Once I bring nice juicy tomatoes indoors, they sometimes seem to turn very firm and hard almost overnight. I have tried a sunny windowsill, in the fridge, etc.
What makes them develop such a hard thick skin so fast?
2006-07-28 07:31:54 · 13 answers · asked by veggie grower 1 in Food & Drink ➔ Vegetarian & Vegan
If you pick the tomatoes already ripe...eat them and/ or share them with others. They will simply continue to "ripen" once picked. If you pick them and they are not quite ripe, or if you find them fallen from the vines and they aren't ripe, place on a sunny window sill, stem side down to ripen. If you need to ripen them quickly, place them in a brown paper bag with an apple; apples emit ethylene gas which hastens the ripening process; and they should be ripe in a day or so. Good luck!
2006-07-28 07:39:38 · answer #1 · answered by jkskeet@sbcglobal.net 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Sunny windowsills and the refrigerator are both BAD places to store tomatoes. If they need further ripening, put them in a brown bag in a cool spot (NOT the refrigerator). If they are ready to eat, EAT 'EM. Sadly, perfect tomatoes don't stay perfect very long, so eat and enjoy when they are at their peak.
2006-07-28 07:34:56 · answer #2 · answered by MOM KNOWS EVERYTHING 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Paper bags work, and we also used to wrap them in newspaper. While vine-ripened tomatoes are the juciest and the best for eating plain or juice-making, tomatoes that are ripened off the vine are less juicy, but excellent for making homemade pasta sauce.
2006-07-28 08:41:59 · answer #3 · answered by mynx326 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Set them on the counter top. Room temperature is best, for ripening. Refrigeration will just make your tomatoes mushy.
If your tomatoes are getting hard it may be the type of tomato, not the ripening method.
2006-07-28 07:36:30 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have heard you can pick them green and let them ripen in a paper bag in a dark place. Not sure if it will change the texture of the skin but, they seem to turn out pretty good.
2006-07-28 07:36:14 · answer #5 · answered by Michelle M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have always used the windowsill -- maybe it is the type of tomato - ask a specialist in a Nursery near you.
2006-07-28 07:35:01 · answer #6 · answered by GP 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
either put them in the fridge or in the window. If they are getting hard only sometimes I would suspect its just the brand of tomatoes.
2006-07-28 10:15:07 · answer #7 · answered by Autumn 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Put them in the sun or a paperbag for a day or 2
2006-07-28 07:35:00 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Pears are the same way when first picked so what I do is put them in a paper bag to soften them up.
2006-07-28 07:38:08 · answer #9 · answered by Bob 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Put them in a brown paper bag or wrap them in newspaper until you are ready to use.
2006-07-28 08:56:15 · answer #10 · answered by motleycfan 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋