tomato

Raw

Raw tomatoes impart acidity, freshness, fruitiness, and juiciness to a dish. The fruity and flowery aromas are delicate and begin to decline the moment tomato cells are damaged, so they are best served freshly cut.

Cooking

The flavour of tomatoes deepens the longer they are cooked. Their delicate aroma will mostly disappear with cooking, although it can be restored by finishing with uncooked tomatoes or passata.

At around 50°C tomato softens without losing much of its original freshness profile.

Between 60–90°C, pectin breaks down and water evaporates, concentrating sugars and glutamates, which brings out sweeter and richer umami flavours. Letting it simmer for 30–90 minutes smooths out the acidity and gives tomato a silky texture that is perfect for sauces and soups. The acidity is never truly gone as tomato acids are stable when cooked, it’s the concentration of sugars that contributes to this smoother feel. Likewise, adding sugar does not eliminate any of the acidity, only your perception of it.

Above 120°C the tomato undergoes Maillard reactions and develops a complex caramel, roasted, smoky profile. An quick and easy way to achieve it is to fry tomato paste in hot oil before adding other ingredients, since tomato paste has just enough moisture to sustain caramelisation before burning.

The peel of the tomato does not dissolve with cooking. For this reason they are peeled beforehand or thoroughly blended when used in sauces.