I suspect that in most countries of the world, the humble Tomato is the most important fruit of Summer.
Where would the Italians be without their beloved Tomato based Pasta sauces, or the Greeks without their salads, or the Brits without their Ketchup?
Life would be unthinkable.
We are now slowly coming to the end of the growing season. Sauces are being bottled, freezers filled, and in warmer climes the sun-drying process well underway. My own crop has yet again been questionable, but, luckily, I have a very good friend who grows huge amounts, and his generosity is legendary.
The lot above I picked yesterday. They demonstrate very well how I like to see them. Not on a perfectly green stem, with six identical, and perfectly flawless fruits. I want to see the scars of having been blown about a bit on the vine. I want to see blemishes caused by the sun. I want to see earth clinging onto their bottoms!
Similarly with Apples, I want to see flaws. We used to have a lovely neighbour who claimed he would never eat an Apple that didn't have a worm inside. He said it was by far the best indicator that the fruit hadn't been sprayed with poison.
But most importantly, I want everything to taste 'delicious'. Those perfect fruits from the supermarket are simply rubbish in comparison to outdoor, sun-kissed, naturally grown, fruits from the garden.
A Banana will always taste like a Banana, but Tomatoes and Apples need to be good non-commercial varieties, and allowed to grow unhindered.
I munch at least one apple a day, pips and all - not just to keep the doctor at bay but because I love apples. I have yet to come across a "rubbish" apple.
ReplyDeleteTomatoes? Yes, different kettle of fish. Still, nothing that MONEY can't fix. San Marzanos, Heirlooms? Go to Waitrose and M&S and YOUR eyes will water at the price but your taste buds will be delighted. I fear for you, Cro, on your return to "Blighty". You will have so much to crow about you'll never run out of material to blog on.
Still, take heart and remember England is the land of plenty (HGV drivers shortage and lack of pickers permitting). There is Kent, Sussex, Devon, Somerset, and the wildly productive Norfolk (I can't go shopping without being reminded of Rachel, farmers' daughter, still living in the middle of plenty).
It's all good, Cro, do not fear. If all else fails you can always throw a chilli at your taste buds to cover multiple sins and your digestion going.
U
May I suggest that you may not know what a really good Apple tastes like until you grow your own. I don't know what commercial growers to to their crops, but they do seem to extract all flavour. Even the tasteless 'Golden Delicious' can be acceptable if home-grown.
DeleteI shall not starve in England. There are Pork Pies, Cheddar Cheese, Battenberg Cake, Crumpets, Mince Pies, Cider, and Fish-n-Chips, all waiting for me!
Try the Lidl veg boxes. £1.50p for a big box of mixed veg. They are entertaining as well, like a lucky dip.
Delete£1.50 sounds very cheap. I don't frequent Lidl normally, in fact I'm not even sure if there's one in Brighton; I shall have to make enquiries.
DeleteWhen I left college I bought a house on the Wales/N Shropshire border. We used to go to market once a week, and always spent £1 on vegs. It was a huge amount and kept us going all week.
DeleteYou get about 5kg so a real bargain.
DeleteCripes!
DeleteAdrian, you shouldn't get Cro's hopes up since those £1.50 boxes are far and few in between as they contain only stuff (perfectly good stuff) that, otherwise, would end up in the dumpster. Lidl, running a tight ship, doesn't tend to overstock.
DeleteAs you say, if you can secure a box the fun is in the pot luck. And the secret is to make friends with the store manager [to keep one of those boxes squirreled away on the side].
U
In Cupar you have to be there at opening time. I ask the staff if they are making boxes up and by the time I've got bread and meat they have always had one ready. I don't bother every week and sometimes forget but I've had three this year.
DeleteMaybe you're a favoured client. Usually they look at me and run!
DeleteBananas do NOT always taste like bananas. For much of the year here, the bananas we get are from cold storage, they have no smell and no taste. Well maybe some taste, but it isn't banana. And because they have been in cold storage they go bad very quickly, so most people eat them slightly unripe, because once the skin indicates ripeness, the fruit inside is mushy. Because of this, many people now believe bananas are meant to be firm and almost crunchy, instead of soft and sweet. I always smell the fruit and if I don't smell freshly picked banana odour then I don't buy bananas.
ReplyDeleteI just threw-in the Banana analogy as a throw-away comment. To me they always taste exactly the same; the unripe ones bland, the ripe ones delicious, and the over ripe ones only just tolerable.
DeleteIt sounds as if you haven’t eaten a banana that was ripe when it was picked - tastes completely different
DeleteNo, I haven't. They don't grow too well round here.
Deleteripe when picked are the best, we had those when we lived in Queensland. Now we are in South Australia and bananas come from cold storage via huge trucks.
DeleteApples! I never liked red delicious until I tried one freshly picked from a tree, the taste was so nice, my daughter's father-in-law had a huge veg and fruit garden, grew everything they ate. But store bought ones remained not so nice, they keep them in cold storage and flavour is lost.
ReplyDeleteThe greatest difference between shop-bought, and home-grown, can be found with Tomatoes. The HUGE greenhouses that produce perfect fruits, are doing the world a disservice. People have forgotten what a good Tomato tastes like.
DeleteWe think of tomatoes as omnipresent but of course they originated in south and central America and were not brought to Europe until the 1530's. Here endeth the lesson.
ReplyDeleteAnd often considered poisonous. Being still alive, I can confirm that they are NOT.
DeleteMost shop bought fruit doesn't taste completely right because it has to be picked too early in order to survive the journey
ReplyDeleteThen it goes-off earlier than naturally ripened fruit.
DeleteWe haven't been very successful here with growing our own tomatoes and I have been unable to find any locally that are not bland and like red polystyrene balls.
ReplyDeleteDuring the summer, when there are no British apples available, we have been buying New Zeakand apples from the Co-Op which have been good.
Sorry, that should be New Zealand... fat fingers again...
DeleteAnd there was me; wondering where New Zeakand was!
DeleteI've had disastrous crops of Tomatoes for about the past 5 years. I have some nasty disease in the soil at Haddock's. I shall be trying yet another location next year, so fingers crossed!
Plant the soil with beans for a season, then just chop them down and dig them in, leave it empty for another season and after that try tomatoes again. Tomatoes should never be grown in the same plot as before, always move them somewhere new, rotate your garden so your tomatoes return to the original spot only after several seasons.
DeleteThere is no day here without a salad, tomatoes every day. Unfortunately I buy them all.
ReplyDeleteWe are the same Yael. One large Tomato every day. Luckily my friend grows lots.
DeleteWhen we find a good tomato here we tell our friends and buy extra. Even the farmers market has mixed tastes. It's best to buy from the little old lady. Though you must always beware those elderly women dressed in black. They're Wiley old birds.
ReplyDeleteThe taste doesn't matter for stuffed tomatoes but it makes a huge difference to a Greek salad.
I'm waiting for cabbages and lettuces to appear. I'm over Greek salads.
Even bland Tomatoes can taste OK when cooked. Why don't you grow your own, I would have thought your climate was perfect. Did you feel the earthquakes?
DeleteI've found some home grown tomatoes disappointing and some delicious tomatoes at Aldi. Just not at the moment, thanks Aldi. Here tomatoes are readily available for the whole year and I expect we would knife ourselves if we couldn't buy tomatoes, never mind all the other tomato products.
ReplyDeleteI always have fresh Tomatoes, Tomato purée, Tomato sauces, and sun dried Tomatoes in the house. Life would be very bland without them.
DeleteI eat tomatoes everyday. The ones sold on the vine are pretty tasty and actually smell like tomatoes.
ReplyDeleteYou need a little greenhouse (maybe you already have one?). Growing your own is very satisfying.
DeleteI love a thick slice of tomato on my toast for breakfast. How I will miss my summer breakfast now that the tomatoes are nearly gone.
ReplyDeleteFried Tomatoes on toast is pure delight; with lots of Lee & Perrins, of course!
DeleteNothing is better than home grown fruit and veg. Store bought is iffy at best. So much fruit and veg are genetically modified and the taste is lost. Blight is a terrible problem making growing tomatoes very difficult for many (including me).
ReplyDeleteI think that's what I have in the soil at Haddock's. I can't get rid of it.
DeleteGreat post. I used to be checking constantly this weblog and I'm impressed! Extremely useful information.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
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