The "New" Creole Tomato

[Oyster]

Back in the days gone by, the Creole Tomato was considered to be perfection in the local market. Never a pretty tomato, it was usually very large, had 3 or 4 unsightly slits from the stem running in various directions down the sides, and was very heavy and filled with flavor and juice. Todays version of the Creole Tomato is usually a very pretty and attractive (and very marketable) tomato that can be sold in supermarkets nationally. This is a result of LSU Ag doing all they could to produce hybrids that would appeal to being sold in stores beyond the local markets. Not so in the bygone days! Anyone outside of a very narrow local market would take one look and say..."EWWWWW!!!!"

Having said that, our local tomatoes are very tasty, however in my world, they can't hold a candle to the taste of an "original" Creole from the past. I had some of the old "ugly" Creole's last week which were raised in St. Bernard, and the taste of yesteryear came shinning through. Delicious!

I miss the old Creoles. Nothing today taste even close to the old school juciy fruits. Not sure if anyone else has noticed the tremendous decline in Creole's taste, but one thing for sure...you would have to be pretty old...

Let me know if you see any real ugly Creoles in the stores/veggie stands!

Here is Dan Gill's take. I don't like it, and I wish it had never come about, as these varieties do nothing for me. He loses me when he states "But there are far better, more disease-resistant cultivars available these days, and 'Creole' is not on the LSU AgCenter's recommended list."

Not good Dan... not good at all...

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"The Creole tomato has achieved a status of "vegetable supreme." There is no denying that we can grow some of the tastiest tomatoes in the world.

Any red, medium- to large-fruited tomato cultivar, grown locally in the River Parishes and vine-ripened, is considered a Creole tomato. The local growing conditions and vine-ripening give Creole tomatoes flavor superior to any tomato harvested green and shipped from other areas. Local commercial producers of Creole tomatoes use several different cultivars ('Celebrity' was the most common for many years).

There is a 'Creole' tomato cultivar that was developed by the LSU Agricultural Center many years ago. People who think that 'Creole' refers to a particular cultivar tend to buy and plant tomatoes labeled 'Creole.' But there are far better, more disease-resistant cultivars available these days, and 'Creole' is not on the LSU AgCenter's recommended list.

Recommended cultivars include these vining types: 'Better Boy,' 'Fantastic,' 'Monte Carlo' and 'Sweet Million' (cherry); and these bush types: 'Bingo,' 'Celebrity,' 'Mountain Delight,' 'Solar Set' and 'Sunleaper.'

[Isabella Maja]

I'll bite & say yes, I've noticed the decline in the taste of Creole Tomatoes. Yes, I'm old enough to know the difference.

Ok, so tell me where you had the ugly ones. I want some!

[crrush]

I've been researching Creole tomatoes lately, and I spoke to Dan Gill and a county agent at the St. Bernard Parish LSU AgCenter.

It was sad to hear Gill say "Creole" is purely a marketing term these days.

As for "ugly" Creoles ... someone I spoke to mentioned that grocery stores, knowing our passion for Creoles, ask farmers to add boxes of "culls" (the split, ugly rejects) to their orders so they can add them to their tomato displays -- people don't buy the culls, but the sight of a few split tomatoes reassures people that they are Creoles.

I wasn't eating tomatoes back in '69 when the real Creole was around. If you find real Creoles these days, it's most likely because some backyard gardener has gone to great lengths to find the seeds (and even then, Gill said they may or may not be the real deal -- LSU AgCenter doesn't maintain a seed stock on Creoles).

That said...I'm averaging about 1 "Creole" per day for the last week or so. It might not be like the Creole of yesteryear, but it's worlds better than the mealy, gnarly, midwest tomatoes I've avoided for the past four years.

[Mrs. Fury]

I'll bite & say yes, I've noticed the decline in the taste of Creole Tomatoes. Yes, I'm old enough to know the difference.

Ok, so tell me where you had the ugly ones. I want some!

You can get some next to Taco Bell in LaPlace on Airline. It's by the Home Depot. Don't tell anyone.

[ratcheese]

When we lived out in the country, I used to be into heirloom watermelons. I found some really interesting companies specializing in heirloom seeds that usually have some interesting background on the seeds. You can still buy the seeds for the watermelon that won first prize at the 1845 State Fair of Somewhere, for instance. Cool stuff.

You should be able to get some good info through heirloom seed folks.

This was my first and only Google attempt @ heirloom seeds creole. http://store.tomatofest.com/Creole_p/tf-0129.htm


Found an heirloom creole onion that I'd not heard of either. Sounds nice. http://rareseeds.com/cart/index.php?p=p ... rsion=true

[Schuarta]

Now you really have me playing a Pavlov dog (drool). While the Socialist People's Republic of California (next to me) grows a gazillion pounds of tomatoes each year, hauled piled on top of each other in double, huge semi's all over the roads, they are tastless red golf balls bred for machine pickability and truck survival.

I sorely miss your Creole Tomatoes, and (a good second) the tomatoes I grew up with from the sandy soil of South Jersey. They were never bought all red, acquired partially green (excellent for frying), ripening on the window sill, with the occasional slit.

I too love the classic tomato sandwich - soft white bread, good mayo, iceberg - and occasionally crisp bacon slices!

[Jeeves]

I too love the classic tomato sandwich - soft white bread, good mayo, iceberg - and occasionally crisp bacon slices!

I had one of those today, with crisp bacon slices, at Paul's Cafe in Ponchatoula.

[Hobbes]

Jeeves, that sandwich looks so good you have me drooling like Schuarta's dogs. Where is Paul's Cafe? Is it on the main street by the railroad tracks?

[hungryone]

I've planted the LSU-developed, named variety "Creole" and it never produces worth a hoot. Two or three tomatoes, all season, per bush. Feh.

The best-tasting, most consistent performers in my garden are the hybrids Better Boy, Beefmaster, and Celebrity: the same varieties planted by most market gardeners in south LA....this year, Lemon Boy is going like gangbusters, too. Ask at the farmer's market, the grower will usually know exactly what varieties are on offer.

As for the cracks, don't over-romanticize the effect. It's just a healed-over split; tomatoes tend to crack a bit after heavy rains. They add nothing to the taste. Some varieties tend to crack more than others. I think the decline in taste is related to more intensive cropping and fertilizing. My all-organic backyard patch (only compost for fertilizer, no chemical pesticides) produces excellent-tasting fruit. I've purchased fruit of the same varieties grown by commercial sellers and experienced sub-par flavor.

2 cents more on tomatoes: they continue to ripen after picking. So let 'em sit at room temperature for a day or four after picking or purchase--the best flavor is at the slightly over-ripe point.

[Mrs. Fury]

Jeeves, that sandwich looks so good you have me drooling like Schuarta's dogs. Where is Paul's Cafe? Is it on the main street by the railroad tracks?

Yes, it's right next to the gator and the country market. Get one of his famous strawberry daiquiris while you are there. You will probably be served by one of Paul's seven (or is it five?) daughters.