Many people think that authentic Santorini’s tomatoes are small, beautiful round tomatoes. Something like what we know as cherry tomatoes.
The reality is very different. Authentic Santorini’s tomatoes are small, ugly looking, bad looking tomatoes. As bad looking as they are, they are delicious!!!
In Santorini’s pre-tourist period, the island’s economy was based on the production and sale of tomatoes for processing in one of the many factories that existed on the island.
These tomatoes were used to make the famous tomato balls.
The truth behind Santorini’s tomato balls
In fact, the inhabitants of Santorini (most of them farmers) were so poor that they couldn’t afford buy meat and cook meatballs. So they used, the cheap materials they had to make fried balls: Santorini’s tomatoes and flower. This recipe is the now famous tomato balls of Santorini.
The truth behind Santorini’s tomato balls is that it was a recipe created out of necessity. It was the poor people’s food.
Today, tomato balls are a very tasty snack. But it wasn’t always like that.
Santorini’s tomatoes from my garden
And this year I planted some Santorini tomato seeds given to me by my wife’s uncle who is from Santorini. Authentic Santorini’s tomato seeds.
Today I harvested and tasted from the garden, the first Santorini’s tomatoes for 2022!
Tags: CHERRY TOMATOES • SANTORINI ISLAND • TOMATO
