by Monica L. Garrett

Created on: September 18, 2009

Fried Green Tomatoes with Parmesan Cheese - Like they served at the Whistle Stop Cafe?

If you haven't seen the movie Fried Green Tomatoes, you may not understand the reference to the Whistle Stop Cafe. However, fried green tomatoes have been around for a long time and are actually quite tasty-even to people (like myself) who don't like regular, plump, raw red tomatoes!

They taste nothing like their ripe counterpart. Fried Green Tomatoes are crisp and crunchy and truly offer a delicious, warm snack! It is told they were fried because they could not be eaten raw and so many unripe tomatoes would have gone to waste otherwise. I, for one, am glad this was discovered because they are a great treat that will stay popular in the South for many years to come.

In order to make real, "Southern" Fried Green Tomatoes, you will need:

3 medium green tomatoes, sliced

1/4 cup cornmeal

3/4 cup Parmesan cheese (as opposed to bread crumbs in other recipes)

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup of vegetable oil or canola oil

Salt (to taste)

Instructions:

Slice your tomatoes and add salt and pepper to the slices. Set aside. Combine cornmeal, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, flour and oregano in a shallow dish. Put your 2 beaten eggs in a bowl. Dip your tomatoes into the egg and then into the dry mixture. In a heavy skillet, heat oil on medium high and fry the battered tomatoes a few at a time.

For best results, serve immediately as they are best HOT!

Fun Facts:

Although Fried Green Tomatoes are known to be a Southern dish, they were actually served in Italy in the sixteenth century. (http://www.globalgourmet.com/ggt/ggt0698/ggt062398.h tml)

The first published reference to frying green tomatoes appeared in an 1835 issue of the New England Farmer, which reported that they should be sliced, like apples, and fried in butter.(http://thestrongbuzz.com/potluck/details.php?item_id =22)

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