The big red
Tomatoes are packed with nutrients, and Pauline D. Loh says we should make the most of these luscious, delicious vegetables at the height of their season.
The days are cooling, and before long, the blue skies and gentle zephyrs of fall will be on us. But still, the autumn that Keats lauded can sometimes be elusive to those of us living in the cities.
We do not get to see the bounty on the vines, nor the sun-ripened orbs of the squashes and pumpkins, but we can at least console ourselves with the warmth of a perfectly ripened tomato.
We all know the tomato is a globe full of nutrients, ranging from the eye-brightening lutein to rejuvenating vitamins C and A. We also know that a little oil is needed to "channel" this goodness into our bodies. That's why tomatoes are best eaten cooked, although we so often succumb to its natural goodness raw - from the juicy ripeness of a tomato fresh off the vine to luscious discs thickly sliced into a simple salad.
Cooked, the tomato turns into a culinary miracle. It is one of the few vegetables that can be used as seasoning on its own. Around the Mediterranean, this little fruit that is native to the South Americas, has found a second home where it is much loved by home chefs and professional cooks.
In green houses and gardens around the world, tomato plants are often grown, lovingly nurtured and bred to deliver flavor and shapes that range from sugar sweet to lip-puckeringly tart, and from perfectly round to plum-shaped. Some heirloom varieties look more like variegated pumpkins with their striped and segmented fruits.
In my Beijing balcony, a purple cherry tomato has been flowering all summer, shooting up taller than me. Unfortunately, the exceptionally hot summer also meant it bore promise but very little else. With the cooling days, I am hopeful for the next sprays of flowers since my colleague assures me that the cooler temperatures at night will help set the fruits.
Purple tomatoes, bright yellow, cherry red tomatoes - these are the little clusters that grow like clumps of jewels on the vine. There are also the larger red tomatoes. In Beijing, they like a large navel orange-sized salad tomato that has a rather sandy texture. These are mostly eaten raw, often with a dusting of the satiny sugar that locals are so fond of.
In a marketplace where hormones and steroids are often added to produce the perfect fruit, or vegetable, how do you know the tomato you are buying is free from these additives? The only way is to look inside.
If the fruit has been sprayed to hasten its ripening, there are no visible seeds, since the hormones added retard the maturing of the embryos. So if your tomato is nice and red, which indicates ripeness, it must also have seeds in the chambers. That's the way nature meant it to be.
Every year now, I change my repertoire of tomato recipes, not for fickleness but more because I am constantly learning new ways to use this wonderful vegetable. For example, I learned how to make a tomato soup recently that is deliciously scented with fresh thyme, and also a tomato rice that is perfect for perking up an appetite worn down by the sapping summer heat.
And then, there is the Beijing summer staple of the tomato omelet, something I have eaten for at least 30 years. The recipe I have given for this is from Lihan, my sister-in-law. Instead of scrambling the whole lot, which can look pretty messy, she first makes an omelet and then pours over the tomatoes that she has braised with a little chopped garlic.
If you have questions on any of the recipes, please e-mail me at paulined@chinadaily.com.cn.
Recipe |
Tomato rice ring with onion chickenIngredients (serves 4):
4 large tomatoes
1 brown onion
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
1 cup water or stock
1 cup basmati or jasmine rice, washed and rinsed
1 teasp salt
1 chicken thigh, boned and diced
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teasp corn starch
Method:
1. Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil and plunge the tomatoes in. When the skin starts to split in about 5 to 8 minutes, drain them well and refresh under cold water. Remove the skins and roughly chop the tomatoes.
2. Peel and finely dice half the onion. Slice the other half of the onion.
3. Heat up a little oil in a non-stick frying pan and brown the diced onions. Add the chopped tomatoes, and then the rice and tomato sauce. Stir well to mix.
4. Place the rice mixture in a rice-cooker and top up with water or stock so that the water level is about 2 cm above the surface of the rice.
5. Cook the rice.
6. While the rice is cooking, prepare the chicken. Mix the diced chicken with the oyster sauce and corn starch and leave aside.
7. Fry the sliced onions in a little oil until slightly caramelized and translucent. Add the marinated chicken cubes and toss over high heat until seared and browned and just cooked - about 3 to 5 minutes.
8. Once the rice is cooked, fork through to evenly distribute any sauce that has collected on the surface and mix well. Place into a ring mould or Bundt pan and carefully unmold onto a large platter.
9. Spoon the onions and chicken into the hole in the center and serve hot, with a cucumber salad.
Recipe |
Beijing tomato omeletIngredients (serves 4):
3 large salad tomatoes
3 eggs
2-3 cloves garlic, skinned and smashed
1 stalk coriander leaves
Sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
Method:
1. Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil and plunge the tomatoes in. When the skin starts to split in about 5 to 8 minutes, drain them well and refresh under cold water. Remove the skins and roughly chop the tomatoes.
2. Roughly mince the garlic and toss into a small amount of oil in a non-stick pan. When the garlic starts to brown and releases its fragrance, add the chopped tomatoes. Stir-fry for a few minutes, then leave to simmer for about another minutes. Add a pinch of sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Remove to a plate.
3. Rinse off the frying pan and place it back on the heat with a little oil.
4. Beat up the eggs and add a pinch of salt.
5. When the oil in the pan is getting hazy, pour the beaten eggs into the pan. Tilt and swirl the mixture to coat the pan evenly. Turn down the heat and cook until the egg is just set.
6. Slide the omelet out on a plate and spoon the tomato mixture on top. Garnish with fresh sprigs of coriander.
Recipe | Tomato soup with fresh thyme
Ingredients (serves 2):
4 red tomatoes
1/2 brown onion, diced
1 liter chicken stock, or water
2 sprigs fresh thyme
Method:
1. Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil and plunge the tomatoes in. When the skin starts to split in about 5 to 8 minutes, drain them well and refresh under cold water. Remove the skins and roughly chop the tomatoes.
2. Heat up a small amount of oil in a frying pan and brown the onions until transparent. Add chopped tomatoes.
3. Transfer onions and tomatoes into a saucepan and add the chicken stock. Simmer for about 10 minutes to allow flavor to mature.
4. Cool the mixture. Run your fingers along the length of the thyme sprigs to remove the leaves.
5. Add the thyme to the cooled soup and use a hand blender to smoothen the soup.
6. You can serve this soup hot or cold. Season just before serving.
