Emm, I guess I come off a tad opinionated! I don't like the concentrate taste, even when diluted, but especially on commercial pizzas. It may be something else in the concentrate - I have never tried italian home made tomato paste, I figure I wouldn't like that either.
Why puree would be stronger tasting than paste is beyond me, as I think the ratio of pulp to fluid is the same as canned whole or diced tomatoes, they are just cut finer, but that was probably that person's experience with that company's products.
Perhaps I don't like tomatoes to rule, exactly... more that they become part of a blending.
I think that each of us has opinions (strong, weak, mutable) about food. I rarely use any canned tomato products... any canned food, really, except fresh, possibly because my mother, a product of the depression, relied on canned foods too much. I think most of them have a tinny flavor.
A friend gave me a great recipe last week for cherry tomatoes. These were delicious!
Cherry tomatoes in herb marinade
2 baskets cherry tomatoes
1/4 C red wine vinegar
2green onions and tops, sliced
1/2 tsp dry basil or 1 tsp fresh (or more)
1/4 tsp oregano or 1 tsp fresh
1 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 C salad oil ( may be part olive)
Dip tomatoes in a wire strainer into boiling water for about 15 sec. Rinse in cold water and peel.
Combine everything else and pour over tomatoes. Cover and refrig for at least 2 hours, or until next day.
Stir often.
(Piffka Note: I think "Garlic salt" is icky and would probably substitute.)
And I'd use fresh herbs too, but that is a tasty recipe.
One of my favorite pastas is fettucine with halved cherry tomatoes, shallots, fresh basil, olive oil and white wine. Well, that is what it says on the menu. When I make it, it never tastes exactly the same as that particular restaurant's dish.. must be the exact wine taste.
On canned foods... I bypass them too, except for canned tomatoes out of tomato season and sometimes canned beans, though I also am a mad bean soaker/cooker, makes me happy somehow. I'm lucky though, there are plenty of seasonal local vegetables at my market and it is fun changing cooking with the season.
Shallots are so good! I think they're my favorite kind of onion.
I like changing cooking with the season, too.
Me too, me too. Shallots used to be so hard to find, and the people at the checkout stand sometimes didn't know what they were. Now, in my little co-op here, there is a nice little shallot bin..
Thankfully, somebody has started growing them commercially.
Hey, btw, we think we're going to be driving down to Brookings next month. Maybe we'll try to drive just a little further south.
Oh, that would be nice!
I just went up to Crescent City today. Long drive for a potential job, but beautiful, in parts of the drive anyway.
We're hopeful that our plans work out.
Got any more recipes?
Sure, but I'll be back on that later, after work.
You know, a good californian canned tomato with fresh basil leaf is far better than Italian canned goods.
This appears on page 1 of this thread, but I'm reposting it because it is so good. Made it again last night - fantastic.
Chicken with onions and green chiles. Serves 6.
3 whole boneless chicken breasts
1 onion, sliced into half rings
2 jalapenos sliced with seeds
1" piece of ginger, peeled and julienned
1 clove garlic chopped
Sauce:
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 Tbsp lemon juice
a little water
1.5 tsp garam marsala
1.5 tsp ground cumin
.5 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup heavy cream
Oil for frying
1 stick cinnamon, 6 whole cloves, 6 whole cardamom pods
Preheat oven to 350 F. Heat a heavy skillet and add some oil and the whole, hard spices. Cook the chicken in batches until just browned. Season with salt and pepper and place in baking dish in a single layer.
Add a little more oil, the onions, chiles, and ginger, and saute until onions are soft. Remove with slotted spoon and place on top of chicken.
Now the sauce. You can mix the first seven ingredients ahead of time if you wish, but don't add the cream until now or it will curdle. Mix thorougly. Put a little more oil in the pan if needed, and add the garlic. Saute about 20 seconds and add the sauce, all at once. Cook until slightly thickened, stirring constantly. Pour over the chicken without disturbing the onion mixture.
Finish by baking for 20 minutes at 350. Serve with rice.
MMMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...
I'll say. It is not on my diet, but I've copied it for later. Thanks, cjhsa.
<Did I ever mention that my son thinks your signature is the funniest one he's seen? I like it too.>
If I yank out the cumin, I could try that recipe. Im thinking of doing it with guinea hen
