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Tomato Confit (French Tomates Confites)

french-tomatesconfitesHere's an excellent recipe for encouraging flavour and sweetness from any tomato, even ones that are less than ideal, using a French technique called: confit, which means "preserved". The slow roasting with olive oil concentrates and sweetens flavours, making any tomato boast-worthy. This process also brings out their beautiful sweetness and infuses them with some amazing garlic and thyme flavour. While roasting will drastically change the flavour and texture of the tomatoes, cooking in oil will produce a nice plump and juicy tomato that's perfect for smearing on toast, pizza, grilled meat or stirred into pasta. The tomatoes can be stored in the refrigerator for at least a month so you can enjoy this confit long after your harvest. Or you can make a large batch and give them as gifts for the holidays. Just make sure to refrigerate them.

1 lb cherry tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
5-10 sprigs fresh thyme
2 tsp. granulated or brown sugar
1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. kosher or sea salt
2 cups extra-virgin olive oil

Whisk together the sugar, balsamic vinegar, salt and olive oil.

Leave the vines on the tomatoes if you wish, or you can remove them. Gently wash the tomatoes and add them to a baking dish, along with the chopped garlic and thyme. Pour the olive oil mixture over the top of the tomatoes.

Bake uncovered for 1½-2 hours or until the tomatoes have wrinkled and softened, but not totally burst.

Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool to room temperature. Serve them right away over crusty bread, in pasta, or on top of grilled fish or chicken.

Cook's Notes:

  • Grill some bread, slather it with some ricotta or mascarpone cheese and then top with some of the confit.
  • Toss some of the tomatoes and olive oil with freshly cooked pasta. Sprinkle with a bit of freshly grated Parmesan cheese; Pecorino Romano also works well, too.
  • Use the tomatoes as a condiment for grilled chicken or fish.
  • Add the tomatoes to a fresh arugula salad, or alongside freshly sliced mozzarella, and then top with chopped fresh herbs.
  • Try using an infused olive oil (such as lemon or garlic) for even more flavour.
  • Store the tomatoes in a jar covered with the olive oil. If you have leftover olive oil you can also store it in the refrigerator and use it in cooking or for salad dressings.
  • Storage: Once the tomatoes are cool, you can place them into jars and refrigerate for up to 1 month.