This fruit that we treat like a vegetable is a highly versatile ingredient that can be added to anything from a sandwich to soup. They also come in many varieties making them easy to incorporate just about anywhere.
Fresh Tomatoes
As a fruit, tomatoes should be crisp and sweet. Not soft and grainy (overripe). So we need to buy tomatoes that fit that description regardless of the variety of fresh tomato you buy. There are hundreds (probably thousands) of breeds of tomato but in general they fall into one of the four basic varieties listed below.
Varieties:
Cherry / Grape Tomatoes:
These small grape and cherry sized tomatoes are crisp and sweet and as such make a perfect addition to salads. However, they do not have a lot of flesh on them so they are not so good for adding a tomato flavor to something. They are more like an accompaniment for adding color, texture and sweetness.
Slicing Tomatoes:
Beefsteaks and other “slicers” are great in salads, for instance the famous Peter Luger Tomato Salad which is made with Beefsteaks. Or the classic italian tomato salad which is made with just slicing tomatoes. The size of this style of tomato makes them perfect for slicing onto a sandwich or cubing up into a soup or stew.
Plum / San Marzano / Roma:
Plum tomatoes are elongated tomatoes and are the type used in canned tomatoes (see below). San Marzano are a highly sought after breed of tomato which originated in San Marzano in Naples, Italy. They are very sweet and have a good amount of flesh on them and not a lot of that jelly like substance that holds the seeds. They are also more slender which makes them better for fitting in jars and cans. That is why they are very popular for use in sauces especially in the proverbial al Pomodoro. Ultimately, they are welcome anywhere you’d like a fleshy sweet tomato.
Heirloom:
Heirloom tomatoes are older varieties that have not been cross-bred with other varieties in order to achieve certain things such as drought or disease resistance or sweetness, etc. They are the ‘OG’ as I like to call them and so they do not have perfect shapes and colors. Ironically it is for this reason that these varieties are usually sought after by high end restaurants and foodies. In general, heirlooms are more expensive. Unfortunately, they are also often overripe in stores as they do not sell as many and so do not replenish stock as often. If you can I recommend sticking a large pot or two outside and growing some. It’s worth it.
Canned Tomatoes
You will have to decide if you want the tomatoes whole peeled, or ground/crushed. The higher quality tomatoes are used in the whole peeled variety since it is difficult to hide the defects. After manufacturers process the whole peeled tomatoes, slightly lower quality bruised tomatoes are usually mixed into the ground tomato variety since there blemishes won’t be visible. In general this has a tendency to reduce the sweetness of the product as well as slightly increase the acidity. For this reason, I prefer the whole in dishes where the tomato is the main component and a bit of extra sweetness is desired. Some people don’t like the tomatoes to be too “chunky” and prefer a smoother sauce so they use ground.
I usually use ground/crushed tomatoes for certain types of pizza since there are a lot of other flavors in Pizza such as cheese, dough and toppings. A bit of acidity is good here as it helps cut through rich cheeses. Ground is also good for use in a bolognese where only a mild sweetness is desired.
Armed with this knowledge your choices for what you are making will have meaning behind them as well as known consequences thus allowing you to make informed decisions when shopping in the supermarket.
Jarred / Home Processed Tomatoes
Home jarring and preserving is a subject all its own. My grandparents processed and jarred enough tomatoes to last an entire year and they ate pasta with tomato sauce at least once a week. There is certainly something rewarding about it and while I pickle and preserve a handful of things from my garden each year I never seem to find the time to jar my own tomatoes.
It involves steaming the tomatoes and peeling them and then jarring them with a bit of basil and cooking them in the sterilized jars. With all of the concern about microplastics (canned tomatoes are lined with plastic) it is certainly a great way to keep your tomatoes mostly plastic free. For more information, a far better resource is: canning and jarring. Just be sure to follow the guidelines of the USDA for food preservation so that you can remain safe.
