Use a sharp knife
A blunt knife squashes a tomato and lets the juice out. A serrated or well-sharpened knife cuts straight through the skin, and the slices stay neat.
Cooking tips
Cooking tips
Sometimes it isn't the recipe that changes a tomato dish but one small detail: a sharp knife, salt added at the right moment, a drop of oil. Here are those small details — short tips that come in handy in any recipe. Below is the catalogue where standalone articles will appear.
Most kitchen tips are really about not spoiling a good ingredient. With tomatoes, that's especially true.
How this section works: a tip is included if you can use it straight away in an ordinary kitchen, without special ingredients or equipment.
Tips
Six habits that make tomato dishes taste better.
Salt at the end
Salt draws out the juice. Salt a salad just before serving; for bruschetta or a filling, on the other hand, you can salt in advance and pour off the excess liquid.
Balance the acidity
If a sauce or soup tastes sharp, add a pinch of sugar and heat for another couple of minutes. Taste after each addition.
Don't be afraid of fat
Lycopene — the red pigment in tomatoes — is better absorbed from cooked tomatoes and in the presence of fat. A spoonful of oil in the sauce is both welcome and tasty.
Roast bland tomatoes
Pale tomatoes can't be saved in a salad, but in the oven they lose water and become sweeter. Use them for soup or sauce.
Baked tomatoes with cheese (in Russian)
Put leftovers away in time
Refrigerate cooked tomato dishes within 2 hours. Keep cut fresh tomatoes chilled too and use them quickly.
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Topics the editors are planning
- Making the most of a glut of garden tomatoes
- Fried green tomatoes and other ways to use unripe fruit
- Water-bath canning tomatoes at home: reading a tested recipe
- Sheet-pan roasted tomatoes: a weeknight base for many meals
Editorial rules
- Articles in this catalogue are written separately for each language version and are not translations.
- Some articles link to third-party websites, including gaming services; we do not control their content, prices or terms.
- We do not publish unverifiable ratings of products or restaurants, prices or reviews.
Related sections
- Recipes
Four home recipes: pasta with fresh tomato sauce, a salad, a puréed soup and bruschetta.
- Cooking techniques
Blanching, roasting, oven-drying, sauce, homemade tomato paste, freezing and safe home canning.
- Ingredients
Types of tomatoes and what goes with them: how to choose, how to store, how to use.
- Cooking questions
Answers to common questions about choosing, storing, cooking and preserving tomatoes.
Sources
- USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service
- Encyclopedic sources on Solanum lycopersicum
Times and temperatures in these recipes are a guide: a lot depends on your hob, oven, pans and the tomatoes themselves. For home preserving, use tested recipes that give processing times.