Tomato confit is slow-roasted tomatoes in the oven with olive oil, garlic, a pinch of sugar, and dried or fresh herbs.

They are soft, juicy, and flavor-packed; they are excellent as a starter or to use as a topping and condiment to upgrade any meal.

close up picture of confit cherry tomatoes

Check out our best vegetable sides recipe collection!

Tomato confit takes 5 minutes to prepare, and you can make them with any small tomato.

The secret to the best tomato confit is slow roasting at a relatively low temperature for about 1.5 hours.

Confit (pronounced con-fee) is a cooking and preservation method where the food is cooked slowly, at a low temperature, usually with fat or/and sugar.

It comes from the french “confire,” which means to preserve.

Cherry tomatoes are particularly suitable to be made confit. Roasting them slowly, at a low temperature, will boost their flavor while making them incredibly juicy and tender.

Cherry tomato confit have an intense, sweet, salty, aromatic, garlicky flavor, and they are a perfect umami booster on top of most other dishes.

You’ll love them on top of our no-knead focaccia, piadina, naan, flatbread pizza, socca or farinata, and even polenta or pasta dished like garlic and oil pasta, zucchini pasta, and broccoli pasta.

Confit tomatoes with garlic in a round tray

Ingredients

Confit tomatoes ingredients

Tomatoes

You can use any small fresh tomatoes to make confit.

Our favorites are cherry tomatoes, but you can also use date tomatoes, plum tomatoes, and grape tomatoes.

Of course, the tomatoes should be ripe to get incredibly sweet and juicy.

Olive oil

Best if you use extra virgin olive oil. As an alternative, you could use regular olive oil.

Sugar

Sugar helps caramelize the tomatoes, and it boosts their flavor. It also balances the acidity of the tomato, so we recommend it.

Garlic and oregano

That’s all we use to season the tomatoes. If you don’t have dried oregano, use dried or fresh thyme sprigs or other fresh rosemary or sage.

We recommend using fresh garlic, finely chopped or grated.

Salt

Sea salt and kosher salt are best.

We do not add black pepper to this recipe, but you can do so. And if you want spicy, confit tomatoes, add a pinch of chili powder or red pepper flakes.

Dietary note: this recipe is gluten-free and dairy-free.

Confit tomatoes in a tray

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 300°F or 150°C. Prep your baking tray; you can use any as long as it fits all the tomatoes without overlapping. We use a quarter sheet pan.

You can line your baking dish with parchment paper, although unnecessary.

Rinse the tomatoes, cut them in half, and arrange them on a single layer without overlapping and facing up.

cherry tomatoes in a tray



To a small bowl, add grated garlic, salt, dried oregano, sugar, and extra virgin olive oil.

With a teaspoon, sprinkle each tomato with the dressing.

Each tomato must get a bit of everything to make every bite as delicious as the next.

Tip: add more or less garlic depending on your tastes. You can make confit tomato without garlic if you prefer.

tomato confit just baked

Slow roast in the oven for about 1 hour and 30 minutes at 300°F or 150°C. They should be completely soft and juicy.

confit tomatoes just baked

Serving Suggestions

As a starter

The tomatoes are a perfect pairing with bread or flatbreads, such as:

Farinata with confit tomatoes
Chickpea farinata with arugula and confit tomatoes.

Or you can prepare an appetizer platter with other dips and spreads, such as:

tofu cream cheese
Tofu cream cheese with confit tomatoes.

As topping on pasta

This tomato confit recipe is excellent for boosting the flavor of your favorite pasta or main. Try them with:

  • Aglio e olio (spaghetti, parsley, garlic, olive oil, red pepper flakes, etc.)
  • Mushroom pasta (white mushroom, cherry tomatoes, tagliatelle, fresh parsley, garlic, etc.)
  • Broccoli pasta (broccoli, olive oil, red pepper flakes, pasta, etc.)
  • Zucchini pasta (zucchini, olive oil, garlic, basil, parmesan, etc.)
  • Lemon tofu (it’s kind of a lemon chicken but with tofu slices)

For breakfast or brunch

They are also perfect for spicing up your breakfast. Have them with:

Tofu scramble with bread and roasted tomatoes

Make Ahead and Storage

Make ahead: confit tomato is an excellent recipe to make ahead as they keep well in the fridge for days, and you can enjoy them cold or at room temperature.

Refrigerator: keep them in the fridge for up to 6 days. To store them, put them in a clean jar and add a little olive oil to keep them moist. Don’t store it longer than that.

Freezer: We recommend freezing them in small airtight containers if you want to preserve them longer. Let them cool down completely before freezing them for up to 6 months. Then, thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Do not freeze multiple times.

Important: we do not recommend preserving confit tomatoes wholly submerged in oil in a sealed jar for more than six days unless you know exactly what you are doing.

Preserving food in oil, if done incorrectly, can create the right environment for botulism bacteria to grow, which we don’t want to encourage.

Confit tomatoes with garlic

More Tomato Recipes

If you want more ideas on how to cook with tomatoes, here are some easy dinner ideas:

More Toppings

Upgrade your pasta and salads with these easy homemade topping ideas:

  • Homemade croutons (stale bread, olive oil, garlic, dried herbs, etc.)
  • Caramelized onions (sugar, salt, vinegar, onions, etc.)
  • Fried tofu (cornstarch, garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, olive oil, etc.)
  • Dukkah (hazelnuts, pine nuts, sesame seeds, coriander seeds, dried oregano, etc.)
  • Roasted chickpeas (canned chickpeas, paprika, curry or garlic powder, oil, etc.)

For many more side dish ideas, check out our sides category page.

tomato confit

Tomato Confit

By: Nico Pallotta
5 from 15 votes
Tomato confit is slow-roasted tomatoes in the oven with olive oil, garlic, a pinch of sugar, and dried or fresh herbs.
They are soft, juicy, and flavor-packed; they are excellent as a starter or to use as a topping and condiment to upgrade any meal.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
Servings: 10 people
Course: Appetizer, Side dish, Snack
Cuisine: French

Ingredients

  • 20 ounces cherry tomatoes or other small tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 cloves garlic (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano or thyme

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 300°F or 150°C. Prep your baking tray; you can use any as long as it fits all the tomatoes without overlapping. We use a quarter sheet pan.
    Rinse the tomatoes, cut them in half, and arrange them on a single layer without overlapping and facing up.
    cherry tomatoes in a tray
  • To a small bowl, add grated garlic, salt, dried oregano, sugar, and extra virgin olive oil.
    With a teaspoon, top each tomato with the mixture.
    Each tomato must get a bit of everything to make every bite as delicious as the next.
    tomato confit just baked
  • Slow roast in the oven for about 1 hour and 30 minutes at 300°F or 150°C.
    Confit tomatoes in a tray
  • They should be completely soft and juicy.
    confit tomatoes soft and juicy

Video

Confit Tomatoes (slow roasted, juicy, easy to prep)

Notes

Nutrition information is an estimate for 1 serving of tomato confit out of 10 servings.
MAKE AHEAD & STORAGE
– Make ahead: confit tomato is an excellent recipe to make ahead as they keep well in the fridge for days, and you can enjoy them cold or at room temperature.
– Refrigerator: keep them in the fridge for up to 6 days. To store them, put them in a clean jar and add a little olive oil to keep them moist. Don’t store it longer than that.
– Freezer: We recommend freezing them in small airtight containers if you want to preserve them longer. Let them cool down completely before freezing them for up to 6 months. Then, thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Do not freeze multiple times.
– Important: we do not recommend preserving confit tomatoes wholly submerged in oil in a sealed jar for more than six days unless you know exactly what you are doing.
Preserving food in oil, if done incorrectly, can create the right environment for botulism bacteria to grow, which we don’t want to encourage.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 46kcal, Carbohydrates: 5g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 3g, Saturated Fat: 0.4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 0mg, Potassium: 131mg, Dietary Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 284IU, Vitamin B6: 0.1mg, Vitamin C: 13mg, Vitamin E: 1mg, Vitamin K: 6µg, Calcium: 14mg, Folate: 8µg, Iron: 1mg, Manganese: 0.1mg, Magnesium: 6mg, Zinc: 0.1mg
Tried this recipe? Leave a comment below or mention @theplantbasedschool on Instagram. We are also on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and TikTok.

If you liked this confit tomato recipe, you might also like the following:

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Nico and Louise in the kitchen

Hi! We are Nico & Louise

Welcome to The Plant-Based School, a food blog with easy, tasty, and wholesome recipes.

Our aim is to help you and your family eat more veggies through delicious recipes with simple ingredients.

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10 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I loved this recipe. The tomatoes are very easy to cook, you just prepare them and leave them in the oven. Very tasty, we used them as a side dish to a hot meal.

    1. Amazing, Linda! Very happy they were easy to prepare – thanks so much for taking the time to comment. Have a wonderful day, Nico

  2. 5 stars
    I really like this recipe! I’ve made it 3 times in the past month because I love tomatoes cooked this way. I’ve substituted Greek oregano,thyme, and genovese basil in the recipe (because I grow all three in my garden) and they all worked very well.

  3. 5 stars
    The smell while these were cooking was amazing, and the taste – wow! Making the focaccia to go with it tonight, can’t wait to try them together. I love your recipes because they do not complicate or overwhelm the food but allow the flavours to really come out.