GOOD STUFF

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EXCLUSIVE DISH: CHEF VIVIAN HOWARD’S STEWED TOMATOES

We recently reached out to Chef Vivian Howard (the innovative and award-winning host of PBS’ A Chef’s Life, and best-selling author of the book Deep Run Roots: Stories and Recipes from My Corner of the South). We were curious to see what Vivian might suggest as an interesting use of tomatoes. She offered up her recipe for versatile Stewed Tomatoes.

Vivian said, “I call it a Southern version of marinara. Like a classic marinara, it’s easy to make and it adds great flavor to so many dishes. It starts with sweating onions (sautéing them) in the pan, add your tomatoes, some basil, and a little bit of sugar — I guess the sugar is what makes it Southern. We also throw in some bread, in the end, to thicken it up a bit; but it’s not something you have to do. These stewed tomatoes should be a summer, fall, winter and spring staple in your kitchen!”

Stewed Tomatoes (serves 4)

2 cups onions, cut into small dice

3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons butter

7 cups tomatoes, diced with juice

1/2 cup cornbread or rustic white bread, torn into smallish pieces

3 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/3 cup packed basil leaves

1 tablespoon light brown sugar

Add https://blog.bcbsnc.com/2019/06/tomatoeshealthy-for-the-heart/

Puree the stew if you wish. Otherwise, remove the basil, and serve as is.

Sources:

1https://news.ncsu.edu/2018/09/top-vegetables-in-nc/

2https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5974099/

3 https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002404.htm