Friday, September 30, 2011

FRIED GREEN TOMATOES

Fall season means good bye to your vegetable plants that is if you are from the Mid-west area. I still have tons of tomatoes. The green ones i have to pick before it gets frozen. We have been on frost advisory lately. I have plans on pickling some of them, hopefully i'd find the time to do so. You can also make them into salad, but frying them is the  best way to go..it's  our favorite.  Frying them while it's fresh is a good thing, in my opinion. It's crunchy and juicy and a hint of tart...yum!!!






This recipe is my version. Traditionally,  fried green tomatoes calls for cornmeal but i used panko. It just gives more crunch to the fried tomatoes. But if you can't buy or find panko don't fret...do the cornmeal or any regular breadcrumbs.




Ingredients:
4 medium sized green tomatoes (wash, slice into 1/3 inch thick) *
½ cup milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
½ cup flour
1 cup panko bread crumbs *
1 ½  tsp salt (divide into 3)
1 tsp pepper (divide into 3)
Canola oil for frying

* I prefer thick slices to have a crunchy end product as opposed to thin slices that will turn soggy after frying.

*Panko Breadcrumbs are Japanese breadcrumbs. Thanks to “supply and demand” they are now available at every supermarket near you ;) Few years back, you can only buy them at Asian stores. If you haven’t tried using them yet, I highly suggest that you give these a try in lieu of the breadcrumbs we used to know ;). If you want to achieve a crispy/crunchy texture, Panko will definitely give you that!

*** You will need three shallow bowls for the egg wash method.
*** You will also be doing the left hand dry, right hand wet method as well to avoid a mess.

1st bowl – flour mixed with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2nd bowl – combine egg and milk, add salt and pepper.  Mix and beat. Set aside
3rd bowl – panko breadcrumbs mixed with salt and pepper. Set aside.


Heat oil in a skillet on medium heat.
Dredge tomato slices in the 1st bowl (flour), then coat them in the 2nd bowl (egg wash) using your left hand (wet).
Coat sliced tomatoes w/ panko (3rd bowl using your right hand, dry). Press tomato slices so panko will adhere to the tomato slices.
Gently drop coated tomatoes into the hot skillet by batch. Don’t overcrowd your pan this will produce moisture. Fry the tomatoes for 3-5 minutes on each side or until brown.
Set cooked tomatoes on cookie rack to let excess oil drip. I don’t recommend paper towel, it will make your sliced tomatoes mushy and soggy.
I love to serve this w/ sriracha and vinegar dip.


Tart green tomatoes coated w/ panko and fried perfectly = crispy/crunchy on the outside and warm and juicy on the inside.
What a brilliant way to make use of your green tomatoes before cold season comes.


2 comments:

  1. OMG! These are one of my favorites to eat! Lahat po ng mga recipes nyo, masarap lutuin. Thank you for sharing with us. You're helping me when I'm naglilihi.

    ReplyDelete