techniques

5 Ways to Make Out-of-Season Tomatoes Taste Better

Here's how to make grocery store tomatoes taste better with some simple tricks and preparations.
Image may contain Plant Vegetable and Food

Is a winter tomato a tomato at all? (Credit: Melissa Finkelstein)

We've said it before, and we'll say it again:
no out-of-season, grocery store fruit or vegetable is as disappointing as a mealy, watery, tasteless tomato. Even now, as we bite into fresh, sun-soaked farmers' market heirlooms, we dread the days of encountering insipid slices on burgers and sad whitish-pink wedges in salads. But sometimes, you have no choice but to make due with less-than-ideal tomatoes. We asked our Test Kitchen to weigh in on how to doctor up your tasteless toms, from slow-roasting them to using another fruit to turn up the tomato flavor.

  • Image may contain Plant Food Radish Vegetable and Fruit
    1/5

    Confit

    Unripe or out-of-season tomatoes are mostly water, and don't have the sugar and acid that juicy mid-August tomatoes do. Cooking the tomatoes low and slow in olive oil and heavy seasoning will concentrate their flavor, drawing most of the water out. Drizzle your tomatoes with olive oil and generously season with salt and pepper, then roast in a 200-degree oven for about an hour to an hour and a half. We like this method of perking up flavorless tomatoes because you don't really have to watch it closely.

    (Credit: Gentl & Hyers)

  • 2/5

    Broil

    The opposite idea to confit, broiling will blister the tomato's skin and caramelize its sugars. Broil tomatoes until all sides are browned, turning once.

    (Credit: Yossy Arefi)

  • 3/5

    Tomato Water

    Although it won't have as much flavor as its ripe counterpart, out-of-season tomato water is still tomato water. It's pretty easy--just puree and let sit in a strainer.

    (Credit: Gentl & Hyers)

  • 4/5

    Freeze Them and Make Sauce

    When fruit is frozen, their cell walls burst, which makes them juicier when thawed (think of warmed-up frozen berries). Freeze the offending tomato(es), then thaw them and throw them into a sauce.

    (Credit: Ditte Isager)

  • 5/5

    Add Pineapple Juice

    Yes, you read that right. Tossing raw tomatoes with pineapple juice mimics the acidity and sweetness of a fresh, ripe tomato. Add the juice only a tablespoon at a time, tasting to make sure you're not eating a pina colada.

    (Credit: Zach DeSart)

Danielle Walsh is the assistant web editor at Bon Appétit, and has also written for New York Magazine's Grub Street. She loves Korean food, tacos, and whiskey, and is trying really, really hard to like sardines.
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