Big Juicy Tomatoes on the Vine

Sliced, salt and pepper, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and enjoy!

best

David

Toby

I'd stick them in the liquidizer and make a nice Bloody Mary

vodka - Worcester sauce - horseradish - tabasco sauce - salt and black pepper and some ice cubes.

Pick them while they're still warm from the sun, take two fairly thick slices of white farmhouse bread (make it a good quality loaf please), spread with mayonnaise according to taste, slice the tomatoes then add to the bread/mayo.  Eat, immediately. Simple. Delicious.

TOBYJUG posted:

The favourite time of year for the humble and not so inconsequential Tomato. Please could other forum members share a great way of using it, that they enjoy..?

Its always said that great dishes can come from just a few great ingredients put together well. Tomatoes are Tomatoes, although there are great Tomatoes and not so great ones. Get the really good ones and, well, what's the best way to use them ?

Sliced, drizzle on some good olive oil, fresh basil and black pepper.

Nothing more is needed!

Although I could handle Richard's and Tabbycats' suggestions as well

Heat some good quality Chorizo and Garlic in lots and lots of Olive Oil when all the oil has turned red add some pre cooked rice and stir fry with the tomatoes until cooked and then eat with a nice Spanish red wine of your choice.

Bob the Builder posted:

Heat some good quality Chorizo and Garlic in lots and lots of Olive Oil when all the oil has turned red add some pre cooked rice and stir fry with the tomatoes until cooked and then eat with a nice Spanish red wine of your choice.

STOP IT, STOP IT! 

I love Chorizo.....and garlic....and I think I'm going to have to lie down for a while from all this excitement

Needs to be fort chorizo though...

Agreed

None of those in Yorkshire yet, not for many months! Still eating them from last year though as below.

My wife ''works' one day per week as a volunteer in a not for profit organic vegetable farm with acres of glasshouses. She is paid in vegetables at the end of the day. At season end she gets boxes and boxes of tomatoes surplus to requirements that have just gone a little bit over and could not now be sold. They get cooked by me!

Halve in large roasting tray, single layer, cut side up. Liberal olive oil, salt n pepper, fresh rosemary , sprinkle chilli flakes. Garlic if you like it. Roast at high temp so just softening and getting some colour on skins (30-40 mins) then pour into a sieve with all the juices and mash through. 

Makes fabulous intense rich passata that keeps us in tomato sauce 'base' all winter. Still using it from the freezer.

Bruce

David Hendon posted:

Sliced, salt and pepper, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and enjoy!

best

David

Add some Buffalo Mozzarella and Basil, that's perfect to me.

Sliced, with a bit of red onion, a sprinkle of feta, and a drizzle of balsamic.

Insalata Caprese.  Mozzarella, tomatoes, basil, olive oil, optional salt & olives.

Tabby cat posted:

I'd stick them in the liquidizer and make a nice Bloody Mary 

and/or make tomato water -- add to a Mexican beer in a glass with a salt rim. shot of Tequila on the side non-optional.

Bruce Woodhouse posted:

None of those in Yorkshire yet, not for many months! Still eating them from last year though as below.

My wife ''works' one day per week as a volunteer in a not for profit organic vegetable farm with acres of glasshouses. She is paid in vegetables at the end of the day. At season end she gets boxes and boxes of tomatoes surplus to requirements that have just gone a little bit over and could not now be sold. They get cooked by me!

Halve in large roasting tray, single layer, cut side up. Liberal olive oil, salt n pepper, fresh rosemary , sprinkle chilli flakes. Garlic if you like it. Roast at high temp so just softening and getting some colour on skins (30-40 mins) then pour into a sieve with all the juices and mash through. 

Makes fabulous intense rich passata that keeps us in tomato sauce 'base' all winter. Still using it from the freezer.

Bruce

Ah yes, homemade roast tomato soup.   Your very lucky.   I got a shock the first time I bought enough to fill a roasting tray.  Seems quite decadent spending £12 or more , when you can get a tin of it for less than £1.

Fried with bacon, sausage, egg, mushrooms, soda bread and potato bread. 

Well what sort of answer were you expecting from an Ulsterman!

Willy.

As a tomato purist that regularly enjoys these juicy gems in their most basic form - sliced with sea salt and fresh-ground black pepper - I'm surprised how many Europeans are suggesting taking a healthy fruit and adding different kinds of fat. Unnecessary fat in the diet. Isn't that the American way? Mayonnaise of all things, egad! Mustard is the tomato's natural condiment pairing and it has no calories.

Room temperature always. Never refrigerate your tomatoes or buy ones that have been refrigerated. Cooled in transport, sure. Overchilling kills the ripening process, assuming you're buying the non-GMO versions, those without the ripening gene removed. Heirloom tomatoes they're called in the US, often in shades of orange, yellow and even brown. Despite its ironic name, the Beefsteak is my favorite variety.

Fully ripened orange or yellow cherry tomatoes straight off the vine and eaten like grapes. A little pressure from the tongue and they explode in your mouth. Is there a sweeter treat?

joerand posted:

As a tomato purist that regularly enjoys these juicy gems in their most basic form - sliced with sea salt and fresh-ground black pepper - I'm surprised how many Europeans are suggesting taking a healthy fruit and adding different kinds of fat. Unnecessary fat in the diet. Isn't that the American way? Mayonnaise of all things, egad! Mustard is the tomato's natural condiment pairing and it has no calories.

Room temperature always. Never refrigerate your tomatoes or buy ones that have been refrigerated. Cooled in transport, sure. Overchilling kills the ripening process, assuming you're buying the non-GMO versions, those without the ripening gene removed. Heirloom tomatoes they're called in the US, often in shades of orange, yellow and even brown. Despite its ironic name, the Beefsteak is my favorite variety.

Fully ripened orange or yellow cherry tomatoes straight off the vine and eaten like grapes. A little pressure from the tongue and they explode in your mouth. Is there a sweeter treat?

Dijon mustard in my fridge 150kCal/100g. Water has no calories, most other things do.

As for adding Olive Oil, well some health benefits possibly from this product ( although much debated). The whole issue of fats and what is and is not unhealthy is rather unravelling just now. Sugars possibly emerging as a greater bogey. Anyway, all things in moderation. That includes your sea salt by the way.

Definitely agree about over-chilling though. 

Bruce

joerand posted:

Room temperature always. Never refrigerate your tomatoes or buy ones that have been refrigerated. Cooled in transport, sure. Overchilling kills the ripening process, assuming you're buying the non-GMO versions, those without the ripening gene removed. 

In Europe we can only get them truly unrefrigerated if you grow your own.  That said the industry does take care over the different required temperatures during ripening, processing & transport.   This cools the fruit in stages depending of ripening state to 20'c & then post processing down to 12'c for transport.  They begin to chill below 10'c & although damage is a product of both temperature & time,  it does change flavour intensity,    5'c will injure the fruit & reduce the storage life significantly.  

Then the unfortunate part starts in supermarkets,  the better ones display them in ambient temperature,  but some do have them in chill 5-8'c cabinets.  Then it really gets all screwed up when we get them home & put them in the fridge & 4'c (40'f)

GMO is a no-no in Europe

joerand posted:

As a tomato purist that regularly enjoys these juicy gems in their most basic form - sliced with sea salt and fresh-ground black pepper - I'm surprised how many Europeans are suggesting taking a healthy fruit and adding different kinds of fat. Unnecessary fat in the diet. Isn't that the American way? Mayonnaise of all things, egad! Mustard is the tomato's natural condiment pairing and it has no calories.   ....................

 

Tomatoes and cheese or oil are a natural partner. The goodness in tomatoes comes partly from lycopene (antioxidant), which is only properly absorbed by the body when accompanied by a fat or oil. Rumour has it that the mighty tomato actually increases in lycopene content when cooked. It is even there in ketchup. 

Watermelon and feta cheese work a treat in this regard as well.

In New Jersey, where I grew up we would get fantastic tomatoes in August. Just pluck them from the vine and eat them like an apple - salt shaker optional. 

Almost impossible to get good tomatos in supermarkets / grocerystores in Europe. Need to grow them by yourself - for reasons mentioned by others (mainly the fridge). I'll start doing so once my Naim fascination has calmed down. Only then I can eat tomatosoup like my grandmother prepared.

Hi,

Pop them in some boiling water for a couple of minutes, remove the skins and slice them, peel an onion and slice, put them in a bowl together with  some olive oil, red wine vinegar,sea salt and lots of black pepper.

I have this in France every Summer, great with the local bread to soak up all the lovely juice,.

Karl

SamS posted:

The goodness in tomatoes comes partly from lycopene (antioxidant), which is only properly absorbed by the body when accompanied by a fat or oil. Rumour has it that the mighty tomato actually increases in lycopene content when cooked. It is even there in ketchup. 

The increase in lycopene when cooked is demonstrated (so I read/heard) by cooked tomatoes turning  plastic boxes red while raw ones don't...