Smoked tomatoes is a fast and easy recipe with delicious results. Smoking tomatoes concentrates the sweetness of the fruit and makes it even more flavorful while complementary seasonings and herbs (I give you several amazing combinations to choose from) take the taste to the next level!

Close up of the tomatoes on a tray after smoking.

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Why You’ll Love This Smoked Tomato Recipe

This is an easy and quick recipe that uses minimal ingredients.
Seasonings and herbs for smoked tomatoes are versatile and I’ll show you several options.
You can smoke tomatoes while other things are being smoked at the same time and make best use of space and wood.
Smoking will improve the flavor of mediocre tomatoes.
Smoked tomatoes can be used in countless ways in other recipes, condiments, and sauces.

I love growing tomatoes because I love eating homegrown tomatoes — and this recipe for smoked tomatoes is a favorite I will make all summer long.

If you’ve never smoked a tomato before, you’re going to love this.

And if you love roasted or sundried tomatoes, you will adore my smoked tomatoes on the Traeger Grill recipe (or literally whatever smoker you have).

The end result is a delicious as-is snack or a versatile, savoury-sweet-smoky base for many other recipes, like in my roasted green tomato soup.

You can turn these smoked tomatoes into a delicious salsa or pasta sauce using your favorite recipe, or you can use them in my recipe for mussels, or eat them as a side for a BBQ.

Try making these as a side for my smoked whole trout recipe, smoked whole turkey, smoked grouse, or Greek grilled octopus.

And if you love this BBQ recipe, try my smoked onions, smoked salt, and smoked maple salmon jerky too. Or some of my other side dishes like traditional mortar and pestle pesto or blitva (garlicky potatoes with Swiss chard).

Ingredients

Tomatoes | Any tomato can be smoked! You may opt to keep the pulp and seeds or scoop them out and this will be the biggest decision you face. Whether you do this or not depends on the tomatoes you have and whether you like the insides or not. You can also try it both ways to see which way you prefer. Yes, you can smoke green tomatoes too.
Salt + Pepper | Whatever else you use, you definitely want to add salt and I also love freshly cracked black pepper with my tomatoes.
Herbs, Spices & Seasonings | So many herbs and other ingredients complement the taste of tomato. I will be keeping it simple and only using in this recipe: garlic powder and dried thyme while providing you with some other classic mixes you may want to try too.
Olive Oil | Olive oil is the best choice of oil to use here for the best flavor. Only a bit is needed to lightly coat the tomatoes.
Balsamic Vinegar (Optional) | Just a drizzle of balsamic vinegar adds something wonderful to this dish.

Instructions

Tomatoes having their seeds removed on a wooden cutting board.

Set your Traeger Grill (or whatever smoker you’re using) to the Smoke setting and then go prep your tomatoes. By the time the smoker is ready to use, your tomatoes should be ready.

Slice your tomatoes in half.

Supremely large tomatoes can be sliced in several pieces.

Decide if you wish to keep the pulp and seeds or remove them. This entirely depends on the varieties of tomatoes you’re using and what your personal preference is. If you don’t know what you like, try it both ways. I keep my tomatoes whole.

Olive oil being poured over tomatoes in bowl.

In a bowl large enough to hold your tomatoes, add enough olive oil to lightly cover the tomatoes.

Seasonings and herbs being added to bowl of prepped tomatoes.

Add your seasonings and herbs.

Use your hands to toss and coat everything thoroughly and evenly, they work better than spoons.

A tray of raw red and green tomatoes, sliced and preppedf or smoking.

Arrange your tomatoes on a baking tray in a single layer. Overlap is fine as your tomatoes will begin to shrink during the smoking process.

Check your tomatoes periodically for level of doneness. I like mine to look like they do in this picture, but you can keep going a bit more if you prefer. Taste some as you go and you’ll discover your personal preference.

If you’re using tomatoes of different sizes, remove the smaller ones as they will finish first, and leave the rest to keep smoking.

Drizzle with balsamic vinegar (optional) and any fresh herbs.

Smoked tomatoes stacked vertically on a wooden cutting board.

Best Wood For Smoking Tomatoes

Any variety you want. The tomatoes you see here were smoked on Hickory BBQ wood pellets.

According to the official Traeger website, the best wood pellets for vegetables (yes but tomatoes are a fruit, I get it) are: Hickory BBQ, Signature Blend, Apple BBQ, Pecan, Alder, Maple, and Winemaker’s Blend.

Buy Traeger 100% hardwood pellets (no additives) here:

Traeger Grills Signature Blend 100% All-Natural Hardwood Pellets

Substitutions & Variations

There are SO many ways to flavor your smoked tomatoes. Simple salt and pepper is enough, but here are more herbs and seasonings that are perfect.

Tomatoes & Basil | Add fresh or dried basil + chervil + garlic + tarragon
Tomato & Prosciutto | Add fresh basil at the eng along with thinly sliced prosciutto
Tomato & Watermelon | A smoked tomato and watermelon salad is AMAZING. Add some prosciutto too.
Tomato, Mozzarella & Fresh Herb | After smoking, add fresh basil with thinly sliced mozzarella along with a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic.
Tomato & Avocado | Tomatoes and avocado are a perfect pairing! Put this on a sandwich with prosciutto and you’re going to love it.
Smoked Tomato Salsa | Take your favorite salsa recipe up a notch and replace some or all of the fresh tomatoes with smoked tomatoes.

Storage & Freezing

These are best served warm or at room temperature. They can be refrigerated very well for up to a week in an airtight container or frozen for up to 3 months.

Pairings

These are my favorite dishes to serve with smoked tomatoes:

Related Recipes

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these: