Variëteit uit Italië
Variëteit uit Italië
Old Italian variety, very vigorous plant with an indeterminate growth bearing. Produces about 5 fruits per layer that are globe-shaped and weigh about 200-300 g.
Old Italian variety, very vigorous plant with an indeterminate growth bearing. Produces about 5 fruits per layer that are globe-shaped and weigh about 200-300 g. When ripe the colour varies from dark green to bright red. Excellent flavour and consistency.
We take tomatoes for granted now, and it would be quite difficult to imagine Italian cuisine without them, but it took Italians a very long time to accept them: Though they were introduced as ornamental plants in the 1500s, the earliest evidence of their use in the kitchen comes from Francesco Gaudentio's Il Panunto Toscano, published in 1705.
A couple of observations on selecting tomatoes: Italians divide them into two classes: insalatari and da salsa.
Insalatari, as one might expect, are salad tomatoes, to be eaten raw. People generally select them not-too-ripe, in other words quite firm, with streaks of green running through them, and with a lively acidity that complements the flavor of the greens in the salad. Pomodori da salsa, on the other hand, are for cooking and should be ripe -- an explosive red, rich, and slightly sweet too.
These are Pomodori a grappolo, tomatoes sold by the bunch mostly destined towards salads, which are standard market fare, sun ripened in summer and hothouse in winter.