How To Make Fried Green Tomatoes
Back to beloved southern foods! This is the prime time of year for fried green tomatoes. All of our grocery stores sell green ones alongside the red for this very purpose (green tomatoes are like rocks so I can’t imagine them being used for anything else). Another weird cultural thing, but I imagine it stemmed from the whole “dang yankees trying to starve us” issue back in the days of old.
Did you know why turnip greens and field peas (black eyed peas) are so revered in the south? During the civil war, yankee troops confiscated anything that could possibly be used to feed their men as they traveled through the south. However, greens and field peas were considered only fit for animal fodder, so they were left. Being the food lovers that we are, those foods became something of delicacies for us and are absolutely required at every family table on New Years Day in order to bring luck and wealth in the new year.
Dumplings and biscuits came into play because even with money low, most families had flour. Flour was purchased in twenty five pound sacks, five times the normal sized bag we all get today. Therefore, it was usually about the only thing available to make a meal stretch. You can take a scrawny chicken, shred it and cook in broth with a big batch of dumplings and easily stretch the meal to feed even a large family. Biscuits are quick and easy to make and also very filling. Each of these meals would require little or no meat and leave the family full until the next mealtime.
Alright, enough of my cultural foods lesson, lets get on to tomatoes :).
What you’ll need: A little flour (self rising or plain, doesn’t matter), corn meal, season all, and green tomatoes.Also oil for frying and a little milk for dredging.
Slice your tomatoes kind of thick. (My mouth is starting to water..)
Then take a picture of them with your fancy new tomato slicing knife that your mama got you for Christymas. (I meant to put the Y in there – if you ask I will explain:).
I used about a cup and a half of corn meal. This isn’t one of those things that has to be precise but I’m estimating for those of you who really want measurements.
Add a little flour to it. This will act as sort of a “glue” to help hold it all together. I used a really large spoon although it looks normal sized in the pick. This was about four tablespoons of flour.
Add enough season all to color your mixture.I used about two tablespoons. I know it seems like a lot but ….well just do it. If you don’t have season all you can season your meal by adding salt and pepper.
Dip both sides of each slice into milk.
Then dip into your meal mixture. Press down and coat both sides well.
So it looks something like this 🙂
I used regular vegetable oil. You want it to come up about half way or so on the slices. Make sure you heat your oil well before you add the tomatoes. The key to having things that aren’t “greasy” is to heat the oil really well. That way, when you drop your food into it, the food is seared right off and then cooks from there. If your oil isn’t hot enough to do that, you basically end up soaking your breading in oil for a few minutes and it gets soggy and blah.
My oil is just colored by the cornmeal in it at this point. It was clear to begin with. Brown each side well. I cook these on medium to medium high heat. Try not to turn them but once or twice as the coating is somewhat delicate and you don’t want that to come off.
Drain your tomatoes on a paper towel lined plate. I even take another paper towel and blot the tops or turn them over onto it. Then you’re ready to go! These are delicious! They have a twang to them that ripened tomatoes don’t have.
If you try them, let me know what you think!
This was something my momma made every year, since she couldn’t garden in later years, she would get green tomatoes in the store, as they were of course shipped in from away and picked green. You took them home and ripened them up, and of course made fried green tomatoes (cooked in bacon grease of course in the cast skillet) green tomato preserves which is a sort of chutney, and I actually found a green tomato pie recipe which is super good, tastes like apple pie. I have friends who have a market garden, and grow tomatoes, so can actually get green and ripe tomatoes at the same time, I asked for some green ones (they had never heard of using them) and Kev laughed at me when I told him I was going to make pie with them, he said it was the best one he ever ate, so then I took him the ripe tomato pie, and he was flabbergasted!
It sounds delicious Eva!!
Hi, another recipe I can’t wait to try.. I have had fried red tomatoes but they were just done in bread crumbs and seasoned with s&p so lookin’ forward to it.
I like fried zucinni . We got some pretty big ones and sliced them and breaded them then fried them. Have you tried that? I do have a question…howdo you prepare your ‘greens’ andwhat kinds do you use? Ihave used beet greens but thats it. Also, just one more question/comment…Christymas???? tell me please.
Have a great day.
I have tried fried zucchini and even fried red tomatoes and both were delicious, I used this same recipe for each. I use turnip and collard greens and prepare them both the same way. Here is the traditional way: https://southernplatecom.bigscoots-staging.com/2008/12/collard-greens-with-hot-pepper-sauce-the-dish-that-might-make-you-rich.html
and here is the quick way : https://southernplatecom.bigscoots-staging.com/2014/05/quick-fried-turnip-greens.html
both ways have their merits 🙂
Christymas is what my family sometimes calls Christmas because Christy (that’d be me) absolutely loves everything about the season. It is not meant as any form of sacrilege or disrespect, of course. And by the way, only 20 more Fridays until Christmas!
Christy I love you and all of your recipes, and all of the cute stories you add along with them ! My only question is how come I can’t save this recipe to my Recipe Box thru ZipList ? I desperately need it there. Please help.
I am eagerly awaiting having my name selected for a prize. Thank you.
Would you believe I’ve never had fried green tomatoes!? It’s truly sad and pitiful, since I am a “southern wannabe.” :::wink::: I can’t say that I’ve ever seen green tomatoes at the grocery store in CA. I’m going to have to remedy this. I’ll be putting in my request to the produce manager ASAP, and hope that my wish will be granted, lol. 😀
P.S. I do have green tomatoes in my garden, but they’re cherry tomatoes and Roma; not the right kind for this. What variety do you suggest that I plant next year, so that I have my own supply of green tomatoes? Thank you! 😀
Any medium to large sized tomato will work Michelle!
Thank you! 🙂
HI: What happed to the printable recipe?
Love your website. Thank You. Ollie
This would really be great. Thanks again.
When you have an abundance of green tomatoes they can be frozen. Just fix to where you drenched them then flash freeze them. After that package them to cook another day.
Great idea Sue!! Thanks for sharing!!