Tomatoes seem like such a common plant that some people like to grow in large quantities and eat. I’m really interested in what people use their abundance of tomatoes for. Leave a comment and tell me why you grew tomatoes!
by assassinsshadows
46 Comments
-_-darkstar-_-
To make homemade pizzas, salads, shish kabobs and just eat it whole like the little freak I am. Simple.
CanIgetaWTF
Salsa, pasta sauce, homemade ketchup/bbq sauce
alicewonders12
I like to eat cherry tomatoes as a snack. But love them in a salad, lettuce salad, pasta salad.
austinteddy3
First, there is NOTHING like a home grown tomato for flavor over store bought. When you grow your own you can also grow different varieties. I usually do 6-10 plants. Use in the typical ways but also a lot of Caprese Salads and salsas.
uncanny_slug
I can’t get enough of fresh, homegrown tomatoes. The flavor and texture are nothing like what you can get in the store. I can eat them raw all summer long and never get sick of them. I also like to try out different varieties each year and have collected a few favorites over the years. When I have a lot I will make sauce from them (sometimes it’s cooked, sometimes it’s roasted) that I freeze to use throughout the winter. I also like to pickle cherry tomatoes. Oh and I frequently swap my tomatoes for produce from my neighbor’s garden, especially when they have peaches.
EconomistSuper7328
BLTs
awholedamngarden
A tomato fully ripened on the vine and picked that morning is going to be a totally different experience than one from the grocery store
fluffeekat
I make fresh tomato soup like 4 times a week during the summer to eat with a grilled cheese. It’s amazing.
QueerMaMaBear
They taste much better than store bought
thejoeface
with pasta, tomato sandwiches, cherry tomatoes eaten with damn near every meal.. I can eat a mixing bowl’s worth of salsa fresca in a single evening
GooningAfterDark
Salsa and BLTs. Heirloom tomatoes are $2 a piece at my local store. So much cheaper to grow them myself.
No_Device_2291
I’ve been gardening 20+ years and while I feel I’m realistic in it, tomatoes are one of the things I think are worth it. The effort. The cost. All of it. Most everything else I’ve grown is taste quality of the store and while I feel internal satisfaction from it being a different variety or homegrown /heirloom, it tastes very similar. Ok except celery. Celery tastes more celery-y but I hate celery so there’s that 🤣.
HopSkipJumpJack
To make pasta, various Indian curries, Chinese tomato and eggs, and pizza sauce.
LA_Lions
I like stuff I can snack on while I’m doing yard work.
ImFinallyFree1018
Salsas, spaghetti sauces, tomato basil pesto for sandwiches and such, I also use mine to make tomato soup with heavy cream for a creamy tomato soup. I have an elderly neighbor who used to garden but can’t anymore so I take her a lot of them. I grow cherry tomatoes for salads and pasta dishes. Make my own pizza sauce. It saves so much money in the long run when you have the tomatoes for a base then just need some herbs or seasonings instead of buying jarred or canned stuff. This year I’m growing my own herbs like parsley, rosemary and stuff so I don’t have to buy herbs for most of my sauces. Just clip what I need for fresh and dry what I will need for dried herbs later this year.
ThisIsTheBookAcct
Tbh, their a challenge in my area. So hard + taste great = my way too many tomato starts.
salymander_1
I eat them! Summertime is tomato time.
I also make and freeze tomato sauce and salsa.
munkymu
Bruschetta.
chocolatechipwizard
You can home can them easily and they can be used to make many good meals all winter long. They are wonderful fresh, much better than store-bought. There are many varieties, so you can grow beefsteak slicers and little sweet grape/cherry tomatoes and meaty San Marzanos.
samplenajar
tomato sauce, salsa and if i really have a glut — paste.
League-Ill
Because I’m an old Southern woman and we’re supposed to wear funny looking hats and ugly clothes and grow vegetables in the dirt. Don’t ask me those questions. I don’t know why, I don’t make the rules!
life_experienced
Tomatoes are one of the only common home crops that are really, really better when they’re home-grown. (The others are mainly tree fruits, like peaches and apricots that are so much better than store-bought.)
If I could grow them year-round, I would.
uchihasavior
To make salsa.
InsomniaticWanderer
CincySnwLvr
There is no store bought tomato that comes close to the flavor of a garden grown tomato. I love slicing big fat tomatoes to eat on a burger or sandwich, and eating tiny tomatoes directly off the vine. I always grow paste tomatoes for sauce. And of course I give away tons to family.
oneWeek2024
most of the produce in stores is bland and flavorless. It’s harvested way too soon, so that by the time it makes it to a store shelf it’s not rotted.
anything you grow tastes worlds better.
corn. tomatoes. carrots. berries. hell… even potatoes.
tomatoes are pretty easy to grow. there’s lots of different types. sizes. small bush plants, cherry tomatoes produce lots of little tomatoes great for salads or even sauces. there’s big slicer tomatoes great for sandwiches or other dishes. there’s sauce tomatoes. …there’s nothing like blanching a good 10 san marzanos and making a quick sauce. it’s so fresh and delicious.
other people are talking about the first tomato sandwich of the year. eh… i look forward to like the first 6-10 sauce tomatoes i get. making some simple ravioli. or some pasta that will take a nice chunky sauce.
AnxiousBrilliant3
1. Much better taste then store bought 2. Ridiculously easy to grow tons of them. 3. Very easy to use lots of tomatoes. Not only can they be put in most types of food, but if you have a large amount about to go bad, just dice it up, cook it in a pan, and add some salt, vinegar, butter/olive oil, and seasoning, and you have a good pasta sauce.
fightingtobewarm
Like others have said. It’s not about ‘I’m gonna be self sustainable!’ but instead ‘this tastes like anything you can buy at a store’
TarNREN
Snacks, sandwiches, some chinese dishes, and whatever I can’t use I just freeze to make sauce later
kookiemaster
Mostly because they are great for snacking (I mostly grow cherry tomatoes), and I can use them in many different ways from frozen throughout the year. They are also super easy to grow and are a rewarding crop, and I can grow enough for both me and the local wildlife.
Also, BLT with home grown still warm tomatoes on homemade sourdough? I could live on the stuff.
Rightintheend
When I’m growing, I’m definitely making more things with tomatoes. Tomato heavy salads, Brazilian vinaigrette, which is tomatoes, onions and cilantro with a little bit of olive oil and vinegar, pasta, sandwiches with extra tomato. If I get to the point where I’m overwhelmed, I give them to my neighbors, take a few to work.
CubedMeatAtrocity
Dehydrate end of season tomatoes and make tomato powder. It’s incredibly versatile.
ElderRaven81
Fresh organic tomatoes, nothing like store bought.
BLTs, spaghetti sauce, salsa, tomato and mayo sandwich. Etc etc
PippaPrue
There is nothing like trying out new tomatoes, that are so many to choose from, each with their own unique flavour profile. I eat them all summer and then process them for use through the winter. Sauce, whole frozen, dehydrated, powdered and paste. You can make so many delicious recipes with tomatoes: Pizza, spaghetti sauce, soups, salads, puttanesca, bruschetta, ketchup, BBQ sauce, salsa, pico de gallo, tomato butter, tarts, stuffed, Shakshuka, roasted, fried, sorbet, juice and the very best – sliced on toast.
TenderfootGungi
Because they are better tasting, easy to grow, and expensive in quantity at the store? Which cannot be said about a lot of garden plants. Why grow potatoes?
thefiggyolive
To eat, I cook mine down for sauce, for salads and other things. My favorite way to use them is on fresh sourdough with burrata, flaky salt, olive oil and red pepper flakes.
RedQueenWhiteQueen
* Because I can * Because the organic tomatoes at the grocery store are $6/lb but certainly don’t taste any better than what I grow * Because I am far enough along in my gardening journey that growing tomatoes is effectively free for me to do * Because I have a friend who doesn’t garden, but who likes fresh tomatoes for burgers and sandwiches * Because I get a kick out of making soup that is 90% sourced from my garden, since I’ve got carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic, and a bunch of herbs out there, too * Because I found a copycat recipe for V8 juice that is kind of a lot trouble to make (oh yeah, with my own spinach and parsley for that), but absolutely worth it * Because I’ve thrifted a very nice pasta maker, and if I go to the trouble of making handmade pasta, it’s getting homemade tomato sauce, too * Because this year I’m planting a bunch of dwarf varieties in 1 gal pots to give away to my neighbors and that’s a good way to connect with people
Gunningham
Until you’ve eaten a non-grocery store tomato, you may never know.
Once you have, you will never forget.
professorfunkenpunk
It might be the single biggest gap between homegrown and store bought veggies
duerra
Tell me you haven’t tasted a home grown tomato without telling me you haven’t tasted a home grown tomato.
KoriMay420
I can a bunch and fresh, homegeown grown tomatoes are insanely delicious
Optimistiqueone
For the best salsa ever using heirloom varieties.
Grocery stores only have the basic red tomatoes (in the US) or they want 6 coats a pound at a specialty grocery.
herpderpingest
Garden ones usually taste MUCH better than grocery store ones. I feel like they’re popular because they’re easy. And in my experience, I’ve ended up with plants that yield either 2 rock hard sad green tomatoes at the end of the season… Or one that puts out 40 lbs of them.
I like to grow cherry tomatoes, because they’re a bit easier to keep in the fridge than half a beefsteak tomato, and roma tomatoes to freeze and make into sauces later on.
PansophicNostradamus
I plant 4-5 Tiny Tim cherry tomatoes all over the garden and I find that I’m usually snacking on them while I’m working in the garden. I’ll put a few in salad, but rarely do they ever make it indoors!
For sauce, I grow San Marzano exclusively. I find the variety easy to grow and perfect for roasting and then making sauce.
For salad/sandwich tomatoes, I grow Chadwicks. Yes, they’re smaller than a traditional beefsteak tomato, but I find the sweetness and shorter grow time much more appealing.
EveBytes
I grow tomatoes because homegrown tastes amazing, way better than store bought, and where I live (8a) they grow prolifically. I can eat them all summer. Tomato sandwiches with heirloom beefsteaks are just the bomb!
Also, this is only my 3rd year gardening. I am still learning. Tomatoes are easy, and if my other crops are fails, I still have tomatoes to feel good about!
46 Comments
To make homemade pizzas, salads, shish kabobs and just eat it whole like the little freak I am. Simple.
Salsa, pasta sauce, homemade ketchup/bbq sauce
I like to eat cherry tomatoes as a snack. But love them in a salad, lettuce salad, pasta salad.
First, there is NOTHING like a home grown tomato for flavor over store bought. When you grow your own you can also grow different varieties. I usually do 6-10 plants. Use in the typical ways but also a lot of Caprese Salads and salsas.
I can’t get enough of fresh, homegrown tomatoes. The flavor and texture are nothing like what you can get in the store. I can eat them raw all summer long and never get sick of them. I also like to try out different varieties each year and have collected a few favorites over the years. When I have a lot I will make sauce from them (sometimes it’s cooked, sometimes it’s roasted) that I freeze to use throughout the winter. I also like to pickle cherry tomatoes. Oh and I frequently swap my tomatoes for produce from my neighbor’s garden, especially when they have peaches.
BLTs
A tomato fully ripened on the vine and picked that morning is going to be a totally different experience than one from the grocery store
I make fresh tomato soup like 4 times a week during the summer to eat with a grilled cheese. It’s amazing.
They taste much better than store bought
with pasta, tomato sandwiches, cherry tomatoes eaten with damn near every meal.. I can eat a mixing bowl’s worth of salsa fresca in a single evening
Salsa and BLTs. Heirloom tomatoes are $2 a piece at my local store. So much cheaper to grow them myself.
I’ve been gardening 20+ years and while I feel I’m realistic in it, tomatoes are one of the things I think are worth it. The effort. The cost. All of it. Most everything else I’ve grown is taste quality of the store and while I feel internal satisfaction from it being a different variety or homegrown /heirloom, it tastes very similar. Ok except celery. Celery tastes more celery-y but I hate celery so there’s that 🤣.
To make pasta, various Indian curries, Chinese tomato and eggs, and pizza sauce.
I like stuff I can snack on while I’m doing yard work.
Salsas, spaghetti sauces, tomato basil pesto for sandwiches and such, I also use mine to make tomato soup with heavy cream for a creamy tomato soup. I have an elderly neighbor who used to garden but can’t anymore so I take her a lot of them. I grow cherry tomatoes for salads and pasta dishes. Make my own pizza sauce. It saves so much money in the long run when you have the tomatoes for a base then just need some herbs or seasonings instead of buying jarred or canned stuff. This year I’m growing my own herbs like parsley, rosemary and stuff so I don’t have to buy herbs for most of my sauces. Just clip what I need for fresh and dry what I will need for dried herbs later this year.
Tbh, their a challenge in my area. So hard + taste great = my way too many tomato starts.
I eat them! Summertime is tomato time.
I also make and freeze tomato sauce and salsa.
Bruschetta.
You can home can them easily and they can be used to make many good meals all winter long. They are wonderful fresh, much better than store-bought. There are many varieties, so you can grow beefsteak slicers and little sweet grape/cherry tomatoes and meaty San Marzanos.
tomato sauce, salsa and if i really have a glut — paste.
Because I’m an old Southern woman and we’re supposed to wear funny looking hats and ugly clothes and grow vegetables in the dirt. Don’t ask me those questions. I don’t know why, I don’t make the rules!
Tomatoes are one of the only common home crops that are really, really better when they’re home-grown. (The others are mainly tree fruits, like peaches and apricots that are so much better than store-bought.)
If I could grow them year-round, I would.
To make salsa.
There is no store bought tomato that comes close to the flavor of a garden grown tomato. I love slicing big fat tomatoes to eat on a burger or sandwich, and eating tiny tomatoes directly off the vine. I always grow paste tomatoes for sauce. And of course I give away tons to family.
most of the produce in stores is bland and flavorless. It’s harvested way too soon, so that by the time it makes it to a store shelf it’s not rotted.
anything you grow tastes worlds better.
corn. tomatoes. carrots. berries. hell… even potatoes.
tomatoes are pretty easy to grow. there’s lots of different types. sizes. small bush plants, cherry tomatoes produce lots of little tomatoes great for salads or even sauces. there’s big slicer tomatoes great for sandwiches or other dishes. there’s sauce tomatoes. …there’s nothing like blanching a good 10 san marzanos and making a quick sauce. it’s so fresh and delicious.
other people are talking about the first tomato sandwich of the year. eh… i look forward to like the first 6-10 sauce tomatoes i get. making some simple ravioli. or some pasta that will take a nice chunky sauce.
1. Much better taste then store bought
2. Ridiculously easy to grow tons of them.
3. Very easy to use lots of tomatoes. Not only can they be put in most types of food, but if you have a large amount about to go bad, just dice it up, cook it in a pan, and add some salt, vinegar, butter/olive oil, and seasoning, and you have a good pasta sauce.
Like others have said. It’s not about ‘I’m gonna be self sustainable!’ but instead ‘this tastes like anything you can buy at a store’
Snacks, sandwiches, some chinese dishes, and whatever I can’t use I just freeze to make sauce later
Mostly because they are great for snacking (I mostly grow cherry tomatoes), and I can use them in many different ways from frozen throughout the year. They are also super easy to grow and are a rewarding crop, and I can grow enough for both me and the local wildlife.
Also, BLT with home grown still warm tomatoes on homemade sourdough? I could live on the stuff.
When I’m growing, I’m definitely making more things with tomatoes.
Tomato heavy salads, Brazilian vinaigrette, which is tomatoes, onions and cilantro with a little bit of olive oil and vinegar, pasta, sandwiches with extra tomato.
If I get to the point where I’m overwhelmed, I give them to my neighbors, take a few to work.
Dehydrate end of season tomatoes and make tomato powder. It’s incredibly versatile.
Fresh organic tomatoes, nothing like store bought.
BLTs, spaghetti sauce, salsa, tomato and mayo sandwich. Etc etc
There is nothing like trying out new tomatoes, that are so many to choose from, each with their own unique flavour profile. I eat them all summer and then process them for use through the winter. Sauce, whole frozen, dehydrated, powdered and paste. You can make so many delicious recipes with tomatoes: Pizza, spaghetti sauce, soups, salads, puttanesca, bruschetta, ketchup, BBQ sauce, salsa, pico de gallo, tomato butter, tarts, stuffed, Shakshuka, roasted, fried, sorbet, juice and the very best – sliced on toast.
Because they are better tasting, easy to grow, and expensive in quantity at the store? Which cannot be said about a lot of garden plants. Why grow potatoes?
To eat, I cook mine down for sauce, for salads and other things. My favorite way to use them is on fresh sourdough with burrata, flaky salt, olive oil and red pepper flakes.
* Because I can
* Because the organic tomatoes at the grocery store are $6/lb but certainly don’t taste any better than what I grow
* Because I am far enough along in my gardening journey that growing tomatoes is effectively free for me to do
* Because I have a friend who doesn’t garden, but who likes fresh tomatoes for burgers and sandwiches
* Because I get a kick out of making soup that is 90% sourced from my garden, since I’ve got carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic, and a bunch of herbs out there, too
* Because I found a copycat recipe for V8 juice that is kind of a lot trouble to make (oh yeah, with my own spinach and parsley for that), but absolutely worth it
* Because I’ve thrifted a very nice pasta maker, and if I go to the trouble of making handmade pasta, it’s getting homemade tomato sauce, too
* Because this year I’m planting a bunch of dwarf varieties in 1 gal pots to give away to my neighbors and that’s a good way to connect with people
Until you’ve eaten a non-grocery store tomato, you may never know.
Once you have, you will never forget.
It might be the single biggest gap between homegrown and store bought veggies
Tell me you haven’t tasted a home grown tomato without telling me you haven’t tasted a home grown tomato.
I can a bunch and fresh, homegeown grown tomatoes are insanely delicious
For the best salsa ever using heirloom varieties.
Grocery stores only have the basic red tomatoes (in the US) or they want 6 coats a pound at a specialty grocery.
Garden ones usually taste MUCH better than grocery store ones. I feel like they’re popular because they’re easy. And in my experience, I’ve ended up with plants that yield either 2 rock hard sad green tomatoes at the end of the season… Or one that puts out 40 lbs of them.
I like to grow cherry tomatoes, because they’re a bit easier to keep in the fridge than half a beefsteak tomato, and roma tomatoes to freeze and make into sauces later on.
I plant 4-5 Tiny Tim cherry tomatoes all over the garden and I find that I’m usually snacking on them while I’m working in the garden. I’ll put a few in salad, but rarely do they ever make it indoors!
For sauce, I grow San Marzano exclusively. I find the variety easy to grow and perfect for roasting and then making sauce.
For salad/sandwich tomatoes, I grow Chadwicks. Yes, they’re smaller than a traditional beefsteak tomato, but I find the sweetness and shorter grow time much more appealing.
I grow tomatoes because homegrown tastes amazing, way better than store bought, and where I live (8a) they grow prolifically. I can eat them all summer. Tomato sandwiches with heirloom beefsteaks are just the bomb!
Also, this is only my 3rd year gardening. I am still learning. Tomatoes are easy, and if my other crops are fails, I still have tomatoes to feel good about!
So that I can eat them straight off of the vine.