is yummy! I’ve been looking for a sugar free ketchup at the stores and stumbled upon this recipe. I’ve made it 3x already this month! I use the full 1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar. It’s addictive! I love the tangy flavor! Thanks for sharing!
Oh yay! I love the tangy flavor, but I do tone it down for my kids.
Great and easy recipe! I love your photos and the way the ketchup tastes. No excess amounts of sugar? Yes please!
Thanks so much!
Love this, can’t wait to try it! My kids LOVE ketchup!
I love that there’s no added sugar! Great recipe!
oh wow, i remember making these as a kid. Old school classic.
Simon
This did not taste anything like ketchup. It could be passed off as a good chili sauc. The cumin destroyed the ketchup flavor.
I was wondering if you could store the ketchup you make??
I have stored it in the refrigerator for a couple weeks.
I made this ketchup recipe the other day using triple concentrated garlic and herb tomato paste oh my goodness it was the best ketchup Ive ever tasted thank you for the amazing recipe I’m already onto my second batch !!
I’m so glad that you’re enjoying the recipe, Candice!
I see that everyone is super excited to try this out for themselves, and so am I, but im curious why not one comment, and I read more than my liking, did not comment or at least come back and opinonate on the taste of this recipe. I say this only cause there are many other recipes out there which many noted are more involved cooking and time wise and so the ease of this is almost a “too good to be true” kind of thing. I really just wanted to see more comments on how the taste was in relation to say a bottle of reduced sugar/organic bottle of Heinz for example and also if anyone tried adding worchestershire sauce or just overall. With all this said, ill be giving the recipe a go and will do my best to report back on the taste and flavor aspects.
I have a picky toddler who just loves ketchup, probably for the addictive sugar reasons which is why I tend to go for the reduced sugar versions so that’s why this is so appealing to me. I just hope my toddler will enjoy!
Thanks for the recipe and I’ll be back to give my results!
Hi David! I would love to hear your thoughts on the ketchup recipe after you’ve tried it! Regarding the use of worcestershire, I created another ketchup recipe that does use it, so great minds think alike I guess. 😉 You can see that recipe here.
So I tried this “Ketchup” – It tastes nothing like Heinz, Hunts or any other store bought ketchup IMHO.
While I would say it it not too bad…. It has WAY too much apple cider vinegar(ACV). Unless of course you like the taste of ACV by it’s self. The ACV flavor takes over and that is all you taste. After I made up a batch and tried it, I doubled all the other ingredients. It helped some but was still very overwhelming.
For your toddler I might recommend adding only 1 Tbsp of ACV and a little sugar at first to ween them off of the sugary ketchup. If you add a little less sugar each time you make it (as well as limit what other sugar they have) their taste buds should adjust.
Good Luck!
I do actually mention that you can use less vinegar and adjust the thickness with water. But feel free to adjust as needed for find another recipe. We eat this frequently.
I adjusted the servings for a BBQ, but it still says only 6oz of tomato paste – is that true? everything else increased in amount but not the tomato paste…
Thanks!
Debi, increase the tomato paste in proportion to the other ingredients. So if you doubled the amount of vinegar, you would double the amount of tomato paste as well.
So…where’s the recipe? Is it just in the video?
Somehow the recipe disappeared! I am trying to get it fixed now! In the meantime, you can find it along with some other varieties of ketchup here –> https://cupcakesandkalechips.com/homemade-ketchup-variations/
Thank you. I was just going to comment asking about the recipe. lol can’t wait to get it!
Thanks for your patience, Rachelle. We’re still working on getting the recipe issue resolved. It’s being stubborn!