🍅 Tomato growers, settle this:
🍅 Tomato growers, settle this:
Do you prefer tomatoes fresh from the garden, still warm from the sun…
or chilled in the fridge?
I’m genuinely curious. 👀
Boost this and let’s see which side wins! 🌱🍅
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42 replies
@2003MugishaPhocit @gardening
Never refrigerate raw tomatoes ever for any reason.
@AdrianRiskin @gardening This is really right, as the fresh tomatoes are the best.
However, you may find that some people get them in plenty and once they leave them just,they may get spoilt.
What advise could you offer them?
Eat as many as you can fresh and room temperature. Anything that goes into the refrigerator only gets used for cooked applications like sauce, or roasting, etc.
roasted and packed in olive oil with some herbs if desired. did this with my cherry tomatoes, for snack toast some french/italian bread slices, then spread the oil and some of the tomatoes on it, sprinkle with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. if the oil gets too low to cover the tomatoes, just top it off with oil to cover them.
@evasive_chimpanzee okay,and we have seen people putting other fruits like apples in the refrigerators, is this not right such that they can consume them during the hot afternoon hours of the day 😳?
@2003MugishaPhocit @evasive_chimpanzee
Every fruit is different. Apples can stand refrigeration but tomatoes, avocados, citrus, probably others too, not so much
@AdrianRiskin @evasive_chimpanzee okay,and could you know what keeps the fruits different like that?
Whereby some of them can be fine refrigerated and other not?
Technical explanation:
Tomatoes ripening process is characterized by a burst the production of the hormone ethylene. This triggers the degradation of the cell wall and other molecules into volatile and aromatic gases. This softens the fruit and produces what we perceive as flavor.
Refrigeration of tomatoes (too cold) injures the cells and stops the ripening process. This also stops the production of volatiles and aromatics.
Tomatoes in the store are transported at refridgerated temperatures (50-55F). This is not the cause of them tasting like shit. Nor is it the practice of harvesting them green and then gassing them with ethylene before delivery.
Store tomatoes taste like shit because of breeding for shipping tolerance. Reducing the cell wall degradation during ripening (down-regulating expansions mostly) makes a firmer fruit that is easier to ship. It also stops most flavor from forming. These tomatoes taste like shit directly from the vine in the field.
@The_v @2003MugishaPhocit So I missed some tomatoes and we had cold nights, does this imply I lost flavour?
It might just have to do with where the fruit grows. Apples grow in cold places, tomato plants are only during the summer in cold places. If a tomato plant gets to refrigerator temperature, it dies. Some other fruits, you don't want to refrigerate just because they will dry out
@evasive_chimpanzee @2003MugishaPhocit and the flavor diminishes greatly when tomatoes are refrigerated.
@evasive_chimpanzee @2003MugishaPhocit
This is the answer.
@AdrianRiskin @evasive_chimpanzee okay,I have got to know .
And thank you so much.
This, if you've grown tomatoes, don't ruin them by putting them in the fridge
If you're getting them from the supermarket, it doesn't really matter where they go, they're going to taste like refrigerated tomatoes
Specifically because they have already been refrigerated both in transport to the store and back room storage at the grocer.
Sorry yes, I should have made that more clear
They've already had the taste compromised by the refrigerated transport and warehouse storage, but also the natural resistance to spoilage gets compromised too, so they last way less long outside the fridge than tomatoes that have never been refrigerated.
I prefer all of my food to be either cold, or hot, not room temp.
@DarrinBrunner why do you dislike room temperature?
I think my ideal is a tomato fresh off the vine, sliced in a turkey sandwich with lettuce and mayo and seasoning. But they're still good once I pick them and take them inside for later, and after I put the remaining half in the fridge.
@frongt Okay,but I have just leaned that it is not good to put the tomatoes in the refrigerator
Says who? I've been doing it for years and never had a problem.
Is this ragebait?! I thought it was generally understood that refrigerating tomatoes ruined their flavour. This is hard to avoid if you're buying them from the supermarket. One of the real pleasures of growing your own is to eat freshly harvested fruit and veg.
@robsteranium Yeah,we should avoid refrigerating the tomatoes as it is advised to consume them fresh.
However, we do not preserve any tomatoes here,as we donate them to vulnerable families here in the communities
@2003MugishaPhocit @gardening sun
@shonin @gardening Oh,wow.And these are healthy for consumption when organically grown and still fresh.
Have been also growing the tomatoes?
@2003MugishaPhocit @gardening Me? Lots, once upon a time. Not as much now, maybe about fifteen plants a year. Romas and Beef Hearts, Stupice, a few black cherries. We are old now but used to be quite productive https://photos.app.goo.gl/wYFAfxs6RWRCRVPR8
@shonin @gardening Okay,and hopefully you enjoy the jos that comes when you see your tomatoes start becoming reddish as you are sure that you will have a best soups ,hahaha 🍲 😉 😀.
And we grow also them as much as we can plus other vegetables like cabbages, broccoli, sukuma, spinach and others and donate them to most vulnerable families here in the Byerima communities
@2003MugishaPhocit @gardening This is the way. 🙏
@shonin @gardening Yeah,and we are looking forward to expand our programs to cover more communities and families to benefit
@peachfront @gardening True,and they are the ones which are healthy.
And do you grow also tomatoes?
@peachfront @gardening Okay,and that is really good to hear.
On our side,we are growing twice a year as they are the seasons that we have in Uganda.
We are working as a community development organisation, GYM where we are transforming communities through sustainable agriculture and environmental conservation, training young people as we grow food to support the most vulnerable families with it,and 1.2 tones of food have been donated to families since we started our work in 2024
Still warm from the sun! @2003MugishaPhocit @gardening
@DoomsdaysCW @gardening Hahaha 😆, yeah because they are even still fresh at that time
So, what my grandmother taught me is to pick the tomatoes just before they are ripe (especially if there is bad weather coming), then put them in a sunny window to ripen! @2003MugishaPhocit @gardening
@DoomsdaysCW @gardening Hahahaha 😆 😂 🤣, yeah.
The sun makes them ripen fast once they are detouched from the plant
And if the tomatoes were green, she would turn them into preserves! @2003MugishaPhocit @gardening
@DoomsdaysCW @gardening Yeah,as they could be affected by the unfavourable climatic conditions hence they would rot.
Or if they could be delayed to be ready for consumption, once are kept detouched form the plant, they ripen fast but this keeps them not fresh
@2003MugishaPhocit @gardening never taste good refridgerated.
@PokiLoki @gardening Right, and that is why it is not recommended.
When consumed fresh, is the best