Working as a high-profile supporter for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, since 2018 I’ve travelled to Beirut and Jordan, meeting people, recording their displaced food stories and family recipes and cooking together. Food needs no translation but one thing we always talk about is the smell of tomatoes, the smell of the leaves and the excitement of the vines bearing fruit. I think every culture has a tomato story, so here’s some amazing tomato recipes from Poland, Korea, Palestine, the Pacific and India for you to enjoy in your own delicious homes.
1 Liam’s quick tomato kimchi Liam owns a massive greenhouse just outside of Galway and without him our tomato harvest in the west of Ireland would get a little tricky. This is a rough-and-ready recipe that will last about a week in your fridge. Take 500g freshly sliced tomatoes, 20g grated ginger, 5 cloves garlic, ½ white onion and some Korean chives (if you can’t find them spring onions will be fine). Toss in a bowl with 4 teaspoons fish sauce, 35g raw sugar, 30g gochugaru (Korean red chilli flakes) and 20g maesilaek (a Korean green plum paste – if you can’t find maesilaek use apple juice). Pop it in the fridge for 2 days in a jar with a weight on top to keep it submerged. When ready, garnish with toasted sesame seeds and serve with ice-cold beer.
2 Raw fish with frozen tomato à la vodka This sounds crazy but every year I fill a big preserving jar with vodka, basil and big tomatoes (stalks and all), then preserve them for around six months. Then I decant the vodka and use it for Bloody Marys, discard the basil and pop the boozy tomatoes in the freezer. These adorn my raw fish: the Kiwi classic using snapper, coconut milk, lime juice, green pepper, spring onions, some charred corn and coriander. I finish it with a large grating of my boozy frozen tomato goodness and serve with spicy Mexican corn chips – everyone goes wild for it.
3 Piotr’s cucumber & tomato mizera Piotr is my best pal and is originally from Krakow but has a stunning Polish/ Irish accent. He is married to the wonderful Frank, and we often eat this salad together in their country home in Wicklow. Remove the seeds from 2 cucumbers, slice thinly, spread out and sprinkle with salt. After 20 minutes, pat dry with a paper towel. Slice 3 tomatoes as thinly as possible and combine the cucumber and tomatoes with 250g sour cream, 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon sugar, some black pepper, 35g spring onions and 20g fresh dill. Serve in the garden with any kind of chops.
4 Tomato bhaiya I work in India a lot and this amazing fried tomato snack blows my mind every time – it’s tomato topped with a bright green chutney and coated with chickpea flour and fried to perfection. For the green chutney, blitz 35g each coriander, mint and peanuts with 10g ginger, 2 jalapeños, 2 teaspoons lemon juice, 1 teaspoon each cumin and sugar and 1 teaspoon oil. Make a batter with 150g chickpea flour, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon each garam masala, ground coriander, cumin and turmeric, and enough water to make a thick batter. Slice some firm tomatoes and have your deep fryer ready to go at 180℃. Take one slice tomato, add a dollop of the green chutney on top, spoon the chickpea flour batter over the top and drop straight away in the deep fryer and cook until golden and crispy. I serve with mango chutney to make the perfect party snack.
Wairoa-born Jess Murphy is chef-owner of Michelin-awarded restaurant Kai in Galway, Ireland. She was named Global Ambassador for 2024 at the Women in Food & Drink Aotearoa New Zealand Awards.
