Fried green tomatoes, a seasonal favorite, are often featured on the appetizer menu in restaurants throughout the Deep South. But you can make them at home!
It is as simple as washing and slicing the tomatoes, dipping the slices in an egg, coating them with flour and cornmeal, and frying until the coating is nicely browned and crispy.
Fried green tomatoes are a delicious side dish, a filling vegetarian meal, a main ingredient in a sandwich, or a snack to be enjoyed on their own. They taste good left over, too. Keep them refrigerated and warm them in the air fryer, and they taste freshly fried. We love our air fryer.
So, those of us from the South consider fried green tomatoes a quintessential Southern dish. After conducting some research, I discovered something quite shocking.
The dish originated in the northern United States, where the growing season is shorter and tomatoes didn't have enough time to ripen before winter. The cooks created a way to use those green tomatoes, and fried green tomatoes were born.
The movie "Fried Green Tomatoes" made them famous, but it also led people to believe they were a Southern classic.
It doesn't matter where they originated; we love them anyway. Green tomatoes are good for our health because they are rich in vitamins and minerals and low in calories. Frying them adds a bit of extra stuff, but hey, you can always bake them to keep things healthier.
What You Need
You will need a knife, a cutting board, measuring cups and spoons, and a good nonstick frying pan.
Fried Green Tomatoes Recipe
Fried green tomatoes are wonderful just as they are, or serve a side of your favorite dipping sauce or salad dressing for added zip. I enjoy them with buttermilk ranch dressing or Russian dressing.
Ingredients:
- 4 to 5 medium green tomatoes picked right off the vine and washed
- 1 cup flour
- 2 Beaten eggs
- 1 cup cornmeal
- ¼ teaspoon powdered garlic
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste I use about ¼ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon pepper.
- 4-6 tablespoons vegetable oil for frying or bacon grease if you have it!
Instructions:
- Slice the green tomatoes into ¼-inch thick slices, discarding the top stem end and the bottom round end.
- Place the flour in a flat dish.
- Place the beaten eggs or egg substitute in another flat dish.
- Put the cornmeal in a third flat dish add the powdered garlic, salt, and pepper, and mix well.
- Heat the oil in a heavy, non-stick skillet.
- When the oil is hot, dip the green tomato slices first in the flour to coat both sides, then into the egg, and finally the cornmeal mixture, coating both sides.
- Gently place them in the skillet, but don’t overcrowd them.
- Cook until they are brown on one side (about 3 minutes, depending on how hot the skillet is).
- Turn the slices over to cook the other side.
- Repeat until all the green tomatoes are cooked.
- Keep them warm on a platter in the oven until all are cooked and are ready to serve.
Fried Green Tomatoes Southern Recipe
Author: Recipe Idea Shop
Ingredients
- 4 to 5 medium green tomatoes picked right off the vine and washed
- 1 cup flour
- 2 Beaten eggs
- 1 cup cornmeal
- ¼ teaspoon powdered garlic
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste I use about ¼ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon pepper.
- 4-6 tablespoons canola oil or bacon grease for frying
Instructions
- Slice the green tomatoes into ¼ inch thick slices, discarding the top stem end and the bottom round end.
- Place the flour in a flat dish.
- Place the beaten eggs or egg substitute in another flat dish.
- Put the corn meal in a third flat dish and add the powdered garlic, salt and pepper, and mix well.
- Heat the oil in a heavy non-stick skillet.
- When the oil is hot, dip the green tomato slices first in the flour to coat both sides then into the egg, and finally the corn meal mixture, coating both sides.
- Gently place them in the skillet but don’t over crowd them.
- Cook until they are brown on one side (about 3 minutes depending on how hot the skillet is).
- Turn the slices over to cook the other side.
- Repeat until all the green tomatoes are cooked.
- Keep them warm on a platter in the oven until all are cooked and are ready to serve.
Nutrition (may vary depending on ingredients and amounts used)
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