Rex Trulove
Fantastically delicious, this recipe might seem complicated at first, but it really isn’t. The effort is well worth it, too.
At one time, we decided that we wanted to have lots of tomatoes. I planted 42 tomato plants, using the American Indian method of growing tomatoes. Naturally, we ended up with far too many tomatoes and scrambled to find ways to use them, even after canning them in numerous ways. This was one of the recipes that turned out fantastically well, though.
The key here is “fresh”. The tomatoes and herbs we used were fresh. Store-bought tomatoes can be used, and the result is excellent, but garden-fresh tomatoes that have never been refrigerated make a definitely superior dish.
Fresh marinated tomatoes ingredients:
- 6 large or 8 medium tomatoes, sliced
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup quality vinegar (rice or wine)
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
- 1 teaspoon thyme, chopped
- 1 teaspoon chives, chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
Fresh marinated tomatoes instructions:
1. Separate the tomato slices and put them in a bowl.
2. Thoroughly mix the remaining ingredients and pour the mixture over the tomatoes.
3. Cover the bowl, but do not refrigerate. Refrigerating tomatoes kills the flavor by turning the natural sugars into starch. This is the main reason store-bought tomatoes don’t taste as good as those that are garden fresh.
4. Allow the tomatoes to marinate for at least an hour.
Note: To make this dish even better, the tomatoes can be peeled. To do this, put the tomatoes in boiling water for 5-10 seconds each. Remove the tomatoes and put them under cool running water until they are cool enough to handle. This usually takes less than a minute. The peels should slip off without much effort.
The fresh marinated tomatoes are a special summertime treat that almost anyone who likes tomatoes will enjoy. These are especially wonderful when they are served with a barbecue as they seem to go well with almost anything.
