Gaby
Creative restaurateurs around the globe have embraced the tradition of using unripe vegetables and fruits from Middle Eastern and South Asian cuisines. Many chefs cite health and flavor as reasons for the shift: green fruits retain chlorophyll and haven’t fully ripened into sweeter fruit. Deeply pigmented produce is also becoming more problematic for some allergy sufferers. As a result, manufacturers are using green fruits in foods for children and specialized diets, while gourmet kitchens feature fresh and pickled unripe fruits in new combinations. You’ll find dishes made with green mangoes and papayas, desserts using unripe dates and plums, and creative applications for bananas, strawberries, and blueberries. Even wine is now sometimes produced from unripe grapes. The most accessible seasonal use of unripe fruit is green tomatoes. Anything that doesn’t ripen by October can be turned into healthy winter preserves.
Georgian-Style Green Tomatoes
This zesty appetizer follows a classic Georgian recipe and pairs well with meat or fried potatoes. The ingredient quantities below are for a two-liter jar.
Ingredients: green tomatoes (of uniform size) – 1.5 kg; garlic – 2 heads; parsley or cilantro (or a mix) – a bunch; chili pepper – half a pod; water – 1 liter; salt – 2 tablespoons; sugar – 1 tablespoon.
Make a crosswise incision in each tomato (almost all the way through). Chop the herbs, pepper, and garlic, then mix them together. Stuff the tomatoes with this mixture. Place the vegetables in prepared jars and cover them with cooled brine made from water, salt, and sugar.
Cover with a plastic lid and let the jars sit at room temperature for three days. On the second day, add more brine if the tomatoes have absorbed liquid and are not completely covered. After three days, store the jar in a cool place.
By the tenth day the pickles are ready. The stuffed tomatoes stay firm, and the pepper’s heat complements the sweet-and-sour flavor.
Pickled Green Tomatoes with Garlic (No Vinegar)
The amount of water and spices here is calculated for one kilogram of tomatoes. You can pickle unripe tomatoes in any size container.
Ingredients: green tomatoes – 1 kg; garlic (chopped) – 2 tablespoons; water – 2 liters; bay leaves – 4 pieces; sugar – 4 tablespoons; salt – 2 tablespoons.
Prick each tomato with a toothpick. In a pot, mix the water with sugar and salt, then add the chopped garlic and a few bay leaves. Place the pot on the stove, bring to a boil, and simmer for two minutes.
Pour the hot brine (without the bay leaves) over the tomatoes in the jars, and after 15 minutes pour the brine back into the pot for a second boiling. Once it boils again, pour the brine together with the bay leaves into the jars and seal them.
Spicy Green Tomatoes for Winter
This recipe makes two 0.5-liter jars.
Ingredients: green tomatoes – ½ kg; water – ½ liter; chili pepper – 1 piece; garlic – 2 cloves; dill and parsley – 2 sprigs each; black pepper – 6 peas; allspice – 4 peas; bay leaves – 2 pieces; 9% vinegar – 2 tablespoons; salt – 2 tablespoons; sugar – 1 tablespoon.
Combine all the ingredients in two sterilized half-liter jars. Pour boiling water over them. After 15 minutes, drain the brine back into the pot, bring it to a boil again, and pour it back into the jars. Seal the jars with lids.
The green tomatoes will be ready in two months, just in time for winter.
Salad with Salted Green Tomatoes
Once the pickles are ready, try this simple salad for your autumn and winter table.
Ingredients: salted green tomatoes – 2 pieces; fresh red tomato – 1 piece; onion – 1 piece; olive oil – 1 tablespoon; ground black pepper – a pinch.
Slice the salted green tomatoes and the fresh red tomato. Chop the onion. Mix all the vegetables together and season with olive oil and ground black pepper.
Adjika from Green Tomatoes
Cooked adjika is made without garlic, while raw adjika includes garlic.
Ingredients: green tomatoes – 2 kg; hot pepper – 200 g; parsley – a bunch; dry adjika (a fragrant spice mix that includes hot pepper, sweet red pepper, dried garlic, and salt) – 1 tablespoon; salt – 1 tablespoon; vegetable oil – 70 g; vinegar – 50 g; sugar – 1/3 cup; ground black pepper – a pinch; khmeli-suneli – a pinch.
Remove the seeds from the hot pepper and pass it through a meat grinder, then add it to a pot with the chopped green tomatoes and parsley. Pour in the oil and vinegar. Add the sugar, salt, dry adjika, ground black pepper, and khmeli-suneli.
Place the pot on the stove, bring to a boil, and cook for 30 minutes after boiling. Immediately after removing from heat, distribute the finished adjika into sterilized jars and seal them.
Raw Adjika from Green Tomatoes
Garlic and horseradish replace the cooking process in this version.
Ingredients: green tomatoes – 3 kg; hot pepper – 100 g; horseradish – 100 g; dill – 100 g; garlic – 200 g; salt – 1 tablespoon; sugar – 1 teaspoon.
Pass the vegetables and herbs through a meat grinder, mix them, and add the salt and sugar. Stir, pack the mixture into sterilized jars, and seal.
Green Tomato Jam for Winter
Use small, light green unripe tomatoes.
Ingredients: green tomatoes – 1 kg; sugar – 1 kg; water – 250 ml; lemon – 1 piece.
Wash and dry the green tomatoes, removing seeds and stems. Cut each fruit into eight pieces.
Pour a cup of water into a pot and dissolve the sugar in it. Place the pot on the stove and bring to a boil. Add the cut tomatoes to the boiling syrup and cook for ten minutes. Remove from heat and let cool, then return to the stove and boil for another ten minutes.
Repeat the cooking process once more, adding lemon juice and grated zest to the tomato syrup. Pack the tomato jam into sterilized jars and seal.
Fried Green Tomatoes
This American dish is a quick, satisfying snack.
Ingredients: green tomatoes – 4 pieces; egg – 1 piece; milk – 1/3 cup; Tabasco sauce – 1 tablespoon; flour or breadcrumbs – ½ cup; melted butter – 2 tablespoons; black pepper and salt – a pinch each.
Slice the tomatoes into pieces. In a bowl, beat the egg with the milk, Tabasco sauce, black pepper, and salt. Dip the tomato slices in the batter and coat them in breadcrumbs or flour.
Melt the butter in a skillet. Fry the tomato pieces for two minutes on each side. For an even simpler version, coat the green tomatoes in flour and fry them.
So don’t let a single fruit go to waste in your garden: a skilled home cook will make good use of everything that grows!
