How to Grow and Use TOMATOES
Grow and pick TOMATOES
Tomato plants will get quite big– they need planting in the ground or a big pot. An old bucket or large food container eg a 5l oil bottle will work well, or even a carrier bag filled with earth or compost. Bought gro-bags are good for tomato growing too.
Tomato plants grow well inside or outside in a sunny place.
You will probably have to support the plants when they get bigger to stop them falling over – push a long stick into the soil next to the plant to prop it up and tie the plant to the stick.
Water the plants every day- but they will use quite a lot of water, but make sure it stays just damp not really wet or the roots will rot.
Pick and eat the tomatoes straight from the plant as they ripen– or try using some of our recipes.
For more information, see our blog post on taking tomato side shoot cuttings.
Roast tomato pasta (serves 4)
Ingredients
1. 3 onions
2. Some garlic if you have it
3. Salt, herbs and chilli to taste
4. A big double handful of tomatoes, chopped
5. 2tbsp vegetable oil
6. 500g pasta
Method
1. Put everything except the pasta into an oven dish.
2. Bake for 30mins at 1800C or until the tomatoes and onion are just starting to blacken a little.
3. While the vegetables are roasting, cook the pasta.
4. Stir the vegetables into the pasta
5. Serve, alone or with grated cheese
Peppers, mushrooms, aubergine, sweetcorn and courgette are all lovely in this dish: Pretty much any veg tastes great cooked like this– just match cooking times so nothing ends up burned or undercooked!
Green tomato salsa
Green tomatoes are crunchy and a bit sour– they work really well shallow fried (especially in batter) with onions, in chutneys or curries or raw in salsas like this:
Ingredients
1. A handful of green tomatoes
2. An onion
3. A handful of coriander or basil
4. A chilli or chilli sauce
5. A little salt, to taste
6. Juice and zest of one lime
Method
1. Finely chop the tomatoes, onion and herbs
2. Stir all the ingredients together
3. Leave in the fridge for at least a few hours to marinade
Enjoy with tortilla wraps, on toast or with crisps