saving your green tomatoes

@savypat (20216)
United States
October 29, 2011 9:27am CST
We are picking the last of the vegatable garden. We have many green tomatoes and none of us really like them that way. So we are wrapping each in newspaper and putting in a cool place to ripen. I've done this before and I still lose about a third to mold, but that means we get to each the rest. Happy harvest to all.
8 people like this
17 responses
@owlwings (43915)
• Cambridge, England
29 Oct 11
They will ripen quicker if you put them all together in an enclosed space with a banana skin or a ripe tomato. Ripened fruit produces ethylene gas and this encourages unripe fruit to ripen. They do need picking over and checking every day, though. You can also make a good chutney with green tomatoes. It's just as good as any other chutney.
4 people like this
• Canada
29 Oct 11
Have you tried breaded baked or fried green tomatoes, with a grating of Parmesan cheese...yummy! And I also make green tomato mincemeat, as well as chutney!
@savypat (20216)
• United States
29 Oct 11
I use an apple to ripen fruit, but these tomatoes I want to ripen slowly there are to many to eat at once. Thanks for the chutney idea.
2 people like this
@topffer (42156)
• France
29 Oct 11
The newspaper is a way to produce ethylene. An easier way is to stock your green tomatoes with apples, or other fruits producing ethylene, like kiwis, figs, etc.
4 people like this
@savypat (20216)
• United States
29 Oct 11
I want to slow the ripe ones if I can.
2 people like this
@JoyfulOne (6232)
• United States
29 Oct 11
I've done that same thing many years. Usually did it at season's end when the vines still had a lot on them, but a frost was expected and I didn't want to waste them. A really old article (Depression era) said to make sure that they don't touch each other, even while in the paper, and to turn them each day. I hardly ever had any of them get moldy or spoil doing it that way. I think what that's doing is letting any moisture that is on the bottom of the paper (from the tomato) evaporate so it cannot start to mold. I kept mine in rows so that I could keep track while I was turning them every day lol. Enjoy those tomatoes!
3 people like this
@savypat (20216)
• United States
29 Oct 11
Good idea, thank you.
2 people like this
@lelin1123 (15595)
• Puerto Rico
29 Oct 11
How about fried green tomatoes? You prepare them as if you were making chicken cutlets. In the egg with spices and then breadcrumbs, then put them in hot oil. They are delicious. We are down to our last two avocados which we had longer then anyone around the neighborhood. I will miss them. We still have tomatoes and we are now getting starfruits which are great made into a smootie. We have plantain just about all year round and breadfruit is now coming back. We ate our last mango about a week ago which they have been gone for months now. We don't understand how things linger on in our yard but we are definitely grateful. This is one of many reasons I love living in Puerto Rico, you have something growing in your yard all yearound. Happy harvest back to you and yours.
3 people like this
@lelin1123 (15595)
• Puerto Rico
29 Oct 11
I forgot we have harvesting now are gandules beans for spanish rice. I love taking the beans out of the pods.
3 people like this
@rameshchow (4426)
• India
29 Oct 11
In my village, everyone have their own vegetable garden at the back of their homes or at the agricultural fields. We have the tomato plants at my home and at my agricultural fields. We have no problem for vegetables, we will rarely buy the vegetables in a shop. Natural vegetables are healthier than hybrid.
3 people like this
@vasumathi (436)
• India
29 Oct 11
It is good to know that you are harvesting vegetables in your garden. I love gardening. We have just started vegetable harvesting in our garden. I think your tip will be useful to us at times. Thanks for the information.
4 people like this
@JohnRok1 (2051)
31 Oct 11
When are your tomatoes going to freeze outside?
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (157027)
• United States
30 Oct 11
My friend would do the bleach step. Then she did not wrap them, but got the "banana boxes" from the grocery store and filled them, gently, with green tomatoes. She could then see which ones were ripening at a glance and use those. The bleach really does work. I imagine peroxide would also work, but most people have bleach on hand.
@finlander60 (1804)
• United States
30 Oct 11
Have you ever made Green Tomato Relish? It is real good with New England Baked Beans. If you would like a recipe for Green Tomato Relish or New England Baked Beans please PM me here and I will be glad to send you either or both of them.
2 people like this
@savypat (20216)
• United States
30 Oct 11
Thank you for the ideas.
1 person likes this
@jennybianca (12912)
• Australia
31 Oct 11
I have never heard of this. I have just started growing tomato plants, four of them. I wondered what I would do with left overs. I have heard there is a chutney one can make out of green tomatoes.
@zandi458 (28102)
• Malaysia
29 Oct 11
In general we don't plant our own vegetables but rely on the market supply for our vegetables.
3 people like this
@bhanusb (5709)
• India
30 Oct 11
Hi pat, we make curry by green tomatoes. It tests fine. If tomatoes are ripen in natural way that means in the garden the test remain intact.
@bhanusb (5709)
• India
7 Nov 11
Thanks for the reward.
1 person likes this
@marguicha (214294)
• Chile
9 Nov 11
The pepperonata - A nice dish made with green tomatoes.
Hi savypt, Last Summer Msdianait gave me an easy recipe to use green tomatoes. You might try them. I made them and posted here a picture of the dish I made. Msdianait said " I also use them together with red and yellow peppers and white onions to make 'pepperonata' which I then use both as a sauce for pasta or as a vegetable with meat or fish." I used the pepperonata over zuchinni, with a piece of pork and some bacon over it. It was awesome!
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
1 Nov 11
I've never heard of wrapping each one in newspaper and then putting them in a cool place to ripen. Instead, what I've always done to force ripen my produce, anything from fruit that I've gotten at the grocery store to tomatos that I have to save from frost is to put them in a brown paper bag on my counter and letting them ripen for a night or two there. It has always worked for me and I've never lost any of it to mold.
2 people like this
• United States
30 Oct 11
If too many of the tomatoes ripen at once and you can't eat them all, then you could try making spaghetti sauce or chili out of them. This gives you variety and allows you to use up the tomatoes rather than having them go to waste. Also, you can freeze the spaghetti sauce or chili and have ready-made or quick meals for times when you do not feel like cooking.
2 people like this
• Canada
5 Nov 11
AHA...PA, I just blanch and freeze the tomatoes whole, on cookie sheets, then bag them with my "food saver" that vacuums all the air out! Then, when ALL the fall activities slow down, and the kitchen (and I) are NOT suffering from the Fall heat...I make all my sauces! It seems almost everything I grow is ready to harvest and the same time...AND just as all the summer stock is harvested the Fall/Winter stock has to be planted! It's a TIME thing for me! Cheers,...dear Lady!
2 people like this
• United States
5 Nov 11
That is a good idea as well, Perga. The reason that I try to make the sauces in the Fall is actually partly due to what you have mentioned - many of the vegetables I use in my sauces are ripe and harvested in the late Summer and early Fall. I like using a lot of fresh vegetables, and they are less expensive at that time, so it works out well for me. I can understand why you would do it a different way than I do, though, because we have different responsibilities and time constraints. I think that having many options is a good thing, because we can choose what works best for us, and sometimes that might even be a combination of methods. It is always nice to see you in my box, my dear Perga! *HUGS*
1 person likes this
@salonga (27775)
• Philippines
21 Feb 13
Green tomato juice - Green tomato juice for me.
None of you like green tomatoes? I can't blame you became many don't really care for green tomatoes. But me no, I love green better than the read ones. Today I have pureed them to make real healthy refreshing juice for the entire family. They love the taste. Just added honey to neutralize the sour taste. Wanna try?
@fantabulus (4000)
• India
22 Aug 12
Wooo great idea and thanks to share it. Still I not know about it but now I will do it. I think green tamatoes are good than red.
• United States
8 Feb 12
It is winter here and it sounds funny to hear you are still picking tomatoes. Since you have so many green tomatoes have you ever tried making fried green tomatoes? They are really good. Plus after they are fried and set on paper to drain. The cooled ones you can freeze in freezer bags with some parchment paper or waxed paper between the fried slices. Enjoy what you reap!