What can I make with too many tomatoes?

Those tomatoes on the counter are starting to wrinkle, and the ones in the fridge have maybe two days left before they become a science experiment. You bought them with good intentions, but now you need to turn a glut of tomatoes into something worth eating before they cross the point of no return.

The trouble with searching for tomato recipes online is that they assume tomatoes are all you care about. They do not know you also have half a tin of chickpeas, some wilting spinach and a block of feta that needs attention. A static recipe cannot see the full picture of what is about to go off in your kitchen or what else you could throw together to make the meal more interesting.

Quick tomato dinner ideas

If your tomatoes are still firm enough to slice, a simple tomato and white bean stew works brilliantly. Soften an onion, add the tomatoes (chopped roughly), throw in any tinned beans you have and let it all simmer down with garlic and whatever herbs are lurking in the cupboard. Serve it with crusty bread or over pasta, and you have turned a pile of ageing tomatoes into something hearty.

For tomatoes that are really soft, a quick tomato and egg skillet is your friend. Cook down the tomatoes with onions and spices until they collapse into a thick sauce, then crack eggs directly into the mixture and let them poach. It is filling, uses up tomatoes fast and works for dinner with flatbread or toast on the side.

A baked pasta situation handles large quantities well. Chop the tomatoes, toss them with cooked pasta, any cheese that needs using, a handful of olives or capers if you have them, then bake the whole lot until bubbling. The tomatoes release their juice as they cook, creating a sauce without any extra effort.

If you have rice and maybe some prawns or chicken, a tomato rice one-pot works wonders. Fry the tomatoes down with onion and garlic until they start to break apart, stir through the rice, add stock and whatever protein or veg you want to use up, then cover and let it steam. The tomatoes give the rice colour and a slight sweetness that makes it feel more intentional than it really is.

Tomatoes also rescue a basic frittata. Beat eggs, pour them over softened tomatoes and any other vegetables or cheese you need to clear out, then finish it under the grill. It is fast, uses up odds and ends, and the tomatoes stop it tasting like plain egg.

Why an app sees more than a recipe list

A recipe website will show you fifty ways to cook tomatoes, but it will not tell you which one makes sense when you also have courgettes going soft, leftover couscous in the fridge and a tin of tuna in the cupboard. Ask the Kitchen looks at everything you actually have right now and suggests what to make tonight based on what needs eating first. It stops you wasting the tomatoes and everything else that is quietly ageing behind them.

More dinners from what you've got

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