The Creole Tomato

The Creole tomato — a specific group of tomato varieties grown in the alluvial soil of the Mississippi River parishes surrounding New Orleans — is to Louisiana cooking what San Marzano is to Italian: a terroir product that defines the cuisine built on it. Creole tomatoes are characterised by thin skin, high water content, intense sweetness balanced by moderate acidity, and a flavour that New Orleans cooks consider superior to any other fresh tomato. They are available from late May through July, and during that window, they dominate the markets, the restaurants, and the conversation. A Creole tomato at peak season, sliced thick, dressed with olive oil, salt, and pepper, is considered a complete dish.

The Creole tomato is not a single variety but a group of varieties — including Creole, Celebrity, and various heirlooms — that share the characteristics imparted by the alluvial soil and the subtropical climate: thin skin that splits easily, a soft flesh that doesn't survive long-distance shipping, high sugar content, and a balanced acidity that requires less cooking time to develop sweetness in a sauce. The tomato is red, often irregularly shaped, and fragile. It does not travel well, which is why it has never been commercially successful outside Louisiana and why it remains a local product in an age of industrial tomato distribution.

Fresh: sliced, salt, pepper, olive oil. In sauce: the foundation of Creole sauce, shrimp Creole, courtbouillon, sauce piquante. Fried green: cornmeal-crusted, with remoulade. The Creole tomato is present across the full range of Louisiana cooking during its season.