As the name suggests, Mexican stewed tomatoes are simply stewed tomatoes with a twist. They are most commonly used to make sauces or to thicken up soups and stews but can also be used as a side dish.
Mexican stewed tomatoes tend to be harder to find than regular stewed tomatoes as they are a more specialised ingredient. If your local supermarket doesn’t supply Mexican stewed tomatoes, there are plenty of alternatives you can use to spice up your dish.
Our 5 Substitutes for Mexican Stewed Tomatoes
The addition of jalapenos (either in pureed or chopped form) means that Mexican stewed tomatoes have a real spicy kick to them.
The flavour of the tomatoes is enriched the longer they are stewed, making Mexican stewed tomatoes a very robust ingredient.
Here are our top 5 substitutes for Mexican stewed tomatoes:
1) Ro Tel
You probably haven’t heard of ro tel before, but it is commonly used to make all types of spicy salsas.
Ro tel is essentially diced tomatoes that have been cooked with diced chillies. These chillies are not necessarily jalapenos, but they will still give your dish the same level of heat.
If you are a fan of the spicier Mexican stewed tomato varieties, then add some of your own chillies to match your preferred heat.
Ro tel also retains that same sweetness of Mexican stewed tomatoes though the tomato flavour itself is slightly weaker.
Cook for Longer
Ro tel tomatoes are smaller than Mexican stewed tomatoes and are not cooked for as long, making their texture slightly different. You can stew pre-brought ro tel for an hour or so to make a texture more closely resembling stewed tomatoes.
2) Tomato Sauce
Though Mexican stewed tomatoes do have an element of sweetness to them, tomato sauce is far sweeter as the tomatoes are not cooked for as long. This makes tomato sauce a better ingredient to use in sweeter dishes such as on pizza or in pasta sauces.
Tomato sauce is a lot thicker than Mexican stewed tomatoes and is full of flavour. You will only need to use half as much tomato sauce than a recipe calls for.
As far as substitutes go, tomato sauce is very convenient. In fact, you probably already have some in your pantry, but if you don’t, it is a very inexpensive ingredient.
Match Spice
Tomato sauce with added chillies is commonly available in your everyday supermarket and can add a similar heat to your dish as Mexican stewed tomatoes. So, use spicy tomato sauce instead of the regular kind when replacing Mexican stewed tomatoes.
3) Crushed Tomatoes
Best used in sauces and soups due to their thickness, crushed tomatoes are very easy to swap into a variety of dishes using Mexican stewed tomatoes without changing the dishes’ flavour.
Crushes tomatoes are not as thick as tomato puree but are still thicker than tomato sauce.
Some crushed tomato manufacturers will make chunky crushed tomatoes. It is this kind that will make the best substitute for Mexican stewed tomatoes in terms of texture.
Like with tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes are available to buy at different spice levels. But if you only have regular crushed tomatoes to hand, then just add your own heat.
Texture or Flavour?
To get a stronger tomato flavour, favour smoother crushed tomatoes as they would have had the full tomato flavour pulled out of them in the crushing process.
4) Tomato Paste
If you want a deep, rich tomato flavour to match Mexican stewed tomatoes, then tomato paste is your best choice.
Tomato paste is made by cooking tomatoes for hours until they form a dense puree. As such, it has a highly concentrated tomato flavour, more so than stewed tomatoes.
You will have to add your own jalapenos or chillies and sweeteners to make tomato paste taste like Mexican stewed tomatoes.
However, it is a great ingredient to add an instant tomato hit to your dish and will help to thicken up thin sauces or soups.
Healthy Swap
Because tomato paste has no added sweetness, it is the healthiest substitute on this list. Tomato paste also takes to heat very well and is able to retain the various health benefits of tomatoes when added to your dish.
5) Diced Tomatoes
Unlike the other substitutes on this list, diced tomatoes can be brought cooked or fresh, seasoned or unseasoned and smoky or roasted.
To best match Mexican stewed tomatoes, use cooked and seasoned diced tomatoes.
As they are diced and not whole tomatoes, you can expect a different texture to your dish when using diced tomatoes.
Though you can cook them for longer to break down the tomatoes and develop a similar feel to stewed tomatoes.
Use the Right Heat
Avoid using smoked diced tomatoes as they will add a different kind of heat to your dish that won’t match the spice of Mexican stewed tomatoes.
Other Substitutes for Mexican Stewed Tomatoes
If you do not have any of the above substitutes to hand or would prefer to use something fresher, here are a few more options:
- Whole Canned Tomatoes – Typically canned with some bell pepper and chopped onion, whole canned tomatoes will have a similar texture as Mexican stewed tomatoes but will taste very different.
- Fresh Tomatoes – Fresh tomatoes will not have as strong a flavour as Mexican stewed tomatoes and none of the added spice, but they will be healthier!
Summary
Mexican stewed tomatoes can be hard to find, but some other tomato products – like ro tel – can give your dish a spicy kick while still providing that complex tomato flavour.