Speaking of seasons, the end of summer signals the beginning of the local tomato season in the UAE and just thinking about fresh, sweet, succulent, organic, local tomatoes makes me go crazy with ideas. And just so you know, I photographed all of these tempting, mouth-watering tomato images right here in Dubai. yes, this is a tomato harvest in the desert at the Greenheart Organic Farm. I pride myself on my work documenting organic farming in the UAE and am overjoyed at how far the industry has come over the years since the very first organic store selling local produce (Naswa) popped up.
If you have ever bit into a whole sour tomato as a child, it is enough to turn you off it forever. Children are naturally drawn to the intense colours of tomatoes and if they are not in season, they can be really sour or off in taste. If they are allowed to pick them in season right off a vine, it changes everything. Even for us as adults.
During the peak of the tomato season, the organic greenhouses at Greenheart Farms are bursting with a variety of sensationally delicious, ripe, red and even purple tomatoes. When the local Greenheart tomatoes are in their prime, they are so sweet, succulent and flavourful that they are best eaten raw. This salad celebrates the tomato in all its glory and is homage to my Jamaican roots. In the Caribbean, we love our tomatoes and they are staple ingredients in a lot of our dishes.
550g assorted organic tomatoes, sliced and cubed
60g salted fish, rinsed and soaked in water to removed excess salt (cod, pollack, haddock)
1 small red onion, finely diced
Habanero to taste, very thinly sliced and without seeds
Salt to taste
A pinch of cracked black pepper
Slice cherry tomatoes in halves or quarters, depending on size dice and dice bigger beef varieties.
Break up salt fish into small pieces.
Combine the rest of ingredients and let it sit for two hours.
Serve with slices of avocado sprinkled with sea salt and some fresh crusty bread on the side to mop up the finger-licking tomato jus!
wknd@khaleejtimes.com