Tomato, Tomoto

Hundreds of years ago, long before Europeans had set foot in the New World, tomatoes grew wild in the Andes of western South America. The indigenous people cultivated them, eventually bringing the plant northward through Central America and into Mexico. When the Spanish arrived in the early 16th century, they found the inhabitants growing a food crop called “tomatl” in the native language.

Tomato seeds were brought from Mexico to Spain by those early explorers. From there the plant spread to Italy by the mid-1500s where it began to be incorporated into regional cuisine. Over the following decades, tomato plants were cultivated throughout Europe, but primarily as an ornamental plant.

In the early 1700s, the tomato returned to the Americas with European colonists. At that time it was still grown primarily as an ornamental plant in the northern colonies but grown for its fruit in southern regions. Its popularity continued to increase.

Thomas Jefferson reportedly grew tomatoes in his vegetable garden at Monticello and enjoyed eating the fruit. It wasn’t until the early 1900s that tomatoes’ popularity became widespread throughout the United States.

Today, tomatoes are grown around the world and are a star of international cuisine. They are grown in home gardens and on commercial farms and everything in between.

They are eaten raw, served cooked in a variety of dishes and processed into products that line our supermarket shelves. Tomatoes are the most popular home-grown vegetable crop in the country.

I love tomatoes. We eat tomatoes almost daily. And I love eating all kinds of tomatoes too. Heirlooms are by far my favorites tomatoes. But did you know there are more than 10,000 tomato varieties. There is NO WAY I could try them all, but I am more than happy to give it my best shot.

Here are some of America’s favorite tomato varieties. I have definitely eaten all of these and many more too. These are some of my favorites too. I currently have tomatoes on the vine, Compari tomatoes, tiny tear drop tomatoes, and grape and sun tomatoes in my kitchen as we “speak”. I always have a wide variety of tomatoes on hand.

Beefsteak Tomatoes

Best for: Sandwiches, salads, sauces and grilling

Named because of their large size and meaty texture, beefsteak tomatoes should be your go-to tomato for topping a juicy hamburger or layering onto summery sandwiches. These tomatoes are also easy to slice and won’t get juice everywhere, so they’re perfect for picnics.

But you don’t need to use all your beefsteak tomatoes between bread. Beefsteaks are also good for salads, grilling and even making sauces. Simply put: These are great all-around tomatoes.

Heirloom Tomatoes

Best for: Salads and baked goods

Looking for a tomato that is anything but basic? Try heirloom tomato varieties.

“Heirloom” doesn’t refer to one specific type of tomato. It’s a general term for varieties of tomatoes that have been passed down between gardeners for generations. They vary in size, shape, color and flavor. If you don’t spot them at your grocery store, look for them at farmers markets or smaller garden centers that deal in specialty produce. Learn about the purple dots on tomato leaves.

To really let the unique characteristics of these tomatoes shine, eat them raw with just a sprinkling of salt. You can also try a marinated tomato salad or show off pretty slices with this heirloom tomato tart recipe.

Tomatoes on the Vine

Best for: Sandwiches, salads and salsas

You’ll often see clusters of tomatoes on the vine sold at the grocery store. These medium-sized tomatoes are versatile. You can slice them up for sandwiches, cut them into wedges to add to a green salad or dice them to make fresh salsa at home.

Cherry Tomatoes

Best for: Appetizers, snacks, salads and roasting

These tomatoes get their name not only for their cherry size, but also for their sweetness. Despite being tiny, these tomatoes can do a lot. They’re perfect to use in appetizers and salads, or even just for snacking.

Cherry tomatoes can also be roasted, grilled or baked to bring out even more of their sweet qualities. This cherry tomato flatbread is a great example of how versatile these tiny gems can be. But you don’t need to stop there! Try more tasty cherry tomato recipes.

Plum or Roma Tomatoes

Best for: Canning, sauces, tomato paste and roasting

Known as plum tomatoes, you might also see these oblong tomatoes labeled as Roma tomatoes. Big on sweetness but also acidity, they have a lower moisture and water content than most other tomatoes, so they work well when canned, thrown on the grill or used in a fresh tomato soup. These tomatoes are also the star of our best-ever marinara sauce (you’ll need 12 pounds of these babies!). Find out when you should use marinara vs. tomato sauce.

You don’t need to stop at sauces. Plum tomatoes are also our Test Kitchen’s first pick when it comes to making homemade bruschetta.

San Marzano Tomatoes

Best for: Sauces

San Marzano tomatoes are a variety of plum tomatoes. They have a sweet flavor and are low in acid, which makes them a great candidate for pasta sauces. They do cost a bit more than other tomato varieties, but they are worth splurging on if you’re making a great homemade spaghetti sauce like Nonna used to make.

Grape Tomatoes

Best for: Appetizers, snacks, salads and roasting

With their small size, thin skin and sweet flavor, grape tomatoes are similar to their cherry-sized cousins. Anytime you see a recipe with cherry tomatoes, feel free to sub in this varietal instead.

Grape tomatoes make for delicious snacks, or use them in salads and appetizers like these Caprese skewers—they’re super easy to put together and always a hit!

Purple and Black Tomatoes

Best for: Sandwiches and salads

You may have seen dark-hued tomato plants popping up at your local garden center. These almost-black and purple tomatoes are a particular heirloom variety that has gained popularity over the past few years. Cherokee Purple is one of the more popular strains and produces large, dark fruit, though you can also find cherry-sized purple tomatoes like Black Cherry and Black Pearl.

These tomatoes are best eaten raw, so slice a few up for BLTs or try them in salads.

Pear or Teardrop Tomatoes

Best for: Appetizers, snacks and salads

Pear tomatoes, much like cherry and grape tomatoes, are tiny and sweet. This varietal has thin skin, which makes it great for salads and snacking. While these tomatoes are commonly seen with red skin, you’ll also find yellow and orange pear tomatoes at your local farmers market or grocer.

Green Tomatoes

Best for: Frying, pickling and baking

Green tomatoes are just unripe tomatoes. Gardeners are often left with a glut of these tomatoes at the end of the season when the weather is too cold to ripen the last of the fruit on the vine. You don’t have to wait until the end of summer for green tomatoes, though. You can pick them anytime you see green fruit on your plants.

Green tomatoes are firm and not as juicy as ripe tomatoes, which makes them great candidates for breading and frying—who doesn’t love a fried green tomato? You can also pickle green tomatoes and include them in chowchow or green tomato relish.

I know people who ONLY like one kind of tomato, and that is all they will eat. If they try a different variety, they think it is “bad” because it has a different taste to what they are used to. No, no, no. Far from it. Every tomato variety has its own unique and delicious qualities. These are just a small sampling of different kinds of tomatoes available. If you like tomatoes, be bold and adventurous and try as many different varieties as you can find. There is definitely many ways to peel a tomato. 🙂

Many thanks to our very own the Reluctant Poet at https://thereluctantpoetweb.wordpress.com/ and Jacqueline Weiss and Lisa Kaminski at Pinterest and Taste of Home https://www.tasteofhome.com/ for these delicious tomato ideas.

Make your day delicious and add a tomato, or two or three. Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.