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Seeded and diced tomatoes are a basic ingredient in many foods of all nationalities. It can be a messy process if you are not familiar with it, but with a little practice you will have your tomatoes recipe ready in no time at all.

The secret to successfully seeding and dicing a tomato is a sharp, serrated knife. A serrated knife will cut through a tomato easier than a non-serrated knife which will cause less bruising to the tomato. The sharper the knife the easier it is to cut with.

To begin the process of seeding and dicing a tomato first wash and dry the tomato, being careful not to bruise the fruit.

To remove the seeds from a tomato, cut the tomato, top to bottom, into quarters. Take a quarter of the tomato and lay it skin side down on a cutting board. With a sharp knife, gently scrape the seeds away from the flesh of the tomato. Repeat this process with the remaining quarters.

To dice the tomato, gently flatten one quarter of the tomato onto the cutting board. With a sharp knife cut the tomato lengthwise into 1/4 to 1/2 inch julienne strips, depending on what your recipe calls for. Hold the strips together and cut the strips across every 1/4 to 1/2 inch. Repeat this process with the remaining quarters of the tomato.

If the recipe calls for the tomato to be peeled then this should be done first. The easiest way to peel a tomato is to remove the core from the top and score the bottom of the tomato with a sharp knife making a shallow "x" into the skin of the fruit. Then place the tomato into boiling water for no longer than a minute. Remove the tomato from the boiling water and place into an ice bath. This shocks the tomato and prevents it from cooking further. The peel will be pulling away from the flesh of the tomato. Gently pull the skin off the tomato and you are ready to move onto the seeding and dicing process.

It is best to use your diced tomatoes as soon as possible. Once they have been cut tomatoes begin to lose their flavor and their texture will deteriorate. If you must store them before use, keep them in enclosed in an airtight, refrigerated container and use within 24 hours.

Learn more about this author, Jennifer Flood.
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