What to use instead of canned tomatoes
It depends entirely on what it's doing in the dish. Here's the job, what else does it, and what to skip.
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Acidic liquid base for a sauce or braise
They supply water, acid and glutamate at once. The acid stops everything else tasting flat and the pulp gives the sauce body as it reduces.
Fresh tomatoes, peeled and choppedRan out
1 lb fresh per 14.5 oz can, cooked 10 minutes longer
Brighter and less sweet, with more water to drive off. Out of season they taste of almost nothing, which is why the can usually wins.
PassataRan out
1:1 by volume
Completely smooth, so there is no pulp texture and it seasons and reduces faster. Thinner at the start.
Tomato paste plus waterRan out
6 tbsp paste + 1 1/4 cups water per 14.5 oz can
Darker, sweeter and cooked-tasting, with none of the fresh acidity. Add 2 tsp red wine vinegar to bring the edge back.
What doesn't work: Ketchup. It is already sugared, vinegared and spiced, so the sauce goes cloying and one-note, and the sugar scorches on the bottom of the pan long before the dish is done.
Pieces that stay recognisable through a long cook
Diced and whole canned tomatoes are packed with calcium chloride, which cross-links the pectin and holds the pieces together for hours.
Whole peeled tomatoes torn in halfRan out
1:1
Irregular pieces that soften more than diced but still hold. Better flavour, since the best fruit goes into the whole cans.
Canned cherry tomatoesRan out
1:1
Sweeter and they burst rather than break, leaving skins in the sauce.
Fresh tomato wedges added in the last 15 minutesRan out
1 lb fresh per 14.5 oz can
Keep their shape and stay bright and acidic, and they thin the sauce as they release water.
What doesn't work: Crushed tomatoes or passata. There is nothing left to hold together, so they melt into the base within 10 minutes and the dish reads as a sauce with no pieces in it.
Diced tomatoes are firmed with calcium chloride and will not break down, so buy whole peeled and crush them by hand for anything meant to go smooth.