It’s fair to say that if you’re after the best tomatoes in the world, you turn to Italy. No other cuisine celebrates these fruits with such enthusiasm; they can be found in every aspect of Italian cooking, whether raw dressed in olive oil or as the base for a fantastic pasta sauce. Combine that with Italy’s overall approach to food – the best ingredients prepared authentically and simply to highlight the produce’s natural flavour – and it’s no wonder cooks all over the world want Italian tomatoes in their kitchens.
Of course, not all recipes are best suited to fresh tomatoes, and here in the UK it can be difficult to source them, as they tend to lose their flavour when transported fresh in refrigerated trucks. Instead, we use that store cupboard staple – tinned tomatoes – to make everything from quick weeknight dinners to more complex dinner party dishes. While some tinned fruits and vegetables are seen as inferior to their fresh counterparts, tinned tomatoes are a cook’s favourite in both Italy and abroad. Not only do they save you the hassle of blanching, peeling, deseeding and chopping your own tomatoes, they're also available year-round as a quick-fire way to create sauces, soups and more – both fresh and slow-cooked.
Today, British supermarkets dedicate whole aisles to tinned tomatoes, chopped tomatoes and passata, as the products have become so integral to our daily cooking. But the flavour and texture between brands can vary massively. As with any aspect of food, the quality of the produce you put in is going to have a drastic effect on the final product. And as Cirio is Italy’s most popular brand of tinned tomatoes, it’s safe to say their tins are the ones to reach for. But how do Cirio tomatoes differ from others, and why are they better?
