About me:I´ve been so busy travelling that I have not been able to post for quite some time (more than 4 year...
Member since:26.05.2001
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Review rated by 27 Ciao members on average: very helpful
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Tomatoes have always been thought of as a vegetable by most people, including the category managers of Ciao and Dooyoo.
The tomato is technically a berry and therefore a fruit. Tomatoes are also delicious and healthy. They contain reasonably high levels of Vitamin A and C, aswell as Vit E when eaten raw. They also contain potassium and calcium, which are good for lowering blood pressure and important for health bones and teeth, respectively. They are also very low in calories and contain only 14 calories per 100g thus making the tomato a universally healthy fruit.
In order to gain the maximum nutritional values it is recommended to eat them raw or grilled. A certain amount of the Vit. A and C and almost all the amount of Vit. E is lost during cooking.
The tomato originated from South America and were cultivated as far back at 700 AD. The first tomatoes were yellow and cherry-sized and were referred to as “golden apples” or “pommes d'or” in French, pomi d'oro in Italian and “goldapfel” in German. So as you can see even then it was known as a fruit and still bears these characteristics, in it’s name, until today.
Growing tomatoes has always been a challenging feat. Most tomatoes are grown in glass houses because they are very susceptible to strong wind, cold weather and changing weather conditions. It usually takes between 40 to 60 days, from flowering, for a tomato to be full ripe and read to eat. You can grow them at home but these need to be meticulously looked after and watered. I have not personally grown them but know this from friends who finally gave up trying. The usually home growing method is Tumbler in a pot and these are kept on your window sill, so they can be cared and tended too against the weather.
There are many varieties and types of tomatoes and these variations range between size, flavour and colour. All of them contain a similar nutritional value though.
Tomatoes should not be kept in the fridge, because as mentioned earlier, they do not like the cold. They should be kept at room temperate to keep them fresh and to retain their flavour longer.
Here are a few useful bits of information for you:
1) Tomato pulp is very good for the skin - it refreshes, tones and aids circulation. To make a tomato face pack, make a paste by mixing tomato pulp with yoghurt. Apply to the face and leave for 10-15 minutes, then wash off. I really don’t know how many of you could stand the idea of the red guoey tomato/yogurt mix being on your face for 15 minutes. I couldn’t.
2) Tomato juice is an excellent hangover remedy. I haven’t tried this yet but have kept a bottle in the fridge for the next time. I’ll let you know by updating this op then. I sure hope it does work though.
3) To ripen home-grown tomatoes, place them in a brown paper bag with a ripe tomato and keep at room temperature.
4) Use under-ripe, green tomatoes for making chutney.
5) To skin tomatoes, place them in a bowl of very hot water for 15 seconds and the skins will then peel off easily.
Overall tomatoes are not only delicious but they are also very versatile and are and can be used in many ways.
Some of the information contained in this op has been obtained from: www.britishtomatoes.co.uk
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14.10.2001 17:44
Great opinion, I hate eating tomatoes on their own but I like them in almost anything else, seems strange really...