It's Tomato Season! Here's How To Use Each Kind

You must be signed in to print this content

It's the most wonderful time of the year… peak tomato season!

It's hard to go wrong with any tomato at this time of year, but each variety shines in their own way. Here's a guide on what tomato to cook what with! (But if you're making a caprese salad, anything goes!) You'll likely stumble upon dozens more exotic varieties at the farmer's market or your local nursery, but these are the more common types you'll find at most grocery stores.

Cherry Tomatoes
Giada features cherry tomatoes in tons of her recipes, and with good reason - while truly delicious in the peak of summer, they're sweet all year round, and their snappy bite with a juicy center makes them perfect for enjoying raw. Their dainty size is also fantastic for small bites and appetizers, like Antipasti Skewers or Mozzarella and Strawberry Bruschetta!
While great raw, we love them cooked, too! They're delicious cooked in olive oil until just-burst, making a deliciously sweet tomato sauce, like in Giada's Cherry Tomato Spaghetti. Another great way to cook an abundance of cherry tomatoes is to slowly simmer them in olive oil until they are almost like jam, and jar it up for tomato confit. It makes any piece of toast sing!

Grape Tomatoes
Grape tomatoes, while similar to their cherry counterparts, are unique n a few ways. The most noticeable difference is their oblong shape, more akin to a grape - hence the name! Think of grape tomatoes as a bit more meaty than the snappy, juicy cherry tomatoes.
In applications of cooking, you can use the two tomatoes interchangeably as the texture gets cooked down - like in Pasta Ponza.

Roma Tomatoes
Ah, the classic roma (also known as a plum tomato)! This tomato is meaty, with a thick skin and few seeds. We like to use these to make tomato sauces and rustic stews, like Giada's Tuscan inspired Brick Oven Chicken. Though a super ripe vine tomato would be our first choice for burgers and sandwiches, a Roma tomato works just as well for a hearty sandwich like a BLT!

Heirloom Tomatoes
Heirloom tomatoes are the darlings of summertime: bright, rich, tangy, and in a beautiful array of colors, there's no tomato that's tomato-ier than the heirloom. We use these for when we want that rich flavor to stand out - like in Giada's summery Watermelon and Basil Gazpacho. They're also great to showcase raw, shingled with mozzarella, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, basil and sea salt flakes for a perfect summertime caprese. When they're in peak season, they'll make the best BLT ever.

Sungold Tomatoes
We wait all year for these super-sweet tomatoes to crop up at the market! We add these to any dish that needs a bright pop of sweetness, either raw or roasted to really amp up the flavor - like in the Grilled Kale Salad from Giada On The Beach! The best way to eat them, though, is right out of the basket from the farmer's market like candy.

Vine Tomatoes
These quintessential tomatoes are good for almost any application. They're lovely in tomato soup, diced for a salad, halved and roasted until caramelized - when in doubt, turn to vine tomatoes! Use the most peak-season, sweet ones you can find for this super refreshing summer sandwich or these zesty turkey burgers!