Red the color of fresh vibrant flavor
As the extraordinarily cold winter comes to an end, the first batch of fresh, early-season tomatoes are starting to hit the market. The tomato, which is in fact a fruit, is mostly classed as a vegetable because of its dominant use in savory cooking. The tomatoes that are available all year round are essential to numerous everyday recipes, but their flavor can be quite bland.
In general, the tomato season starts from June and runs through the summer, though different regions have their own timings according to the local climate and weather conditions, and naturally ripe tomatoes can arrive in the market in spring.
Originated in South America, tomatoes were brought to China in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and cultivated as an ornamental plant for their beautiful red color. It became popular as a vegetable in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Today, China is the largest tomato producing country in the world, with its annual exports of tomato sauce accounting for one third of the global total.
The northwestern regions — the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Shaanxi Province and
Gansu Province — are where the significant day-to-night temperature difference and longer hours of sunlight support the thriving growth of tomatoes.
The tomato also plays a crucial role in regional cuisine. In the rural villages of Shaanxi, people would make steamed tomato sauce at the end of the tomato season to preserve the vegetable for use over the winter.
The tomatoes are first steamed in large batches to remove the skin, then chopped up and boiled in a large wok to reduce the moisture content. The cooked sauce is seasoned with salt, and some people add chilis to boost the flavor with a hint of spiciness. The tomato sauce is then portioned and sealed in clean, dry bottles or jars, then boiled in water to finish the cooking. The tomato sauce can be preserved for three to five months.
Besides the regular large tomatoes used in everyday cooking, novel varieties are constantly entering the market with improvements to taste and texture.
The goji tomato from the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, for example, is a slightly more expensive variety of cherry tomato (at nearly 20 yuan per 500 grams). The oval -shaped, deeper red-colored goji tomatoes are very similar to goji berries in terms of color and shape. This variety has a crunchier, firmer skin and extra sweet and juicy flesh that explodes with flavor. It’s very suited for eating raw as a healthy fruit or used in cold dishes to boost the vibrant presentation and flavor.
Fresh tomatoes are a very healthy vegetable (and fruit) in terms of nutrition, containing 95 percent water and only 4 percent carbohydrate. It’s an ideal source of vitamin C, with every 100 grams of fresh tomatoes offering around 17 percent of the recommended daily intake.
Sweet and tangy
Perfect fresh tomatoes should have a plump shape, leafy tops, firm and wrinkle-free skins, a vibrant red color and noticeable aroma. Locally grown tomatoes can ensure freshness, but highly developed logistics can bring better tomatoes from the far northwestern regions to the other side of the country in perfect condition, as if they’ve been harvested just hours before. Tomatoes that are allowed to ripen naturally are superior in flavor, but they don’t last long.
The vitamin C in tomatoes also drops significantly when they are stored for long periods of time, so when the season arrives, always buy fresh tomatoes in smaller
Tomatoes have conquered the global culinary map, but it wasn’t always that way. The long and arduous journey to popularity begins well over a million years ago in the northern reaches of the Andes Mountains in South America when the ancient nightshade plant mutated into several related but different species. One branch became the tomato while others evolved into potatoes, chili peppers and tobacco.
Some food historians postulate that about 2,500 years ago the tomato plant was first domesticated by the Aztecs. Others speculate that earlier Mesoamerican cultures most likely domesticated the plant before the Aztecs. Whoever the original cultivators were, they learned to selectively breed only the edible genera of tomato for consumption as well as the hallucinogenic species for religious ceremonies. The modern-day tomato notwithstanding, several types of poisonous tomato plants still exist in the wild.
The tomato’s migration to cuisines worldwide began in the Age of Discovery. The first European to encounter the tomato was Christopher Columbus but fellow explorer Hernan Cortes first brought seeds from Montezuma’s gardens to Iberian shores in 1519.
By the mid-16th century, several regions of Spain were cultivating tomatoes but most Europeans were hesitant to eat this reputably poisonous fruit.
The English even believed that eating tomatoes would turn one’s blood into acid. Save for a precious few intrepid European epicurean thrill-seekers, for over a century the tomato was used primarily as a decorative plant. In the 18th century in Spain and Italy advances in selective breeding led to more palatable tomatoes and by the 19th centuries they were a popular ingredient in many dishes, especially in Mediterranean cooking.
When they first arrived in China sometime in the early the 17th century, tomatoes nonplused most Chinese gourmets. Some credit the unassuming scrambled eggs and tomato dish with popularizing tomatoes in China. In varying degrees of rapidity and import, chefs in China started integrating tomatoes into a select number of regional dishes.
Chinese and international tomato dishes are yummy by themselves, but when accompanied by a synergistic wine they become even more scrumptious. Naturally there’s no one best solution for pairing wines with tomatoes for the simple reason that the world of tomatoes is incredibly diverse. However, one important pairing discriminator for pairing all tomatoes with wines is acidity. All tomatoes have acidity and so must all tomato-friendly wines feature good acidity. One Italian region that produces remarkably fresh and aromatic tomato-loving white wines.
Nestled in the most northern Alpine expanses of Italy is the wine region of Alto Adige. The northernmost wine region in Italy features steep hillside vineyards that slope down to the Adige River and its tributaries. The combination of sloping vineyards with excellent exposure to the sun and a climate featuring sunny days and cool evenings results in exceptionally fragrant white wines with bracing acidity.
Recent archeological digs in Alto Adige have uncovered ancient winemaking tools and storage vessels dating to 500 BC, coincidentally about the same time the tomato was first domesticated. Centuries later during the height of the Roman Empire the wine trade in Alto Adige was flourishing. As the sun was setting on the Roman Empire, Frankish and Bavarian monks took over many wineries and keep the art of winemaking in this region alive.
The great city states of the Italian Renaissance then the rise of the AustroHungarian Empire provided new markets for Alto Adige wines. At different points of history, the region was part of the Austro-Hungarian and Holy Roman Empire. It wasn’t until 1918 that the region was returned to Italy. The German-Austrian influences are still seen in Alto Adige as the region has two official languages, German and Italian. This is reflected in the bilingual wine labels.
The whites of Alto Adige offer a symphony of delightful aromas ranging from yellow and tropical fruits to white flowers and herbs. The three most planted white varietals are Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc and Gewurztraminer. Excellent Rieslings are also made.
Alto Adige Pinot Grigio wines are approachable and offer an abundance of ripe fruit scents and flavors, a weighty mouthfeel and prominent acidity. More serious and structured are the Sauvignon Blanc wines that feature aromatics, intensity and abundant acidity. Gewurztraminer whites commonly bequeath exotic floral and spice and lively aromas that literally jump out of the glass. Rieslings tend to have restrained fruit, lively acidity and good minerality.
Isacs is the founder and CEO of EnjoyGourmet, a leading gourmet digital (www.enjoygourmet.com.cn) and print media company in China. He has authored over a dozen wine and food books including the awarded ISACS Guides and other gourmet books and is a wine consultant to governments, wine regions and organizations. He also hosts wine events for leading organizations and companies throughout China. Contact John via jcolumn@ enjoygourmet.com.
All the aforementioned qualities make the whites of Alto Adige perfect companions to many tomato preparations.
The China market has a limited offering of Alto Adige wines but fortunately a few of the best producers have wines available in Shanghai. St Michael-Eppan is one of most acclaimed wineries with three exceptional whites, the Montiggl Riesling, Lahn Sauvignon and Gewurztraminer. All exhibit the fresh and sophisticated qualities expected of top Alto Adige whites.
For seven generations Franz Haas has been run by the first-born son of the same name. This gem of winery in the foothills of the Dolomite Mountains is best known for Pinot Noir red wines but also makes exceptional whites. The fresh, rich and elegant Franz Haas Pinot Grigio is a beautifully crafted wine with fruit sourced from a select number of vineyards ranging from 300 to 800 meters above sea level.
Equally distinguished whites from Franz Haas include their Gewurztraminer, Muller Thurgau and Manna Cuvee, a blend of Riesling, Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc and Kerner. Two additional Alto Adige producers to look for are Alois Lageder and Elena Walch.
Curry Gaeng is truly Thai in spirit. It is a secret gem tucked inside Fantang food hall on Yanping Road, where owner Valantina Tsoi serves the most authentic Thai curries to her guests.
“I lamented the fact that Shanghai does not have any solid Thai curry options so I wanted to bring that possibility here,” Tsoi said.
Tsoi is originally from Hong Kong but her grandparents are Thai Chinese so she grew up on Thai cuisine.
“On a vacation to Southern Thailand a couple of years ago, I was staying at an eco resort where they made all the curry pastes themselves, mostly from herbs grown in their own garden. Those were the most delicious curries I’ve had. It was then I understood the secret of a good curry is to make it from scratch,” she said.
After Tsoi’s curry epiphany she returned to Thailand several times to discover, research and learn the different curry styles from the country’s many regions.
Armed with new knowledge of curry-making, the sommelier turned entrepreneur wanted to give it a try by launching a delivery-only shop a year ago.
“But when the current venue came up it made total sense because of the central location and proximity to my customer base,” she said.
The current space is small but efficient, with a clear branding on Thai curries.
“I focus on Thai curries because they are very under-represented in Shanghai
and around the world — maybe because there are so many Indian and Japanese options around. I also wanted to bring fresh and exciting Thai food to the city that is as close to what you would find in Thailand,” Tsoi said.
Tsoi says there are so many ingredients and a huge amount of handiwork involved in Thai curry making that it doesn’t make sense for the average cook to attempt it at home, but at the same time, good curries have to be made from scratch.
“We don’t use any MSG or additives, we hope to deliver curries that are delicious and healthy by just combining the pure natural flavors of fresh ingredients.”
Curry Gaeng serves several different curries with regional differences. The restaurant’s main character belongs to its pungency of herbs. They can be any combination: spicy, salty, sweet and umami or differ in their styles. They
can be wet or dry, or with or without coconut milk.
“I wanted my menu to reflect particular styles from different Thai regions. Instead of the usual ‘traffic light’ (red, green, yellow) curries you find in most Thai restaurants, with options to swap and change just the proteins (chicken, pork, beef), we present our curries in their rightful combinations and styles,” Tsoi said.
Signature dishes include the central Thai-style Gaeng Phet, a red curry of duck, pineapple and cherry tomatoes, and Kua Kling, a dry curry of chicken that is originally from Southern Thailand. They start these signature dishes by making their respective curry pastes containing around 15 ingredients. For red curry, its paste gets cooked with coconut cream to release its flavors, and then stock and ingredients are added and boiled, yielding a saucy, liquid
curry. For a dry curry, they dry roast the curry paste in a pan without water and continue the dry roasting process with minced chicken, yielding in a sauce-less curry that is spicy and savory.
For Tsoi, who previously worked with craft spirits in sales and marketing, playing with unusual drinks besides the flavors and textures of Thailand has been a revelation. She supports local independent startup brands, including hard seltzers from Kith and Kin, craft beer from Witchcraft and Cita, and fruit sodas from PAO, all of which are made in China.
“Kith and Kin seltzers are brewed in Shangri-La with natural Tibetan mountain spring water and naturally sweetened with monkfruit and no added sugar or coloring. These craft seltzers brewed from grapefruit and pomelo pair especially well with our fiery Thai curries,” she said.