Best way to cook tomatoes??

[Dreeza]

So I have a new obsession with tomatoes, despite my mother trying to force me to eat them for the first 20 years of my life, and me absolutely refusing, I now am in love with them.

Anyways, I really like the fresh tomatoes in pasta dishes that are barely cooked...

I've made them myself a few times, and they are always good, but I feel like they just aren't as good as when I have them in a restaurant, and I just don't know what I am doing wrong! My guess it might just be cause I am not using fresh garlic and fresh basil...

I just use a tiny bit of olive oil too...and just kinda stir fry the tomatoes with minced garlic and dry basil on med-high heat.

Anything else I should be doing??

 

[bubbatd]

I like to cut them in half and just pan fry or broil them . Always soak your fresh garlic in olive oil for a while and saute or brush the top with it when broiling . Also when broiling you can add dried bread crumbs to oil . Of course salt and pepper and add fresh basil if wanted !

 

[Giny]

*drooling*

Have your tried slow roasted tomatoes

 

[Renee750il]

While your angel hair pasta is cooking . . . .

Rub a large bowl with fresh garlic.

Crush three or four cloves of fresh garlic with approx. 1/2 teaspoon of salt (sea salt is best) in roughly three tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, a few leaves of fresh basil and oregano.

Add several large fresh tomatoes, chopped, and about 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley.

Drain the pasta and add it to the bowl and toss, adding fresh grated parmesan or romano (or even feta) cheese.

Chow down

Great with a salad of avocados, oranges and ripe olives with a little raspberry vinaigrette.

 

[noludoru]

Renee, you taunt me. Now I think I'm dragging my mother to the farmers market for some tomatoes today.... *drool*

 

[ToscasMom]

Well if you want to slightly cook them down, dice them finely and remove most of the seeds. they are what makes them a bit bitter. If you like that, leave them. You must use garlic but you must not make the garlic brown. dark garlic ruins a sauce. And yes you need real garlic and real basil, but the real basil darkens in a pan so the best way is to shave the fresh leaves and sprinkle them atop the finished pasta and use dried basil for the pan. Don't forget the romano cheese.

 

[PWCorgi]

Ewww, I hate tomatoes! Bleh.

I amaze myself, I am so darn helpful.

 

[Renee750il]

A really good thing to do with fresh tomatoes is to quarter them and put them in good freezer containers . . . so you can have great tomato dishes in the winter A quick spin in the blender's not a bad prelude to the freezer either.

 

[bubbatd]

To me freezing or even refrigeration ruins the taste .

 

[ToscasMom]

I do that too Renee. I grew a lot of tomatoes, and I froze them. But I did what my mother taught me. I made the marinara out of them first and then double sealed it and froze is as soon as it was cool enough but still warm.

 

[Renee750il]

Yah, but I'm not Italian so I do other things besides marinara with tomatoes

 

[ToscasMom]

Dreeza, do not cook tomatoes in a non stick pan. The acid reacts with the pan and it will never taste like tomatoes cooked in stainless. Same goes for dishes with lemon.

 

[Renee750il]

To me freezing or even refrigeration ruins the taste .

Grammy, frozen they're still 1000% better than the red rubber balls you get in the off-season

 

[ToscasMom]

Grammy, frozen they're still 1000% better than the red rubber balls you get in the off-season

^^. What she said.

 

[bubbatd]

True ...... I only buy the cherry ones off season . I don't do many sauces .....mostly stir fry with them . So no BLTs.....sob !

 

[MaxsMom]

I've never cooked them. I pick up a ball of fresh Mozzarella cheese at Trader Joes' and just alternate sliced tomatoes with slices of cheese and a bit of fresh basil, then drizzle it all with a little olive oil.

 

[ToscasMom]

Yup Maxs, you must be Italian too. I grew up on that. But man, I have so many tomatoes left over, I have to cook them.