So, do you scrape out the seeds’n’goo when you slice or cook with tomatoes? Mr. Horseshoe insists they have all the good flavah, but I think the flavor is negligible compared to the ickiness of the goopy texture.
I’m sitting at my desk slicing a tomato and throwing the seeds into the trash, thankyouverymuch, and wondered what you lot thought. (Also, I’m sprinkling them with onion salt - does that make me a heathen barbarian in your book?)
The goop has good flavour, the seeds are bitter. Sometimes I use the whole tomato, sometimes I discard the seeds, depends what I’m making. If I’m cooking them down for a sauce I’ll use the whole tomato to get the full depth of flavour. If I’m using them for an open face sandwich or bruschetta where I don’t want all the moisture I’ll cut the tomato in half and give it a little squeeze over the sink to remove some of the goop and seeds before I chop or slice it.
It depends on the application. If I’m just eating a tomato, I leave the seeds and goo. If I’m, say, putting it in pasta where I just want the meat without the extra liquid and seeds, I take them out.
It never even crossed my mind to remove either the goo or the seeds. I never realized that it crossed anybody’s mind.
I guess I’m out of touch tomato-wise.
Me too. I never considered taking out the goo. It never even occurred to me than anyone would want to. The typical supermarket tomato is flavorless enough without taking out the good stuff.
You’re right about the supermarket tomatoes, but even with fresh homegrown ones I never thought about it.
On sandwiches I find the seed goo is important, it adds a wetness aspect to an otherwise dry sandwich. I could make up for that with more mayonnaise or other spread but I prefer the seeds. On a salad it’s less important unless I’m lacking dressing. Otherwise I can do without it. Going out of my way to remove it is never going to happen, if it rinses out or falls out fine.
Even the worst of the tomato is still far better than almost any other food.
Never occurred to me to take them out. Seems a messier process than leaving them in and I’ll never opt for making more work for myself.
When you remove the seeds and pulp prior to chopping, it’s referred to as concasse. Removing the seeds and pulp is necessary for some dishes (such as tabouli) that would be too wet with those items included. In something like a chili or a red spaghetti sauce, it really makes no difference.
I don’t go so far as to peel my tomatoes, but I can’t force down the seeds and goo. Just the firm outside, please.
I like taking a hunk of crusty bread and sopping up the goo and juices after I cut a tomato. Sprinkle a lil bit of parmesan and you got a fine snack there.
I don’t know that the goo is “delicious”, but I wouldn’t bother taking it out. So, some other option.
I’d say yes, in purely evolutionary terms. I kind of enjoy being the worldwide and far abroad and ranging shitter and propagater of the species. Brings a whole new meaning to Johnny Appleseed.
It never occurred to me to scoop out the inside of tomatoes. Why would anyone?
Depends on the variety - for sandwiches, I prefer a good Beef Tomato precisely because the inside is firm & fleshy and not gloopy & gross. If they are not available, I will often discard the inards and just use the “edge”.
In cooking, I am less picky…
I canned about 25 lbs of tomatoes a couple weekends ago, and for the majority of the tomato sauce I made, I did remove both seeds and goo, as well as peeling them. For peeling to-be-cooked tomatoes: with a knife, score a small X in the blossom end - opposite the stem - then dip in boiling water for 30-60 seconds, and the skin should come off the tomato easily.
For the crushed tomatoes I peeled them and removed some of the goo/seeds. The tomatoes that I made which had a higher proportion of slicing tomatoes to Roma (plum) tomatoes showed a definite watery layer in the bottom of the jars, compared to the ones with few or no slicing tomatoes. Slicing tomatoes have more of this goo than Romas do, as well as more wateriness overall I suspect. So if you’re trying to make a thick concentrated sauce, removing the goo to start with may help.
I picked “some other option” because this is my answer, and I don’t think it corresponds to any of the poll choices.
Seeds and goo is best part. The flesh of the tomato strikes me as flavorless, in the case of supermarket tomatoes and burger tomatoes, might as well be eating cardboard.
It’s edible and basically tastes like tomato, so why would I throw it away? I wouldn’t call it “delicious”, though.