Sep 28, 2001
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Tips For Buying Tomatoes

By Editorial Staff
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Tips For Buying Tomatoes

Yes, the best-tasting tomatoes come from your own garden. But if you lack the place or time to grow, follow these tips to get the tomatoes you spend most of the year dreaming about.

•Find a local grower, preferably a small-scale operation that cares about its products. Start your search at a specialty produce or farmers' market. These tomatoes will likely be grown in the ground (not hydroponically), in rich soil (not an inferior mix), and in the open sun (not a hothouse), and picked at the optimum time. They might also be organic and/or heirloom—a bonus.

•Look for good color and smell, taut skin, and flesh that has a little give.

•Don't refrigerate them: The cold breaks down the cell walls and makes the fruit mushy.

•Keep them out of direct sunlight and eat them within a few days.

Tips For Buying Tomatoes

This article was first published in Saveur in Issue #36

Comments (1)

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I've discovered an important point about storing tomatoes is to, as the article says, not refrigerate, but also wrap the tomato in the self-sealing paper available in supermarkets and store with the stem side down. The stem side is where air enters the tomato and causes it to rot. This is why you usually see tomatoes in supermarkets displayed with the root end down. Store in a cool place. I've found that storing tomatoes this way will keep them fresh and tasty for a week or more.

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