Tomato

Fresh tomatoes are seasonal

Out of season, a fresh tomato has the acidity but little of the sweetness or aroma. When that is the case, tinned is better — tinned tomatoes are picked in season and processed immediately.

• Needs fresh — anything barely cooked, where texture matters. Caprese, Bruschetta, Greek Salad, Gazpacho.
• Better tinned — long-simmered sauces and stews. Ratatouille, pasta sauce.

What to do with the seeds

The jelly around the seeds carries savouriness, but also a lot of water. Deseed when the dish must not go watery — Iraqi Dolma and dressed salads, for instance. In a sauce, leave everything in.

To peel: score a cross, 15–30 seconds in boiling water, then into cold water, and the skin slips off.

Tomato paste is something you fry

Stirred straight into liquid it keeps a sharp raw edge. Fried in fat for a minute or two, until it darkens and starts to stick, it turns sweet and savoury. It is why the sauces in Pique Macho and Iraqi Dolma look so deep. Mechanism in Blooming spices.

It is an umami ingredient

Tomato is high in glutamate for a vegetable. Paired with meat (inosinate) the savouriness multiplies, which is the basic architecture of the bolognese family — see Building umami.

Storing

Do not refrigerate them. Below about 7°C the aroma compounds break down and the flesh turns mealy. Store stem-down at room temperature, and only refrigerate a fully ripe tomato you cannot use in time. Cut tomato keeps sealed in the fridge two days.

Substitutes

400g fresh ≈ one 400g tin of whole tomatoes. 1 tbsp tomato paste ≈ 2 tbsp ketchup, allowing for its sugar and vinegar.