Canned Tomatoes

[Jinmyo]

I think they do say if they are. My Nicastro's don't. My Orgoglio do.

[Jaymes]

I don't know what brand I buy, but I get them up at Teitel Bros. on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx. They sell the big cans (number 10, is it?) of phony San Marzanos (grown in the USA from the same seeds) and they're quite good.

I adore these domestically grown San Marzanos! They are, in my opinion, the most delicious canned/boxed product. The tomatoes are always whole and firm, not falling apart like most brands, and the have a great, tangy flavor.

Here is a link that shows the can--the graphic label is impossible to miss.

http://www.cybercucina.com/ccdocs/products/SM5012.html

(Don't know a thing about the site...)

That's the exact same thing I buy. I knew it was going to be when you said that the "graphic label is impossible to miss." So, I hit the link and sure enough, it is.

I think they're wonderful.

[bushey]

I like to use Pomi.  But my mom who is 87 yrs. old and has been making gravy all her

life (and it's the best ever), swears by Contatina Tomato Puree.

shugga -- My mom, too, used Contadina products. For her sauce it was always a few cans of puree, a few cans of sauce and a can or two (small size) of the tomato paste. No Italian heritage whatsoever, but she made the best spaghetti sauce ever.

I lived in Worcester, MA for many years and that's where I first heard the word "gravy" used for sauce. There was one street that comprised the Italian commercial section of the city and there were a couple of great diners. When you ordered cutlets, the waitress would say "Red or brown gravy on that, hon?"

[nyfirepatrolchef]

I really like Muir Glen too...Iused to live on Redpack...but found Muir Glen somewhat more conistant to my taste.

[JackieL]

Going back to the original question - to use whole or not to use whole - if you cook whole canned tomatoes for long enough, they disintergrate anyway. A neat squish with the back of a wooden spoon and they become part of the sauce if you want to speed the process. Having said that, I prefer chopped toms because I'm basically a lazy cook. By the way - I've just joined...hello to all!

[Fat Guy]

Thanks for joining us.

[gabe]

Maybe it's because we're officially in the dead of winter, but I'm thinking about how long it's going to be before good fresh tomatoes are available again. Which got me thinking about canned tomatoes -- surely a kitchen staple.

My standard for a few years has been the "San Marzano" brand that is available in many supermarkets -- the one with the mostly white label. I think they're pretty good, certainly much better than store brand or Hunt/Del Monte crapola. I've tried a few of the organic brands Whole Foods carries -- Muir Glen, Walnut Acres (or something like that) -- but they're not good enough to make me want to stock up on them over San Marzano brand (which, I know, does not actually come from Italy).

I've yet to acquaint myself with the brands they carry in Italian specialty stores like Claudio or DiBruno or Carlino's -- some of which surely must exceed San Marzano brand in quality (if also likely in price). Which ones are worth trying? Are there any brands out there that, like Parmagiano-Reggiano, will make me unable to contemplate buying inferior domestic imitations?

[PoorLawyer]

I have actually been able to get actual imported san marzano canned whole tomatoes at Whole Foods in DC, but they don't always have them. I can't say as I notice a difference between the domestic and imported, but either one is better than most other brand.

[tommy]

but they're not good enough to make me want to stock up on them over San Marzano brand (which, I know, does not actually come from Italy).

aren't all san marzano tomato products made from tomatoes from italy? i had assumed so, and just today i suggested this to someone. i hope i wasn't wrong.

anyway, i've been liking Pomi brand tomato products. made by parmalat i think, and widely available i'd think.

Edited December 22, 2003 by tommy (log)

[PoorLawyer]

I believe the domestic ones use seeds from Italy but are grown here.

[gabe]

but they're not good enough to make me want to stock up on them over San Marzano brand (which, I know, does not actually come from Italy).

aren't all san marzano tomato products made from tomatoes from italy? i had assumed so, and just today i suggested this to someone. i hope i wasn't wrong.

anyway, i've been liking Pomi brand tomato products. made by parmalat i think, and widely available i'd think.

Thanks for the tip on Pomi. I've seen that brand at the Italian stores and remember using it when I was living abroad (not in Italy, though).

The white-labeled San Marzano brand tomatoes that I'm talking about have a blurb on the label that says, basically, that they used to import San Marzano tomatoes from Italy, but the quality dropped and so they decided to switch to high-quality domestic tomatoes. I think they're actually canned in New Jersey. San Marzano is a place, a varietal, and a brand, so the company is certainly capitalizing on the confusion here. But the tomatoes are good.

[tommy]

if this is the brand, i'd say they're definitely capitalizing. at least they use the phrase "san marzano style" in the description, though. Edited December 22, 2003 by tommy (log)

[menton1]

The best tomatoes I've had in Philly are from Rosa Foods-- they have lovely San Marzano Imported tomatoes, and they add whole basil leaves for a nice touch. I've only been able to get this product in Philadelphia area stores. Web site: http://www.rosafoods.com

[gabe]

Tommy, that's the brand I'm talking about -- my usual go-to can.

[Fat Guy]

Just because a can says San Marzano on it doesn't mean the tomatoes are from Italy. Most tomatoes sold in the US as San Marzano are from California and Florida, as far as I know. Unless the packaging specifically says the tomatoes are San Marzano tomatoes imported from San Marzano, they could be San Marzano-style (aka San Marzano the type) tomatoes from anywhere.

I agree that the Pomi tomatoes are excellent. Indeed, I think they are superior to all others, even legitimate San Marzano tomatoes packed in metal. It took me awhile to acquire the taste for the Pomi tomatoes, because the "canned" taste was so much a part of what I expected from canned tomatoes (even with plastic-lined cans, you get that taste, so it must be from the process not the metal). But now it's hard for me to enjoy any other type.

[tanabutler]

anyway, i've been liking Pomi brand tomato products. made by parmalat i think, and widely available i'd think.

I totally agree. I've been buying Pomi in a box at Trader Joe's for quite a while.

I do like the Muir Glen Fire-Roasted Tomatoes very much in spicy sausage pasta dishes.

[tommy]

Just because a can says San Marzano on it doesn't mean the tomatoes are from Italy. Most tomatoes sold in the US as San Marzano are from California and Florida, as far as I know. Unless the packaging specifically says the tomatoes are San Marzano tomatoes imported from San Marzano, they could be San Marzano-style (aka San Marzano the type) tomatoes from anywhere.

so it's kinda like that Korbel "champagne" they've been pushing on us for years. that's unfortunate. i guess i'll have to check the labels, or, better yet, find a brand that i enjoy and buy it exclusively. like pomi.

[Fat Guy]

For what it's worth, Pomi tomatoes, while not San Marzano, are from Italy.

What's the best price you all are getting on the Pomi boxes?

[menton1]

Wasn't there some issue about tomatoes and milk packaged in cardboard boxes? I seem to remember something about a gas used and/or irradiation for perserving the product in the cardboard.

[Fat Guy]

I thought Parmalat stuff was just UHT processed, in other words really heavily pasteurized. I wasn't under the impression that it was irradiated, though I wouldn't care.

[menton1]

I wasn't under the impression that it was irradiated, though I wouldn't care.

Well, that statement opens up a whole can of worms-- it would be a big digression to discuss this in depth here-- An Egullet search shows it has not really been discussed in great detail; perhaps a thread should be started in the General Food Topics--

Meanwhile, here is just a small tidbit for the story from a well-respected non-profit organization (no axe to grind), Public Citizen.... Food Safety and Irradiation

Edited December 22, 2003 by menton1 (log)

[bloviatrix]

anyway, i've been liking Pomi brand tomato products.  made by parmalat i think, and widely available i'd think.

Pomi is made by Parmalat. I pulled out a box to look after reading about the "accounting error" over the weekend.

What's the best price you all are getting on the Pomi boxes?

FG --Fairway and Shop Rite in NJ have it for $1.49. Have you found a place locally that's less?

Edited December 22, 2003 by bloviatrix (log)

[Fat Guy]

They were 99 cents at Teitel Bros. on Arthur Ave. last time I was up there. Best price I've ever seen on that product.

[Fat Guy]

I wasn't under the impression that it was irradiated, though I wouldn't care.

Well, that statement opens up a whole can of worms-- it would be a big digression to discuss this in depth here-- An Egullet search shows it has not really been discussed in great detail; perhaps a thread should be started in the General Food Topics--

Meanwhile, here is just a small tidbit for the story from a well-respected non-profit organization (no axe to grind), Public Citizen.... Food Safety and Irradiation

Well respected by you, maybe. Not by me!

Feel free to start such a thread. See you there.

[Rich Pawlak]

I have also enjoyed Pomi crushed tomatoes; they make a sauce of stunning brightness and color. I've also had great success with Luigi Vitelli whole pear or crushed tomatoes, which bear a label stating that they are either packed in Turkey (usually the crushed tomatoes) or Italy (usually the whole pear tomatoes). Amazingly vibrant color when turned into a red gravy.