On account of the fact that a wide-mouthed bottle is used, there is even more danger of air leakage in the neck of the bottle, causing “black neck,” than there is in catsup. It is a common sight to see chili sauce with an inch, or even two inches, of blackening at the top of the bottle. Sometimes the very finest quality of cork is used, and then paraffin is put over that, but even then we find that this darkening is not avoided. I recommend the same procedure here as was given when discussing this subject on catsup.
If a crown seal, either plain or of the self-opening type, is used as the closure, a pure cork insert should be used. As mentioned in a previous chapter, the composition cork insert does not work as well on wide-mouthed bottles as it does on those with a narrow mouth.
The remarks which were made on the packing of No. 10 and gallon catsup also apply to the packing of chili sauce in these sizes.
Microscopical Counts
The counts of molds, yeasts and spores, and bacteria in chili sauce usually run very low. I have never seen a sample that ran high in molds, and very few that ran high in the other counts. The molds seldom run higher than 10, and counts of zero are often obtained. This is because practically all of the mold in tomatoes is on the outside and clings to the peeling. When the peeling is removed the mold is removed. As the peeled tomatoes are usually cut and cooked immediately after they are peeled, there is very little opportunity for the multiplication of yeasts and bacteria.
Pulping the Trimmings
Trimming pulp, or “skin and core,” as it is sometimes called, is made from that part of the tomato which is removed when the tomatoes are peeled. This consists of the peeling, with the tomato substance which clings to it, and the hard core at the stem end of the tomato.
In as much as practically all of the mold in or on the tomatoes is retained in the trimmings, it is not an easy matter to work these trimmings up into a product which will mark up to the government requirements, and do it economically. If the tomatoes are firm and largely free from cracks around the stem end it is not so bad, but when they come in badly cracked, with tufts of mold growing in all the cracks, as is often the case late in the season, the amount of labor required to properly sort them makes the working up of trimmings unprofitable.
When the trimmings show up fairly well, and the labor to handle them is available, there is no reason why the chili sauce packer or tomato canner should not utilize what would otherwise be a waste by turning it into pulp or “trimming catsup.”