Fried Green Tomatoes
FRIED GREEN TOMATOES are a great way to use up the unripe tomatoes from your garden. Crispy, tart, and oh-so-Southern. They’ll have you grabbing a glass of sweet tea and saying “y’all” in no time!
Let me start off by saying, I am not a Southern girl. I was born and raised in NE Ohio and have lived here my whole life. I am, however, a Southern girl at heart, and have often thought I must have lived in the South in another life because I feel so connected to the South.
Every year, for the past 20 years, my family has gone on a road trip to South Carolina to vacation for a week. It was during one of these trips I was first introduced to Fried Green Tomatoes. It was love at first bite! Crispy and crunchy with that distinctive sour-bite from the unripe tomato, I had never tasted anything like it. Whenever I head south, I always make sure to get an order of Fried Green Tomatoes to satisfy my taste buds.
This year, we aren’t heading to South Carolina, but I did get my fill of Fried Green Tomatoes last month when I was in Florida. We enjoyed a spectacular meal at SLATE, a fabulous restaurant nestled in the Dr. Phillips neighborhood of Orlando. We started our meal off with the most amazing Fried Green Tomatoes I had ever eaten! Naturally, I wanted to recreate those wonderful Fried Green Tomatoes at home…so although I had never attempted making Fried Green Tomatoes myself, I set off to give it a try.
I found a great recipe on Allrecipes to guide my way through the cooking process. I’m a good cook and a great baker, but I am terrible at frying things. But… I was determined to give this recipe a try, so I didn’t let it stop me. I used my cast iron skillet and only about a half inch of oil. It worked out perfectly! I was a little concerned that I might not be able to find green tomatoes at the store but, I was able to find green tomatoes sold specifically to make Fried Green Tomatoes right here in my Ohio grocery store!
I decided to serve these Fried Green Tomatoes like they did at SLATE, with a good buttermilk dip! I used a jarred buttermilk dressing I like, but you could make your own instead. It’s up to you!
My version of Fried Green Tomatoes were every bit as good as the ones I enjoyed at the restaurant and as good as the one’s I’ve had down South. If you are a fan of Fried Green Tomatoes, give this recipe a try and tell me what you think!
Fried Green Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 2 - 3 green tomatoes (make sure they are true unripe tomatoes), sliced 1/2 inch thick
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 large eggs
- 1 TBS water
- ¾ cup yellow cornmeal
- ¾ cup dry plain breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- fresh ground black pepper to taste
- pinch of cayenne pepper
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup buttermilk dressing
Instructions
- Put tomato slices on layers of paper towels to dry a bit.
- Put the flour in a shallow bowl and set aside.
- Beat the eggs with the water in a shallow bowl and set aside.
- Combine the cornmeal, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper in a shallow bowl. Set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil and heat until it begins to shimmer.
- Dip the tomato slices in flour, then the egg mixture, then the cornmeal mixture and add to the oil.
- Cook until golden brown on one side and carefully flip to cook the other side until golden brown.
- Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with additional salt if desired
- Serve warm with buttermilk dressing for dipping.
