Fresh tomatoes: an international favorite

"The best way to eat them is in the garden, warm and pungent from the vine, so that one can suck them unashamedly, and bend over if any juice escapes."-M.F.K. Fisher on Tomatoes

"In a world riven by hate, greed, and envy, everyone loves tomatoes...Real (as I will call vine-ripened, soft-walled, acid-flavor, summer-grown) tomatoes are an article of faith, a rallying point for the morally serious, a grail"-Raymond Sokolov, Food Writer

Reasonable people still manage to disagree on whether to classify the tomato as a fruit or a vegetable. There is however broad consensus about one thing: biting into a warm, summer tomato is one of the most luscious pleasures the kitchen garden has to offer.

At KGI, we share food writer MFK Fisher's "the simpler the better" approach to enjoying them. Below you'll find a "tomato table" which will hopefully give you some new ideas. It is not presented as a collection of exact recipes, but as a source of inspiration which you can adapt to your own appetite and tastes. Enjoy and remember to wipe your chin!


Origin

Description

 

Ingredients

Method

Belgium

Fresh tomatos stuffed with baby shrimp in lemon mayonnaise sauce

 

  • medium-sized, firm fleshed tomatoes
  • mayonnaise (home-made, if you can)
  • fresh lemon juice
  • parsley
  • cooked baby shrimp (the Belgians use "gray shrimp" coming from the North Sea, but pink ones will also work)

Cut tops off tomatoes and remove insides, salt and pepper inside, mix shrimp, lemon juice, chopped parsley, and mayonnaise in a separate bowl, fill tomatoes with shrimp mixture.

France

Tomato salad with vinaigrette

 

  • tomatoes (any kind) diced
  • basic vinaigrette (oil, vinegar, Dijon mustard)
  • shallot, minced
  • hard-boiled egg (optional)
  • salt and pepper
  • French bread

Prepare vinaigrette in salad bowl, add minced shallot, add diced tomatoes, and chopped egg, add salt and pepper, toss gently and serve with baguette to sop up the juices.

Greece

Tomato salad with feta cheese and olives

 

  • tomatoes (any kind) diced
  • olive oil
  • fresh lemon juice
  • oregano (optional)
  • feta cheese
  • purple onion
  • Greek (Kalamata) olives

Place sliced tomatoes on a serving dish. Sprinkle on the feta cheese, lemon juice, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with olives and onion slices.

India

Spicy ginger and tomato salad

 

  • tomatoes (any medium or large size), diced
  • fresh lime juice (1/4 cup for every 4 tomatoes)
  • fresh ginger, peeled and sliced paper thin (1/3 cup for every 4 tomatoes)
  • chopped mint
  • 1 medium spicy pepper (banana chile works well) seeded and sliced fine
  • salt

Place ginger and chile in a small glass or ceramic bowl, add lime juice, salt and pepper, let stand for 20 minutes. Slice tomatoes and arrange on plate. Add mint, salt and pepper. Add ginger mixture evenly over tomatoes. Serve chilled.

Italy

Tomato-basil bruschetta

 

 

  • tomatoes (plum are best) diced
  • olive oil
  • fresh lemon juice
  • basil, minced garlic
  • French or Italian bread sliced and toasted

Dice tomatoes and mix with all the other ingredients except bread; set aside. Toast slices of French or Italian bread. Spoon tomato mixture at room temperature onto toasted bread slices.

Poland

Traditional tomato-onion salad with a hint of sweetness.

 

  • tomatoes (any type) sliced
  • 1/4 cup of finely diced onion per tomato
  • 1/4 tsp of sugar per tomato
  • bye or sourdough bread
  • butter
  • salt and pepper

Prepare onion-sugar mixture and let sit for at least 15 minutes, slice tomatoes and place on plate in an overlapping fashion, salt and pepper them, spread onion mixture evenly over tomatoes, serve with buttered bread.

Spain

Tapas-style, tomato-anchovy toasts

 

 

  • tomatoes (any type) sliced
  • olive oil
  • garlic
  • Spanish or French bread sliced and toasted
  • anchovies in olive oil
  • ground pepper

While the bread is still warm, rub both sides of the toast with the garlic. Cut the tomatoes into halves and rub each side of the toast with some of them, so that the juice and seeds soak well into the toast . Slice the remaining tomatoes and arrange on the toasts. Drizzle each toast with olive oil and top with anchovy fillets. Add ground black pepper and serve.

Turkey

Tomato and onion salad with mint

  • tomatoes (any type) diced
  • olive oil, lemon juice
  • mint
  • parsley,
  • salt and pepper

Prepare olive oil and lemon juice mixture in a small bowl. Dice the tomatoes. Slice onions finely and toss them with salt in a small separate bowl. Let them sit for 20 minutes. Rinse the salt off the onions in cold water and squeeze to remove the remaining water. Layer, first the onions on a serving platter, then the tomatoes, then the parsley and mint. Pour lemon mixture over all.

Comments

I want some recipes for beets. All I know to do with them is eat them plain, pickled, and harvard. Do you have any ideas for beets?

well....grate them with carrot and make a salad with a little cider vinegar, and toasted sunflower/sesame seeds roasted with tamari.
Or roast them whole and serve them with baby spinach leaves, goats cheese and toasted pecans, in a salad with balsamic and olive oil.
Or, substitute the for the carrot in a carrot cake.

first time gardner: tomatoes are, beef steak, red pear,yellow italian. My plants are huge, lots of beautiful large glorious tomatoes. They taste like summer. Does anyone anywhere have recipes that dont include cooking my tomatoes, and in small batches want to try to keep flavor garden fresh as long as possible.Not a big spaghetti sauce fan

Roger,today 16/9/06 I read a disturbing article in "The Times" page50 world news section, Article by Adam Sage.France , new Law banning the sale or promotion of Organic Fertilisers..The legislation, which carries a maximum 2year Jail term and a £50,000 fine, also bans"all commercial publicity and all recommendations" for unauthorised Products. Les Amis De Orte(friends of the Nettle)are circulating a petition. M Bertrand who wishes to publish a book about such composts said "It'an attack on the fundamental right to free speech and it could kill off our collective gardening memory".We should stand by our gardening Brethren and Sisters in La Belle France, and make sure that big Agri, Chemical Co's and Pharmaceuticals are not allowed to pull this one there in US, UK or anywhere else in the world. This is just the sort of thing Acres USA would be highlighting to all Organic/ Biodynamic growers to watch out for. Best wishes to all your wonderful gardeners World Wide. Paul kelly (UK)

My favorite summer tomato recipe is to chop them and marinate with olive oil, basil, salt and pepper and a dash of balsamic vinegar for as long as I can stand to wait, then put on some pasta - I find the little spirals are good for catching the juice.

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