The tomato is so much more than the basic, red variety you can pick up cheaply at most supermarkets. Scientifically speaking, a tomato is a fruit; however, as far as cooking is concerned, it is used as a vegetable in savoury rather than sweet dishes.
It is worth knowing which varieties of tomato taste the best, depending on what you are going to use them for. Are you going to eat them in a salad, cook them, or slice them for a sandwich? Bear in mind that size can make a difference to flavour, with smaller tomatoes being sweeter and larger tomatoes more acidic.
Tomatoes have a balance of sweetness and tartness. When combined, this makes a difference to the depth of flavour. There is nothing better than the distinctive taste of a ripe, home-grown tomato, bursting with flavour and juice.
The cherry tomato
If you are looking for a tomato that ticks the box for sweetness, look no further than the cherry tomato. According to the Royal Horticultural Society, cherry tomatoes are amongst the most popular and tastiest tomato. Unlike the larger tomato, the cherry variety is usually the sweetest due to its higher sugar concentration. This makes it ideal to be eaten straight from the vine.
The cherry tomato tastes great in a salad. It can be found in an array of colours, so try adding yellow, orange or green tomatoes to your dish for a colourful meal. More interesting varieties of tomato really stand out in a saladette counter. What is a saladette counter? If you come across a restaurant using a saladette counter, you can rest assured that your tomatoes will be fresh and tasty due to the colder temperatures.
The beefsteak tomato
The beefsteak tomato is a huge variety of tomato and often has a milder flavour due to a higher water content. They are easy to cut and their large size makes their slices the perfect fit for a sandwich or burger.
The sauce tomato
These tomatoes, with varieties such as Roma and Super Roma, are a fantastic choice if you are looking to make a sauce or curry. They have a meatier texture than a salad tomato and are more dense, bringing a real depth of flavour to a dish.