Say Tomato--45 Ways to Enjoy Lycopene

by: Chung-pai Liang

Taipei Taiwan: Gourmand Press 2003, $270.00, Paperback
ISBN: 986-7785-15-0

Reviewed by: Jacqueline M. Newman
Winter Volume: 2004 Issue: 11(4) page(s): 23

Aside from recipes, learning about what the author calls: The magic of lycopene is yours when you read and use this book. It has considerable background about the tomato, originally from the Andes region of South America. In Taiwan, where the author comes from, tomatoes are popular, and known as stinky persimmon, sweet orange, western persimmon, small pumpkin, and of course xihongshi or tomato. This fruit, yes tomato is a fruit, was introduced to Taiwan in 1622 during Dutch occupation.

My, what one can learn reading this book. There is fascinating information in the first twenty pages that includes how to use the tomato. The recipes that follow are mostly, but not all Chinese. They are for main dishes, noodle and rice dishes, soups, side dishes, and drinks. They represent tomatoes, Chinese style, and foods and food ideas with Chinese taste. This author’s cookbook efforts are prolific, this but one of her many efforts. She has cooking shows on TV, writes about food for newspapers and magazines, and has published more than one hundred books about food.

Stuffed Tomatoes with Pork
Ingredients:
2 tomatoes
1 to 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 pound ground pork
1/2 Tablespoon rice wine
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 Tablespoon cornstarch mixed with half-tablespoon cold water
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 Tablespoon ketchup
3 Tablespoons corn oil
Preparation:
1. Rinse tomatoes, cut in half, hollow out their insides, then sprinkle with cornstarch.
2. Mix pork with wine, salt, and cornstarch-water mixture. Divide this mixture into four parts and stuff each tomato half with one of them.
3. Heat oil in a wok or pan, and fry tomato, meat side down, until lightly browned, then add soy sauce, ketchup, sugar, and half cup of water, and simmer about ten minutes or until the liquid is almost dry. Then serve.

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