You have had grilled tomatoes, right...?

[e9999]

sadly, it does seem that most store-bought tomatoes are now made of plastic.

One way to make them much more palatable is to grill them. Tomatoes, IMHO, benefit greatly from grilling. And if you start with good ones... ooolala.....

I cut them in 2, horizontally (OK, that is relative, but you know what I mean). Plop 'em on the grill, skin down. Pinch of bbq spices or tarragon etc, when they are soft and starting to sag after boiling for some time... umm umm.... Something like 15, 20 mins.... They'll peel right off the charred skin, sooo good....

try it if you haven't already....

 

[JohnVee]

I like to use Roma tomatoes, halved lengthwise, Zataar and EVOO, grilled cut side down till you're happy then flip for almost equal time. The Roma's are denser with less liquid and can easily handle cut side down for a great color and grill marks. The skin reacts just like e9999 said.

Even better over charcoal.

--john

 

[BrotherRob]

Grape or cherry whole in a basket with a bit of salt. Simple, easy and awesome. Store bought tomatoes suck ass, home grown is the only way to go.

 

[ojaij40]

Grape or cherry whole in a basket with a bit of salt. Simple, easy and awesome. Store bought tomatoes suck ass, home grown is the only way to go.

are you grilling them?

 

[splitshot]

I like to use Roma tomatoes, halved lengthwise, Zataar and EVOO, grilled cut side down till you're happy then flip for almost equal time. The Roma's are denser with less liquid and can easily handle cut side down for a great color and grill marks. The skin reacts just like e9999 said.

Even better over charcoal.

--john

This and with grilled onions, mmm.

 

[TRAIL TAILOR]

Tomatoes are the BOMB!

Side dish: Cut thick slices of tomato, zucchini, onion, mushrooms and yellow squash grill to mark and lightly cook, then wrap in a tinfoil pocket with garlic, butter, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

Dessert: I lightly grill Beefsteaks and then use them in a saltimbique recipe the wife and I have been experimenting with for a few years.

We grill (long enough to get marks) and then stew the beefsteaks for a couple hours in a light creme caramel sauce, then stuff with room temperature passion fruit, kiwi, mango, pineapple and hazelnuts/cashews.

Changed the stuffing several times.. We have loved every combo we have tried so far.

J

 

[FLATU8ER]

Although I have never grilled a tomato, I have taken care of 1000's of acres of tomatoes, both fresh and processing. Processing tomatoes (Roma, etc) will be the best as these are grown for the higher amounts of meat/solids. Fresh (or fresh market, Beefsteak, etc) may be great for burgers, salads etc, but are too watery. I fyou have had good luck with them, then more power to you. FWIW, processing fruit also works best for salsa.
PS, yes know they are not fruit, but berries.
-Jim

 

[AlaskanWheeler]

How about pictures of the steps taken to do these up, seems pretty good, never done it before. But will when I get home.

 

[frankenyoter]

Grilled maters are very good.

Ever tried grilling a carrot? Olive oil and salt and pepper. Grill till they are done to your liking.

 

[Devilmans Hand]

i normally grill maters shischkabob style with onions. Squirt a little fish sauce on them and that adds a savory and salty flavor.
I've been wanting to try grilling some green tomatoes sliced into 3/4" thick pieces with CRP and stone ground mustard.

fresh carrots are great grilled, but not as good as sweet potatoes!
No need to wrap anything, just use medium heat and watch the color. For the sweet potatoes just watch the skin peel away.

I cook on a charcoal weber w/ the lid closed

 

[JohnVee]

I tried to post this earlier...not sure where the hell it went. Probably Winching and Recovery or some sh!t. :whoops:

Swordfish, husk-grilled corn, skewered tomatoes.

 

[sggoat]

Ooh, that looks good!
here's another corn recipe--
Works best with Silver Queen--shuck the corn--4-6 cobs. Mix up 2 tblspns butter, Juice of 1 lime, 1 tblspn Mango powder(Kahtai), 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper. Coat the cobs well. Grill over medium heat until kernals start to blacken.--another good variation is to substitute molasses for the Mango powder, but it won't be as 'tart'.

 

[o8ko8k]

I tried to post this earlier...not sure where the **** it went. Probably Winching and Recovery or some sh!t. :whoops:

Swordfish, husk-grilled corn, skewered tomatoes.

um, your tomatos look like they have been in cold water

 

[e9999]

Although I have never grilled a tomato, I have taken care of 1000's of acres of tomatoes, both fresh and processing. Processing tomatoes (Roma, etc) will be the best as these are grown for the higher amounts of meat/solids. Fresh (or fresh market, Beefsteak, etc) may be great for burgers, salads etc, but are too watery. I fyou have had good luck with them, then more power to you. FWIW, processing fruit also works best for salsa.
PS, yes know they are not fruit, but berries.
-Jim

well I tried to grill some Romas thanks to your post. And yes, they were very good. I don't know that I would call them much better grilled than the "burger" types, but easily as good, in a different way. I'll do both from now on. Thanks.

 

[FLATU8ER]

e99'er,
Although I am not a great fan of the tomato, because of the 1000's of acres, I just could not picture putting a bubble of water on a grill. Just thought you would need more meat/solidis of the fruit to get a better end result. BTW, what about some older heirlooms?
-Jim

 

[e9999]

e99'er,
Although I am not a great fan of the tomato, because of the 1000's of acres, I just could not picture putting a bubble of water on a grill. Just thought you would need more meat/solidis of the fruit to get a better end result. BTW, what about some older heirlooms?
-Jim

don't have access to heirlooms unfortunately and I have had bad luck growing my own.
I see what you're saying but maybe counterintuitively, the regular burger tomatoes do get quite good grilled. I like to take them to the point where they get very soft after self-boiling for a while, and kind of collapse on themselves. The texture is quite pleasant, kind of melts on your tongue and of course they have lost a bit of water by then.

 

[rusty_tlc]

Eric, try a real nursery for heirlooms, the big box stores never have them.
We have an organic nursery that carries a lot of heirlooms as well as hybrids. If you have to mail order them it is worth the effort.

We are partial to Brandywine, this year we are trying out Mortgage Buster as well as San Marzanos. The San Marzanos are very meaty and I think they would grill well. All the heirloom varieties we have tried have been a lot more substantial than the modern hybrids.

 

[NorCalDoug]

I've come across a decent selection of heirlooms at my local home depot a while back...and I definitely know that my costco carried them last year for a great price.

having said that...almost all nurseries will carry them.

home-grown tomatoes beat the pants off of artificially-reddened-store-boughts any day of the week!

eric - what you're actually doing is grilling "green" tomatoes...which is an improvement on eating them uncooked.

 

[e9999]

I've come across a decent selection of heirlooms at my local home depot a while back...and I definitely know that my costco carried them last year for a great price.

having said that...almost all nurseries will carry them.

home-grown tomatoes beat the pants off of artificially-reddened-store-boughts any day of the week!

eric - what you're actually doing is grilling "green" tomatoes...which is an improvement on eating them uncooked.

have had poor luck at growing my own, unfortunately.

yes, I suppose you could look at grilling the plastic ones as artificially ripening them a tad extra...

 

[BrotherRob]

have had poor luck at growing my own, unfortunately.

yes, I suppose you could look at grilling the plastic ones as artificially ripening them a tad extra...

Tomatoes are notoriously fussy to grow. They need just the right amount of everything. They like it warm but not hot, need good light and a good amount of water, but not wet or dry. If you're stubborn enough, you'll get the hang of it, then GTFO of the way. They grow like wildfire.

A good, nothing to loose way to try your luck is to buy tomatoes from the store. Cut them in half grab a spoon, stick your finger in the dirt and dump the seeds in. Repeat anywhere in your yard where you think they will grow. Sooner or later, you'll find a place where they'll thrive. Pay attention to the micro climate and conditions where they grow and duplicate those conditions.

I bought and killed a bunch of seedlings before switching to this method. It turned out I was planting them in a spot without enough light. By moving them a mere 10 feet, I went from nothing to ~30 lbs of tomatoes in the first season. Now that I have the hang of it, everything I plant grows.