£4.99/LB
This flavourful mini cherry vine tomato has a rich, sweet, refreshing taste and an irresistibly elegant freshness. A small tomato with a big personality. It’s ideal for salads and bread, but also very suitable for hot recipes.
Aren’t they just delicious – such fresh, healthy tomatoes! At RedStar we’re famous for them: tomatoes with taste. And you can actually find the different varieties in our ultra-modern greenhouses, each with its own enticing character. We’ve been growing these tomatoes using traditional methods for 65 years.
Because we know that you can really taste our love of the business! In our greenhouses, everything grows – as it should – in the ‘pure nature’ way. Bumblebees do much of the work: by pollinating the plants naturally. We only harvest the tomatoes when they’re beautifully red, and then we make sure they arrive at your table freshly picked. Because then you have a real RedStar: a top-quality tomato, tasty and healthy. An experience for all your senses!
Cherry tomatoes are generally much sweeter than large tomatoes. The size and colour of cherry tomatoes have a wide range, as there are hundreds of varieties. The perfect cherry tomato will be, first and foremost, in-season. It should be almost firm, thin, and smooth-skinned. The flavour will be a fine balance of sweet and tart. Like all tomatoes, cherry tomatoes can be classified based on how they grow, as their plants produce in two different forms: determinate or indeterminate. Determinate varieties grow on bush-like plants with short vines and bear just one crop per season, while indeterminate varieties are long, sprawling vine plants that bear fruit continuously throughout the season.
Cherry tomatoes are available year-round with a peak season in the summer months.
Tomatoes, originally termed Solanum Lycopersicum by Carl Linnaeus, are botanically referred to as Lycopersicon esculentum, although modern studies are encouraging a return to the original classification. Tomatoes are categorized in subgroups that represent variations observed within the tomato species, referred to as their cultivar: a botanical term that is a contraction of the two-word term cultivated variety, and is equivalent to what growers simply call a “variety.” Therefore, cherry tomatoes are more specifically called Lycopersicon esculentum var. cerasiforme, and they are further classified as either heirloom or hybrid. Heirloom cherry tomatoes are tomatoes that have been reproduced for generations without crossbreeding, whereas hybrid cherry tomatoes are the result of crossing two different varieties.
Cherry tomatoes are miniature versions of traditional beefsteak tomatoes, but they are equally as nutritious. In addition to being high in fibre and vitamin C, they also have a healthy dose of other vitamins and minerals that are essential for good health, including vitamin B-6, which helps your body metabolize protein and supports cognitive development and brain function. Vitamin A is also present, which aids your body in producing white blood cells and keeps your heart, lungs and kidneys working properly.
Cherry tomatoes are a versatile ingredient to have in your kitchen arsenal. Pair cherry tomatoes with other ingredients that are in season. Complimentary matches for cherry tomatoes include fresh corn, chillies, watermelon, shelling beans, fresh cheeses, scallops, prawns, eggplant, okra, cucumbers, fresh nuts, avocados, zucchini, and herbs such as mint, arugula and basil. Though cherry tomatoes are perfect for eating as-is fresh, cooking will enhance their sweetness and add depth to their flavour. Consider blanching and peeling the skin, flash blistering on the grill to impart smokiness, and making a sauce with mature fruits, or a tomato broth, which can be served warm or chilled. All varieties of cherry tomatoes should be stored away from direct sunlight at room temperature for approximately two to three days, or until ripe and ready to use, after which refrigeration can slow the process of decay and prevent them from ripening further. Bring chilled cherry tomatoes to room temperature before serving raw, or simply add to cooked preparations.
Cherry tomatoes were the first tomato species to be domesticated. They were, and still are, an inherent part of the indigenous diet of both South Americans and Central Americans. Aztec writings included the very first recipe for salsa, which contained cherry tomatoes, hot chilli peppers and salt.
Cherry tomatoes are descendants of the wild tomato, which traces back millions of years to coastal South America. Archaeological evidence suggests that Mesoamerican farmers cultivated the very first strains of cherry tomatoes at least a thousand miles away in northern Central America. Unlike larger common tomatoes, the genetic makeup of cherry tomatoes has remained almost unchanged. In fact, cherry tomatoes are the predecessors of large tomato cultivars, which are actually a mutation of the smaller cherry tomato. The first cultivated tomato fruits were the size of berries, and their flesh originally housed only two seed cavities.
5 Russell Parade
Golders Green Road
London. NW11 9NN
